Shepherd

to the 100th anniversary of the blessed death of the holy righteous John of Kronstadt The 100th anniversary of the blessed death of the great Russian righteous All-Russian shepherd Father John of Kronstadt is approaching. Still in memory are the celebrations dedicated to the canonization of the ever-memorable Archpriest John (Sergiev). I remember my student years. I first touched upon the gracious theme of the shepherding of a holy righteous man in 1985, during my third year at seminary. The Practical Guide for Shepherds teacher gave us several essay topics for the semester. Among them was the topic: “Pastoration of Archpriest John Sergiev.” Having chosen this topic, I did not really count on a great ball, since I knew that one could talk about the height of Father John’s pastoral ministry with caution. Since the time of the revolution, the atheistic, godless government has persecuted the works of the holy righteous man, considering him a monarchist. Therefore, for decades they remained inaccessible to Orthodox people, many of whom were living witnesses to the miraculous prayer help of the All-Russian priest. But that time has passed. By the providence of God, Archpriest John Sergiev was canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church in 1990. Not long before this, at the Moscow Theological Academy in the Department of Pastoral Theology, the first three topics devoted to the shepherding of this righteous man appeared. Among them was the topic I had chosen: “The shepherd is the performer of divine services according to the writings of the holy righteous John of Kronstadt.” I can say that this was the first experience of understanding the shepherd of the holy righteous John of Kronstadt. It was not easy to find the works of Father John. I had to piece together everything that was connected with his life. I consider it great happiness that, thanks to the study of this topic, I was able to be one of the first to touch the handwritten diary entries of Fr. John, which by the Providence of God were preserved for future posterity in several state archives. Thanks to the prayerful help of the holy righteous man, the work was written “in one breath” and received a favorable review. The reviewer recommended it for publication. It's been 15 years. The merciful Lord has vouchsafed me during these years the grace of the priesthood and monasticism. His Eminence Yuvenaly, Metropolitan of Krutitsky and Kolomna, having performed monastic tonsure, awarded me the honor of bearing the name of the holy righteous John of Kronstadt. I can testify that I have always felt and feel the gracious help of my heavenly patron. His spiritual character and example of pastoral service left a deep imprint on my heart. I think that the same mark will remain in the heart of everyone who reads and studies the works of this righteous man. It is not for the sake of human glory that I decide to publish my modest work, written during my student years, but solely for the sake of spiritual benefit to the people of God, and especially to young shepherds. The example of the pastoral service of the All-Russian shepherd inspired his contemporaries, therefore the Holy Synod, after his blessed death, determined: “Instruct the Educational Committee at the Holy Synod to introduce into the programs of theological seminaries in Homiletics and the Practical Guide for Pastors the familiarization of students with the biography and pastoral and educational activities of the late Father John.” As a teacher of the course “Practical Guide for Shepherds” at the Moscow Theological Seminary, I recommend my work to students. I think it can be useful to every Orthodox Christian, since it contains the living words of the righteous man about the Divine Liturgy. Champion of the Orthodox faith, sorrowful of the Russian land, a shepherd of rule and a faithful figure, a preacher of repentance and life in Christ, a reverent minister of the Divine Mysteries and a daring man of prayer for people, righteous Father John, healer and marvelous miracle worker, praise to the city of Kronstadt and our adornment to the Church, pray to the All-Good God to pacify the world and save our souls. Today the shepherd of Kronstadt stands before the Throne of God and fervently prays for the faithful of Christ the Chief Shepherd, who has given the promise that I will build My Church and the gates of hell will not prevail against Her. Relevance of the topic and purpose of the work When planning to write our work, we tried to choose a topic that is relevant to our time. Now in Russia there is a revival of Orthodox life: many churches and monasteries are opening, the life of parishes is being revived, church schools and hospitals are being created, and interest in Orthodox art is growing - architecture, icon painting, music. In the general movement to revive morality and culture, the main thing, in our opinion, is the revival of the church. This is the center without which all other good endeavors will remain dead. But let us ask: “What is most important in the church?” Of course, the throne with the Antimins lying on it, without which the church ceases to be a church. “What is the church for?” To perform divine services, the entire daily circle of services, sanctifying every hour of the day, prepares us for the most important sacred rite - the Holy Eucharist. During the Liturgy, a great mystery takes place in the church: bread and wine are transformed into the true Body and Blood of Christ. Without this spiritual food, according to the words of Christ the Savior Himself, the true life of a Christian is impossible (John 6:53). But an Orthodox church is unthinkable without a priest - the performer of the service, the head of the church community, and the mentor of the parishioners. Many young people are now coming to theological schools. They come from the world to return again to the world, but to return already renewed, capable, with the help of God, to stand on the path of salvation and help others along this path. These people, who have entered the difficult path of pastoral service, need an example, an inspiring model by which they can compare their lives and learn true Orthodoxy. The history of the Orthodox Church knows many good shepherds. But the example of a person who lived recently, almost our contemporary, is especially effective. And, remembering the Orthodox ascetics who, having accepted the feat of shepherding as a gift as a talent, multiplied it and returned it a hundredfold to the Chief Shepherd Christ, it is impossible to ignore the holy righteous John of Kronstadt, the one whom all of Russia knew and knows. The example of Father John, the “All-Russian shepherd,” inspired his contemporaries during his lifetime. And on January 15, 1909, the Holy Synod wrote in the Determination regarding the death of Archpriest John Ilyich Sergiev: “To instruct the Educational Committee at the Holy Synod to introduce into the programs of theological seminaries in Homiletics and the Practical Guide for Pastors the familiarization of students with the biography and pastoral and educational activities of the late Father John” (439, p. 754). Nowadays, in accordance with the decision of the Jubilee Council of the Russian Orthodox Church in 1988, the Synodal Commission, formed by the Holy Synod in April 1989, has prepared materials for the glorification of the ever-memorable Archpriest John (Sergiev) of Kronstadt. At the Council on June 6–10, 1990, it was determined: 1. To count this righteous John among the saints of the entire Russian Orthodox Church, looking at his following exploits: – righteousness of life, in which he was “an example to the faithful in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity” (1 Tim. 4:12); – zealous, sacrificial service to God and the Church; – love for one’s neighbor, in which he, like the Merciful Samaritan, showed his flock mercy towards the poor and outcast; - miracles originating from Saint John of Kronstadt, which occurred both during his life and after his death and are performed to this day. 2. The bodily remains of the holy, righteous John, resting under cover in the Ioannovsky Monastery he founded, are considered holy relics. 3. The celebration of the church memory of this saint of God will be established on December 20 according to the Julian calendar. 4. Paint holy righteous John of Kronstadt with his honest icons for worship and honor, according to the rules of the Seventh Ecumenical Council. 5. To print the life adopted by this Council, as well as the works of this saint for the edification and instruction in piety of the children of the church. 6. Report the name of the holy, righteous John of Kronstadt the Wonderworker to the Primates of the fraternal Local Churches for inclusion in their calendars (100, No. 9, p. 6). Thus, according to the word of the Gospel, the “burning lamp” was not hidden from the people of God, but was lifted up and placed on the candlestick, so that it “gives light to everyone in the house” (Matthew 5:15). Much has been said and written about Holy Father John of Kronstadt, but we are interested in him, first of all, as the performer of divine services - an action that brings together the shepherd and the flock, connects the earthly with the Heavenly, and gives strength to confess the Holy Trinity in deed, word, and thought. “Father John Ilyich Sergiev testified... with his life, the comprehensive universal significance of the priesthood and, most of all, the most important thing accomplished through the priesthood - the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. He was called upon, as it were, to rediscover, to show with his own eyes that the Divine Liturgy, or more precisely, the sacrament of the Eucharist performed during it, is truly a treasure, the source of true Christian life; not just a righteous and good life, but a divine-human life. And it is not without reason that it is in our era that Father John once again pointed out this most basic, primordial and open path to all of sanctification and true unity and love, on which the Church is based” (294, p. 306). If the life of Father John did not take place in our days and not before our eyes, one would think that this is a wonderful fairy tale about a mighty hero who conquered the whole world, about a bright hero whose weapon was not a sword, not a spear, not steel armor; his armor was priestly vestments, his weapon was love for people and boundless love and faith in God” (133, no. 25, p. 390), as a contemporary testified after the blessed death of the holy righteous man. But it’s interesting to know: when did the veneration of the Kronstadt shepherd begin? The answer to this question cannot be unambiguous. Ordinary believers quickly recognized him as a true good shepherd. The educated intelligentsia looked at Father John for a long time with caution and even contempt: only thirty years after the beginning of the pastoral activity of the holy righteous man, in 1886, on the pages of the Russian Pilgrim it was published: “Among the... bright personalities, before whom even our unbeliever “educated man” bows with respect, is the Kronstadt archpriest Father John Sergiev. It is difficult to find a shepherd more beloved by his flock and more popular among everyone; not only in Kronstadt, but also in St. Petersburg and almost all of Russia, his name is known” (271, no. 18, pp. 153–155). Two years later, the autobiography of Father John appeared in a periodical magazine. Surprisingly: only after thirty-three years of priestly service as an All-Russian shepherd did people think of asking him to tell the world about his life. But the meek and humble shepherd greatly simplified his biography: he kept silent about his virgin life, did not mention a single miracle of healing that occurred through his prayer, and did not mention the glory that he gained from the Russian people. He acted like a true Christian, fulfilling the gospel word: “Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted” (Matthew 23:12). “It is fitting to keep a king’s secret, but it is commendable to announce the works of God” (Tov.12:11). It was this Divine truth that prompted many contemporaries to take up a pen and tell the world about the godly life of the holy Kronstadt shepherd. Among the first works about Father John, one can point to an essay by A.A. Zybin “Ioann Ilyich Sergiev. Archpriest, keymaster of the Kronstadt St. Andrew’s Cathedral,” Pg., 1891. “Being in a close, close relationship with the venerable pastor,” writes the author, “I decided to write this weak sketch of his life and work in order to give a clear and true idea of ​​​​his personality. Much about his life and activities that I know is not included here - it’s not time. Nevertheless, all the facts included, both from life and the healings that took place through his prayer, have been accurately verified by me. I cannot call my essay a biography, but only material for a future biography” (109, p. 3). In 1897, in Moscow, S.I. Tsvetkov’s book “Father John Ilyich Sergiev of Kronstadt and the miraculous power of his prayer” was published. This author largely repeated A. A. Zybin. Of interest is the second part of the book, which contains information about all the known miracles performed by the holy shepherd. One of the earliest complete biographies of Father John can be considered the book by Hieromonk Mikhail (Semyonov) “Father John Ilyich Sergiev”. St. Petersburg, 1904. This work was written on behalf of the St. Petersburg “Society for Religious and Moral Education.” The author used articles about Father John from church periodicals, individual brochures, as well as a book by the rector of the Moscow Theological Academy, Bishop Evdokim (Meshchersky) “Two days in Kronstadt”, Holy Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius, 1902. In 1893, as a student, Vasily Meshchersky visited Kronstadt; The trip was the reason for writing the book. This is a voluminous work, containing 460 pages, however, most of the materials are extracts from the works of Father John. The most valuable thing in the book is the author’s personal impressions: he writes vividly and heartfeltly about how the holy shepherd served the Divine Liturgy and how he conducted the “General Confession.” This description served as the main material for many biographers, in particular, Hieromonk Mikhail used it. It is impossible not to mention one more name from the countless number of pilgrims to the All-Russian shepherd: this is Ivan Leontyevich Shcheglov. He spent only one day in Kronstadt, but in his small book “At Father John Ilyich Sergiev’s”, St. Petersburg, 1905, he painted a bright, memorable portrait of the holy shepherd, described his working day, telling about the time when the name of Father John became known throughout Russia and thousands of people flocked to him from all sides. This is not a biography, but valuable material for one. This is a frank account of an eyewitness who, with a talent for artistic presentation, was able to make his short essay not only historically accurate, but also deeply exciting and instructive. “I haven’t read anything better” (35, p.97), says His Eminence Veniamin (Fedchenkov). But Vladyka was also an eyewitness to the works of Father John and, of course, well understood the general atmosphere of the life of the Kronstadt shepherd. “The Lord destined me to accept monasticism through prayer and the absentee blessing of Father John of Kronstadt” (15, p. 1), - this is how Bishop Arseny (Zhadanovsky) begins his memoirs. During his life, he was lucky enough to see the holy shepherd many times and even serve the Divine Liturgy with him. In his memoirs, he spoke about the life of Father John outside Kronstadt, namely about his visits to Moscow churches. In addition, Vladyka Arseny had the good fortune to see and read the diaries of Father John in the original. Up to sixteen notebooks were in his hands. Unfortunately, he included only a small part of this priceless treasure in his work. But what is available testifies to the deep self-examination of the holy shepherd, to his constant struggle with sin. After the blessed death of Father John, in 1915, the book “The Pillar of the Orthodox Church, the Popularly Honored Shepherd and Righteous Man” was published. Pg., 1915. “Justice demands to say,” a contemporary notes, that of everything hitherto written about Father John of Kronstadt, the book “The Pillar of the Orthodox Church” is the most thorough and edifying in content. It is read from the first to the last page with reverent attention and unflagging interest” (283, p.528). One cannot but agree with this opinion. Indeed, the book is interesting not only for its content, but also for the illustrative material included here. However, like Bishop Evdokim (Meshchersky), the author freely quotes thoughts from the works of Father John and articles written about him. However, these extracts are compiled very skillfully: complementing each other, they present the saint precisely as an All-Russian shepherd and righteous man. “Father John of Kronstadt” - that’s what another biographer, I.K., called his book. Sursky. The spiritual son of the Kronstadt shepherd, he was a member of the board and secretary of the “Society in Memory of Father John of Kronstadt” that existed at that time in St. Petersburg. IK Sursky met Father John at the age of 18 and collected information about him for fifty years. The first volume of collected materials was published in Belgrade in 1938. Here is a biography of the holy righteous man, collected previously never described cases of various healings, clairvoyance and other miracles, as well as the thoughts of Father John about the Church, Holy Communion, Redemption and his conversations with pastors. Three years later, in 1941, the second volume was published, which included additional biographical information, new data on cases of clairvoyance and healing, and “some teachings of Father John, his warnings, prophecies and poems dedicated to him” (442, p. 369). Labor I.K. Sursky deserves high praise as containing extensive biographical information about the All-Russian shepherd. It is worth mentioning another work about Father John of Kronstadt, Metropolitan Veniamin (Fedchenkov) - “Archpriest John Sergiev”, Novocherkassk, 1954. The work exists only in typewritten form and consists of two voluminous volumes, each of which is divided into two parts. From the content it is clear that the author’s heart was captured and absorbed by love for the righteous priest of God. The author often visited St. Andrew's Cathedral and witnessed the ministry of Father John. The easy style of presentation, from the point of view of an eyewitness and a contemporary, makes the work interesting and exciting. In the first volume, dedicated to the biography of the holy shepherd, Vladyka Benjamin included memories, stories and articles about Father John by other people. Among them is the already mentioned story by I.L. Shcheglov “At Father Ioann Ilyich Sergiev’s”, extracts from V. Meshchersky’s book “Two Days in Kronstadt”, V. Ilyinsky’s story “Around Father Ioann Ilyich Sergiev”, a description of the first touching meeting with the holy shepherd Hieromonk Michael (Semyonov) entitled “Notes of an Almost Unbeliever”, letters and conversations of Father Ioann with Abbess Taisia (Solopova), memoirs of V.T. Verkhovtseva and the story of R.G. Shemyakina, dedicated to the “Blessed memory of the late wife of Father John Ilyich Sergiev - Elizaveta Konstantinovna Sergieva.” The author did not make such a selection of biographical materials by chance. His main goal was to better and more fully show the spiritual image of the holy righteous man. For many years, Father John kept a diary, to which he attached great importance. Daily entries found expression in his sermons and in general throughout his life. To complete the biography, they should not be overlooked. Therefore, Vladyka Benjamin dedicated the second volume to the works of Father John. The first part of the volume is for sermons, and the second is for diary entries. What is original is that the author, when presenting his thoughts on certain subjects, chose the form of questions and answers, and the answers were compiled from the Kronstadt shepherd’s own words. For more than thirty-five years, Abbess Taisiya (Solopova), the founder of several convents, was in the closest spiritual relationship with Father John. Often talking with him on spiritual topics, she, by personal admission, “put all the priest’s answers in her heart, ... carefully wrote down, trying to remember his every word” (20, p. 3). This is how a whole notebook was compiled. These notes were published after the death of the “unforgettable shepherd” under the title “Conversations of Father Archpriest John with the abbess of the St. John the Baptist Leushinsky first-class monastery, Abbess Taisia,” St. Petersburg, 1909. Through the care and diligence of this spiritual elder, letters from Father John addressed to her were published in the same year. “I think,” says Mother Taisiya in the preface, “that from most of the letters readers will derive a lot of benefit and consolation, restoring in their memory, as if alive, the speech of the common comforter, for each of his letters breathes the spirit of simplicity, love, meekness and spiritual solitude in Christ Jesus” (364, p. 4). Abbess Taisia ​​owns another biographical work - “Father Archpriest John Ilyich Sergiev as a Shepherd.” St. Petersburg, 1893. His spiritual daughter, Ekaterina Dukhonina, talks about the pastoral care of Father John in her book “How Father John of Kronstadt put me on the path of salvation.” St. Petersburg, 1911. This is a diary of personal impressions and spiritual experiences, where the appearance of Father John as a spiritual leader in the last two decades of his life is clearly presented. The biographical works we have reviewed are not all of the books dedicated to Father John, but only a small part of them. Many different articles were published in periodicals, on the pages of the Church Gazette and Russian Pilgrim magazines. Here are memories and testimonies of miraculous healings through the prayer of the holy shepherd, and poems dedicated to him. The canonization of the holy righteous father John of Kronstadt aroused increased interest in his personality. It is quite possible that the state archives, which have recently become more accessible to researchers, contain a lot of materials about the life and work of the All-Russian shepherd. The Holy Righteous Father John of Kronstadt left a huge spiritual legacy - his works, published in a complete collection, in separate collections or brochures. The complete collected works, consisting of five voluminous volumes, were published in the early 90s of the 19th century. The Holy Synod of November 19, 1893 - February 9, 1894, No. 3460, decided: “The complete collection of works of Archpriest Ioann Ilyich Sergiev in five volumes 1890–1892, published by retired collegiate registrar Ivan Fidelin, to be approved for purchase in the libraries of parochial schools for the use of clergy and teachers.” (471, No. 8, p. 81). The spiritual heritage of the holy shepherd, excluding his master's thesis “On the Cross of Christ, in denunciation of imaginary Old Believers” and “The Life of the Holy Great Martyr Euphemia,” can be divided into two groups: the first is words, speeches and teachings, the second is diary entries. The homiletical works of Father John occupy the first three volumes of the complete works (volume I - 520 pp.; volume II - 525 pp.; volume III - 591 pp.). The first volume contains conversations about the Most Holy Trinity, conversations about the beatitudes of the Gospel, words and teachings on the Lord's and Theotokos' feasts. The second volume includes words, teachings and conversations on all Sundays of the annual circle, including the period of Pentecost, as well as the weekly and some weekly days of the Holy Pentecost. The third volume contains teachings, words and speeches for the church holidays of the Kronstadt St. Andrew's Cathedral, for various occasions, for highly solemn days and, in addition, “The Life, Sufferings and Miracles of the Holy Great Martyr Euphemia the All-Praised.” Noteworthy are the words from the book of the Acts of the Apostles, taken by Father John as an epigraph for each of these volumes: “But we will continue in prayer and in the ministry of the word” (Acts 6:4). And indeed, the holy righteous man fulfilled these sacred words in his pastoral service. In addition to the complete collected works, from 1896 until his death in 1908, his words and teachings were published annually in separate small books. Father John's sermons are artless, but sincere. Simplicity and clarity of presentation of the truths of Orthodox doctrine and moral teaching, combined with extraordinary persuasiveness, are, perhaps, the main advantages of the homiletical heritage of the Kronstadt pastor. The words of Father John are imbued with the spirit of Holy Scripture. At times it seems that each of his phrases “is one or another passage of Holy Scripture, only adapted to a certain particular case” (269, no. 2, p. 63). Listeners were amazed by the knowledge of the needs of the human spirit and the wealth of psychological observations. Thus, in one of the sermons for 1899, explaining the meaning of the procession to the river and the blessing of water on the day of Epiphany, Father John says: “All nature and all the elements... are constantly defiled by human sins and evil spirits living in the air and producing in it all sorts of pernicious trends and diseases. And therefore there is an urgent need for church sanctification and healing of these infected elements... Don’t you notice,” continues the holy shepherd, “that especially this year, something wrong is happening in the sublunary world, that is, here on earth?... Every now and then there is a change in phenomena in nature, inappropriate for the time of year. And hence, how many acute illnesses are there, how many people die suddenly or very quickly?... Of course, she (nature) portrays our inconstancy, our unfaithfulness to God, our worldly vacillation and punishes us for that. Come, come, Holy Church of God, and sanctifying everyone and everything on the waters, and sanctify them along with the air given to you by the grace of God, and cleanse and heal them” (376, pp. 110–111). No less valuable to us than the sermons are the diaries of Father John. “My life in Christ, or moments of spiritual sobriety and contemplation, reverent feeling, spiritual correction and peace in God,” - this is how the holy shepherd titled the fourth and fifth volumes from the complete collection of his works. Feedback from contemporaries about Father John’s diary entries indicates that this is an excellent guide “to spiritual life for all who seek to bring their personal life closer to the ideal to which the All-Russian pastor calls readers with the apostolic covenant: “Imitate me, as I imitate Christ” (1 Cor. 4:16) (472, no. 51–52, p. 274). One of the periodical church magazines says that the work of the All-Russian pastor “My Life in Christ” was translated “into almost all European languages” (472, p. 274). The English translation was carried out with the consent of Father John in 1897 by one of his sincere admirers E. E. Gulyaev. The translator dedicated this work to Queen Victoria of England, in memory of her condolences regarding the sudden and premature death of the Russian Emperor Alexander III. “Your Royal and Imperial Majesty was pleased to testify to your respect for the memory of the late Monarch, the “King of the World,” and for the religion that the late Emperor professed,” wrote E. E. Gulyaev at the beginning of the book. “...This kind and gracious act prompts me to lay at Your Majesty’s feet and dedicate to Your Majesty my humble and imperfect translation into English of the wonderful work entitled “My Life in Christ”... I sincerely believe that this book will be found useful by every true Christian, regardless of differences of creed, nationality, race or color" (268, No. 21, p.722). The translator was not mistaken. According to reviews from the English press, the book of the holy shepherd in English has become widespread not only in England, but also in America, Australia and other countries. The English priest Kirill Bickerstaz, taking as a basis the translation of E. E. Gulyaev, tried to systematize the thoughts of the Kronstadt shepherd and divided them into eight chapters: 1. God and creation. 2. Prayer. 3. Church and worship. 4. The life and work of a priest. 5. Repentance. 6. Temptation and victory. 7. Achieving holiness. 8. Communion with saints and eternal life. This system, although not in its entirety, but in a related form, represented the essence of the theological views of the holy shepherd and could serve as a guide for any Christian who wants to compare his religious worldview with the thoughts of Father John. This is how the book by priest Cyril Bickerstaz “Thoughts and Instructions of Father John” appeared, Oxford, 1899, in English. The publication did not go unnoticed in Russia. A deep admirer of Father John, S.P. Tservitsky, borrowing the system of the priest Kirill Bickerstaz, compiled the book “Thoughts of a Christian” St. Petersburg, 1903, already in Russian. This publication is not a reverse translation from English into Russian; Here we use only the system in which the English publisher put the thoughts of Father John, while the text itself is extracted from the five-volume collected works of the Kronstadt shepherd in Russian. Two years later, in 1905, Tservitsky’s book was published again. The high appreciation of Father John’s diary entries “My Life in Christ” was also manifested in the fact that two volumes of the complete works - the fourth and fifth - were reprinted several times. In addition, texts for individual issues were borrowed from these volumes. Each issue, having its own name, contained extracts from Father John's diary on a specific topic. I issue: About the Holy Trinity. II issue: About the church of God, holy icons, the Cross and the veneration of saints. III issue: On Christian faith and hope. IV issue: Spiritual unity of Christ with the Church. VII issue: The high origin of the human soul. VIII issue: On fasting and repentance. IX issue: On the temptations of a Christian and the patience of sorrows. X issue: About love for neighbors. Issue XI: About the world with its temptations. XII issue: About present and future life. Soon after the publication of the five-volume edition of the works of the Kronstadt shepherd, another small volume was published - the sixth, with the diary entries of Father John, under the same title "My Life in Christ." This book had a strictly defined theme: “Thoughts on the worship of the Orthodox Church.” In 1894, the first “Continuation” of this sixth volume was published - “Thoughts on the Church and Orthodox Worship”, and two years later the second, under the same title. This sixth volume from the complete works of Father John should be distinguished from the “New Continuation” of the book “My Life in Christ,” published in St. Petersburg in 1910. The “New Continuation...” contains extracts from the diary of the holy shepherd for the years 1906–1907. We will say more about this below. The “Society for the Propagation of Religious and Moral Education in the Spirit of the Orthodox Church” formed in St. Petersburg (267, No. 18, pp. 575–580) had special respect for the works of the All-Russian pastor. The Society republished the fourth and fifth volumes of the complete works of Father John, “My Life in Christ,” giving them their own numbering: first and second. The third volume included the sixth volume from the complete collected works (with two Continuations), supplemented by other excerpts from the diaries of Father John under the general title “Thoughts on the Church and Orthodox Worship,” St. Petersburg, 1905. In passing, we note that it is this book that biographer I.K. mentions in his work. Sursky (it “contains 349 pages, but I don’t know its name, because its first page has been torn out” (441, p. 71)). The fourth volume was entitled “The Path to God”, St. Petersburg, 1905. In the published diaries of Father John, not everything that was contained in the manuscripts was printed. Currently, the handwritten diaries of the holy shepherd for the years 1856–1894 are stored in the Central State Archive of the October Revolution (TsGAOR USSR). These are twenty-six voluminous notebooks - more than 3000 sheets, covered in small handwriting. Of course, all this precious material was not included in the two volumes of the complete works “My Life in Christ.” It is quite obvious that the diary for 1856, the first year of the pastoral ministry of the All-Russian shepherd, remained untouched. In his autobiography, Father John wrote: “From the very first days of my high ministry, I made it a rule for myself to be as sincere as possible about my work, pastoration and priestly service, to strictly monitor myself and my inner life. To this end, first of all, I began reading the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments” (35, p. 3). The first diary witnessed how the seed of the Word of God ripened in the pastoral soul of the holy righteous man. On its pages, Father John left his exegetical thoughts on the books of Genesis, Job, Psalms and others. We have not encountered these reflections in printed form. The fact that only isolated thoughts were extracted from Father John’s handwritten diaries is also confirmed by the preface to the book “Knowledge of God and Self-Knowledge Acquired from Experience,” published in 1900 in St. Petersburg. “This book,” it is written on the first page, “contains extracts from the diary of the Kronstadt archpriest Father John Ilyich Sergiev, written by him back in 1861. He sent this manuscript for publication in the St. Petersburg Spiritual Messenger magazine, shortly after its inception in 1895, out of heartfelt sympathy for the cause of publishing a new spiritual journal... These articles were not published anywhere except the Spiritual Messenger and contain precious instructions for spiritual experience - how one should know God and oneself.” Let us name in chronological order some of the books containing the diary entries of Father John. Extracts from the diaries for 1894–1899 are contained in the books “The Truth about God, the World and Man,” St. Petersburg, 1903 and “In Your Light We Will See the Light,” St. Petersburg, 1908. The contents of these collections are completely identical. The thoughts of the Kronstadt shepherd are systematized here and divided into 21 chapters. The book “The Truth about God, the World and Man” was published as a continuation of the complete works of Father John, as the fourth part of the diary “My Life in Christ.” Later, six issues were created on its basis as separate brochures: Issue I: On the veneration of icons in the Orthodox Church. II issue: On the Sacrament of Repentance of the Holy Orthodox Church. III issue: On the communion of the Holy Mysteries. IV issue: On the veneration and invocation of saints in prayers. V issue: On prayerful remembrance of the living and the dead. VI issue: About the Most Holy Theotokos. There is another book: “The Truth about God, about the Church, about the world and about the human soul,” M., 1900. It also contains the diary entries of Father John for the years 1894–1899. But unlike the above-mentioned books, it is smaller in volume and does not have a breakdown by topic. The book “Blessed Thoughts on Heavenly and Earthly”, St. Petersburg, 1901, contains the reflections of the holy shepherd, extracted from the diary for 1895. The analysis showed that many of the thoughts of Father John, placed here, are repeated in the already named books “The Truth about God, the World and Man” and “In Your Light We Will See Light.” Of particular interest is the book published by the “Society for the Propagation of Religious and Moral Education in the Spirit of the Orthodox Church” - “Christian Philosophy”, St. Petersburg, 1902. Extracts from the diaries for 1897–1899 are arranged in it according to a strictly defined “plan, which was developed under the direct leadership of Father John, checked, corrected and approved by him.” The book consists of five chapters. The first, second, third and fifth chapters are completely repeated in the book “The Path to God”, St. Petersburg, 1905, published by the same “Society”, on pp. 1–129. The first and second sections of the fourth chapter can be found in “Thoughts on the Church and Orthodox Worship,” St. Petersburg, 1905, pp. 41–59; the third section is here, on pp. 330–349, and we found individual thoughts of Father John from the fourth and fifth sections scattered in the book “The Truth about God, the World and Man.” “Life in the depths of the Church”, St. Petersburg, 1903 - this is the name given to extracts from the diary of the holy shepherd for 1902. Only in the Church, which is the pillar and foundation of the truth, is the salvation of a Christian possible - this is the main idea of ​​this book. He who is in the Church is with Christ, and he who does not attend church deprives himself of the grace of God. The book consists of two parts. The first speaks primarily about the Church itself, and the second speaks about a Christian who lives according to its commandments. When studying this publication, it was discovered that the first part is also contained in the book “Thoughts on the Church and Orthodox Worship” St. Petersburg, 1905, pp. 84–101, and the second – “The Path to God”, St. Petersburg, 1905, pp. 129–153. Having deeply studied human nature, Father John called everyone to a good Christian life and gave many useful and wise instructions. The image of the holy shepherd as a spiritual doctor and mentor is revealed in another book - “Contemplations and Feelings of the Christian Soul”, St. Petersburg, 1905. “This is the last, heartfelt voice of my soul to my beloved and loving Creator and Provider, and to good Christians,” says Father John in the preface. On the pages of this book you can find inspired instructions about love for God and neighbors, about devotion to the Holy Church, about imitation of the saints, about prayer, about repentance, about the fight against sin and passions. The diary entries of the holy shepherd instill hope and consolation in the soul of a Christian. Extracts from the diaries of Father John for 1905–1906 were published under the title “The Word of Spiritual Wisdom”, St. Petersburg, 1908, and “Grief of the Heart”, St. Petersburg, 1908. The content of these books is largely repeated. “Spiritual wisdom is a gift of holiness; it, like a crown, is given only to those who are in a living union with God, who live a virtuous, truly Christian life, a life of prayer, love and work for God” (410, p. 1). Father John himself led such a life. That is why the publishers titled the diary entries of the Kronstadt shepherd this way. Three years later, this book was republished without additions, but under a different title - “The Living Word of Spiritual Wisdom”, St. Petersburg, 1911. In January 1908, another collection of reverent thoughts and blessed insights of Father John, extracted from the diaries for 1906–1907, was published in St. Petersburg - “Contemplative Asceticism”, St. Petersburg, 1907. The thoughts of the holy shepherd are grouped here into 4 chapters. The first two reveal the religious and moral views of Father John; the third contains an understanding of the mores of modern Christian society; the fourth talks about prayer. This book was republished under other titles: “A new continuation of the book “My Life in Christ”, St. Petersburg, 1910 and “Selected passages from “Contemplative Asceticism”, St. Petersburg, 1914. We have approached the last year of the life of the holy righteous Father John of Kronstadt. “Living ear from the spiritual field”, Ed. 2nd, St. Petersburg, 1914 - this is the last collection of his prayerful and inspired thoughts, extracted from his diaries of 1907–1908. A month and a half before his blessed death, submitting his work for publication, he asked the publishers to finish the work before the Feast of the Nativity of Christ. Apparently, the holy righteous man so wanted to console everyone during his lifetime with his last word and fatherly blessing. In this publication, the thoughts of Father John are grouped in five chapters. The first talks about faith and the Orthodox Church, about the attitude of modern Christians towards them. The next three depict the Christian’s path from earth to Heaven, the path of struggle with sin and the devil. And finally, the last one contains thoughts that reveal the spiritual mood of Father John. He thanks God for the grace of the priesthood given to him and for all the countless blessings shown throughout his life. This last diary is the spiritual testament of the holy shepherd to his all-Russian flock. “He who, following the Great Sower, scattered seeds with a generous hand in God’s field,” says a contemporary, “left us “living ears of corn,” which not only delight us with their full grace-ripe appearance, but also feed us, who are spiritually hungry” (410, p. 16). In conclusion, we point out that many diary entries were published on the pages of the Russian Pilgrim. “I,” Father John once said, “always took part in the Russian Pilgrim, wanting to be useful to its subscribers, wanting to bring them spiritual benefit” (93, no. 18, p. 306). These words can be applied to all the works of the holy shepherd. Chapter 1. The life path of Father John “I thank You, Lord, with all my heart and I pray to You: “Grant me to constantly remember my emergence from insignificance, the weakness of my childhood, the difficulty of my upbringing, the low nobility of my origin, so that I can always humble myself and revere You” (304, p. 131). North. Having been here at least once, who can remain indifferent and not admire the beauty of this wonderful land? Among the high mountains covered with dense vegetation, majestic rivers roll their waves. The water, like a mirror, reflects the blue sky. In the boundless sea of ​​green dense forests, clean fresh lakes are located like small islands. Majestic pines lead the eye far into the sky, and then, behind them, on the very horizon, cirrus northern clouds can be seen. ...The thought and heart are involuntarily carried away to God, whose wisdom was manifested in the structure of this visible world. But the beauty of this majestic picture does not correspond to the living conditions of those who decide to settle here. “The sun shines hot only in the short summer, but by August the days are greatly shortened and the nights are longer. Cold weather sets in, dark autumn, and then a long, harsh winter, when the sun appears only for a short time before setting again” (35, p. 38). The inhabitants of this region have difficulty defending their right to live in the harsh nature, but that is why, seeking complete solitude, many Russian ascetics went here. “Monastic region” - this is how the Russian traveler Andrei Muravyov rightly called the north. For more than five hundred miles from the Lavra of St. Sergius of Radonezh to White Lake, and further, she spread her possessions. The abbot of the Russian Land, standing on the southern edge, sent his disciples and interlocutors inside it, and the Monk Kirill of Beloezersky, on the other edge, received new newcomers and sent them around, “throwing his desert wilderness even to the White Sea, and to the Solovetsky Islands” (174, p. 8). Thus, at the end of the fourteenth century and for almost two subsequent centuries, the region of virgin forests, numerous lakes, rivers and deserted islands was filled with churches and monasteries - sources of spiritual enlightenment, where more than one generation of Orthodox Christians was raised. Another three centuries passed. And here, in this “monastic region”, on the banks of the Pinega River, in the small village of Sura, the great righteous man and wonderworker, Saint John of Kronstadt, was born and raised. The house of the rural sexton Ilya Sergiev, the father of the All-Russian shepherd, stood alone on the edge of the village (213, p. 1). In this house, on the dead autumn night of October 19, 1829, the holy righteous man was born. This birth did not herald anything significant - on the contrary, the baby was born so weak and sickly that the parents, fearing for their son’s life, hastened to baptize him that same night. The newborn was given the name John in honor of St. John of Rila, whose memory was celebrated on the boy’s birthday. Who could have imagined then that the baby John, the namesake of God's grace, would already testify in early childhood that he was the chosen vessel of the Holy Spirit. It exactly fulfilled the words of the Lord spoken to the Apostle Paul: “My power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor. 12:9). Let us think: was it not because Father John loved divine services so much that he already felt its miraculous power at birth? Yes, the grace-filled power of the Holy Sacrament and the faith-filled prayer of the parents performed a miracle: the boy grew stronger and regained his health. Pious parents saw in this a manifestation of God’s mercy, and therefore began to raise their child with zeal. In a brief summary of the life of Father John, we cannot dwell in detail on the biography of his parents, but the fruit that came from them testifies better than any eloquent praise to the kindness of the blessed tree. Let's just say that the father, Ilya Sergiev, conscientiously and zealously fulfilled the duties of a minister of the church and worked tirelessly to feed the poor family. Mother, Theodora, a simple woman, but a strong keeper of church traditions, was distinguished by her deep religiosity and firm faith in God. So, need and poverty on the one hand and strict piety on the other - this is the environment in which the great righteous man grew up. When Vanya was four years old, his mother taught him his first prayers, and his father began taking him with him to church services. Here, in the church of God, the future all-Russian shepherd began to feel and understand what he would later call the “soul” of worship. Meek and God-fearing, the boy was usually reserved and silent (213, p.2). And only in church, during the service, did his childish face come to life, and his eyes shone with a deep, meaningful brilliance. Watching the youth when he, hiding in a dark corner of the choir, babbled his children's prayers, one could predict that this was not an ordinary child, but a chosen vessel of God (213, p. 2). “Oh, holy church,” Father John will later say, “how good and sweet it is to pray in you! For where is fiery prayer if not within your walls, before the throne of God and before the face of Him who sits on it! Truly, the soul melts from the tenderness of prayer, tears flow down the cheeks like water” (333, pp. 31–32). How much love and reverence these words of the Kronstadt shepherd contain! The holy righteous man could not hide these blessed feelings within himself, because the church of God became for him the first school where he learned the spiritual alphabet of saving his soul. Pious parents closely monitored the child's upbringing and, by their example, tried to teach him to love virtue. “The father lay in wait for every manifestation of the child’s religiosity and gave him real direction” (439, p. 19). And the mother set an example of prayer. “The sick Vanya could often see, especially during smallpox, which almost brought him to the grave...how she prayed for him and learned to merge with her in deep, heartfelt prayer” (171, p. 10). “What did they read to Vanya? “About the holy, the divine, about Christ, His work and life, about the Mother of God, saints, about how the saints lived in the deserts, how they were saved, endured hunger, poverty, they were not afraid of kings, they confessed Christ...” (439, p. 19). These bright images of the gospel life awakened in Vanya’s soul determination and readiness for exploits to please God. After all, a simple, kind child’s heart is an open door to the grace of God, which is why the Lord said about children: “Of such is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 19:14). Early the grace of God touched the innocent heart of the pious youth. “We had him for prayer,” a fellow villager recalled with pride. – When I was a little boy, when he went to school, he would take off his boots so as not to wear out what he had earned through his father’s labors, and so in his hands after prayer he would go to school (92, No. 4, p. 63). There were cases when the youth was asked to pray if some trouble happened. “A man’s horse has gone missing, he’s pushing, pushing, and starts asking Ivanushka: - Pray, dear, your prayer pleases God. And the child prays for the missing horse, the horse is found... “Ivanushka, pray, my old woman is ill.” Again Ivanushka prays, and the old woman recovers” (213, p. 3). At the end of his life, Father John will humbly tell the Sarapul shepherds that the first miracle through his prayer happened when he was already a priest. But if you trust the testimony of the miraculous power of the prayer of the youth John, then this date must be moved to an earlier time and at the same time note that the All-Russian pastor retained his childhood spiritual qualities for the rest of his life. Another incident is significant. In his diary, Father John writes: “Prayer is the golden connection of a Christian man, a wanderer and a stranger on earth, with the spiritual world” (332, p. 117). It seems to us that these words remind us of one incident from the priest’s early childhood. “One night,” says Father John’s close spiritual daughter, Abbess Taisiya, “six-year-old Vanya saw an extraordinary light in the room... Looking up, he saw an angel in his heavenly glory among the light. Baby John, of course, was embarrassed by such a vision. The angel reassured him, calling himself his guardian angel, always standing around him to protect him from any danger” (171, p. 10). “If guardian angels had not protected us from the machinations of evil demons,” Father John later said, “oh, how often would we have fallen from sin to sin, how would we have been tormented by demons who delight in tormenting people (332, p. 255). “In addition to the grace of God, we also need a person filled with this grace, wise, strong in nature; and such are the angels” (333, p. 305). “You have abundantly revealed to me, O Lord, Your truth and Your righteousness. Through educating me through the sciences, You revealed to me all the riches of faith and nature and human reason. I have known Your word - the word of love, “passing to the division of our soul and spirit” (Heb. 4:12); studied the laws of the human mind and its philosophy, structure and beauty of speech; penetrated partly into the secrets of nature, into its laws...” (332, p.1). When Vanya turned six years old, he was taught to read and write. The first teacher was his own father, then the boy was assigned to a rural parish school. “My father bought an ABC book for me,” recalled Father John, “but reading and writing was difficult for me and I grieved a lot over my lack of development and lack of understanding. I could not in any way grasp the identity between our speech and writing or a book, between sound and letter. Yes, this was not taught at that time with such clarity as it is now; we were all taught: “Az, Buki, Lead,” as if “A” by itself, “Az” by itself, I could not understand this wisdom for a long time (171, pp. 11–12). This circumstance again makes us remember the name of the abbot of the Russian Land - St. Sergius. Once upon a time he, too, lagged behind his brothers in learning and continued to endure the punishments of his teacher and the reproaches of his comrades. And one cannot but agree with the opinion of the biography of the Radonezh miracle worker that God’s Providence was manifested in this. This was necessary “so that the youth, about whom there were such good omens, would learn from early experience that no success, no knowledge, no ability should be attributed to himself, but only to God...” (187, pp. 14–15). When Vanya was ten years old, his pious parents, having collected their last crumbs, enrolled him in the Arkhangelsk parish school. Left alone in a strange city, without loved ones, relatives and friends, immersed in himself, in his childhood thoughts, the boy suffered a difficult test. Life was not sweet, the food was poor, there were not enough books, paper, and there was no affectionate mother nearby, and the teachers cared little about helping the students (171, pp. 12–14). In addition, Vanya was tormented by the thought of his home, the poverty of his parents, the fact that they were giving their last money for their son’s education, and school wisdom turned out to be even more difficult for him than primary schooling. What was left to do? Where to look for help? And so the gracious youth turned to God with warm prayer. “...At night I loved to get up to pray,” recalled Father John. - Everyone is sleeping quietly. It’s not scary to pray, and I prayed most often that God would give the light of reason to comfort my parents. And so, as I remember now, one day it was already evening, everyone went to bed. I was the only one who couldn’t sleep; I still couldn’t understand anything from what had been said, I still didn’t read well, didn’t understand or remember anything that was said. Such melancholy attacked me: I fell to my knees and began to pray fervently. I don’t know how long I stayed in this position, but suddenly it shook me all over... It was as if a veil had fallen from my eyes, as if the mind had opened up in my head, and the teacher of that day and his lesson clearly appeared to me; I even remembered what he was talking about. And it became easy and joyful in my soul. I have never slept so peacefully as I did that night. It got a little light, I jumped out of bed, grabbed my books and - oh happiness! – I read much easier, I understand everything, and what I read, I not only understood everything, but even now I can tell it. I no longer sat in class the way I used to, I understood everything, everything remained in my memory. The teacher gave me an arithmetic problem, solved it, and even praised me. In a word, in a short time I advanced so much that I was no longer the last student. The further I went, the better and better I did in the sciences, and by the end of the course I was one of the first to be transferred to the seminary” (171, p. 14). As we see, the harsh school life did not weaken Vanya’s religious sentiments at all. On the contrary, poverty taught him to love the poor and to experience the grief of others with special pain, and loneliness made him taste the sweetness of prayer and strengthened the feeling of love for God. His love for nature did not fade away either. She still talked to him “as a friend and as a teacher about God, about eternity and truth” (171, p. 16). So four years passed, and now John Sergiev was transferred to the Arkhangelsk Seminary. Almost no evidence has been preserved about the seminary years of the All-Russian pastor. Biographies mention some dangerous moment, but even in this spiritual test he emerged victorious. During the last years of his studies, the young man was in a hurry to stock up on theological knowledge, not yet knowing where he would have to apply it. Most often, his thought dwelled on the mystery of redemption and the economy of our salvation, and not by chance, since this topic is especially close to his God-loving heart. Many years later, the holy righteous man recalled how he loved the seminary kindergarten, where he sat and prepared for exams, and that at the very end of the remote garden there stood a tall, slender tree with overgrown branches - a living witness to his theological quests... Sergiev graduated from the seminary successfully, as the first student, which allowed him to continue his spiritual education at the Academy. However, shortly before this, his father died, and the young man decided to join the parish, at least as a psalm-reader, just to support his widowed mother and two daughters. But the determined mother opposed this and insisted that her son go to the St. Petersburg Theological Academy destined for him. Did the capital then know what treasure it was acquiring when the modest, poor student Sergiev arrived there? Did anyone think then that “among the young academic shoots a giant church oak grows?” (35, p.51). And the young student did not stand out among the others in terms of scientific talent; on the outside, he was like other students, “but on the inside, he was in the eyes of God God’s chosen one, a man who was destined to follow a special path” (439, p. 39). As in the seminary, the young man was rather cautious in his relationships with his comrades, “he was rather a loner” (35, p. 55), but this loneliness gave him the opportunity to accumulate spiritual strength and maintain a prayerful mood. “Father John was my close friend throughout my academic life,” recalled Archpriest N. G. Georgievsky. “He and I sat next to each other both in the audience and in the busy room. Father John, as a student, was distinguished by his extraordinary quietness and humble character... rare piety. After the usual evening prayer, all of us students went to bed, and for a long time he, on his knees, prayed in front of the icon by his bed. Being not tied to external life, Father John and I, throughout the entire academic course, never attended a single party or went to a single theater, but spent all our time reading books needed for essays” (439, pp. 38–39). These memories again testify to the holy shepherd’s love for prayer. And his words: “Prayer is the breath of the soul, like air is the breath of ... the body” (333, p. 196), apparently were deeply felt even in his youth. What are the fruits of prayer “captivity”? Prayer instilled in the young student a feeling of love for God and an awareness of His constant closeness to man. She taught God's chosen one meekness and humility. Later in his diary, Father John will write: “All who begin to work for the Lord, in prayer learn to be like Him, meek, humble and true in heart... The Lord is looking for in us something like Himself and akin to whom His grace could be grafted” (332, pp. 125–126). And, undoubtedly, this divine all-saving power filled the loving heart of the young student. What was the future pillar of the Orthodox Church thinking about and living at that time? – He thought about sacrificial gospel love and humility. “On the second floor, next to the panoramic sign, near the church,” recalled another friend of Father John at the Academy, Archpriest L. Popov, “there was an interesting room where John Ilyich liked to warm up near the burning stove. One of his comrades would sit down with him and a conversation would begin. Most often, Sergiev talked about humility” (439, pp. 38–39). In his free time from classes, one could see Ioann Sergiev in the academic garden. Nature still warmed his love for God. The garden reminded him of the harsh beauty of his native land, where as a boy he listened to the voice of the forest, talked with affectionate Pinega, looked at every grass, and they whispered to him: “The Lord is here” (171, p. 18). Even in his seminary years, the young student’s thought turned to the mystery of redemption. And now he tried to penetrate deeper into this mystery, which, however, is completely incomprehensible to the human mind. “From what a deep ulcer, from what a mortal wound, from what a murderous breath of sin did the Heavenly Physician, the Lord Jesus Christ, come to save us! Who will fully comprehend this? “Nobody” (333, p. 29), says Father John. - And a miracle! “It is not we who have drawn near, but the Kingdom of Heaven that has drawn near to us. The Lord Himself approached us when we ourselves did not want and could not approach Him because of our habit of sin” (399, p. 55). The mystery of the salvation of mankind is the mystery of the incarnation and death on the cross of the Only Begotten Son of God, a mystery that hides within itself the abyss of Divine love. This is what the holy righteous man was thinking about. And it is no coincidence that for his candidate’s work he chose the theme of the cross: “About the Cross of Christ, in denunciation of imaginary Old Believers.” Further in our work we will try to reveal the spiritual image of Father John as a performer of divine services and, especially, the Liturgy. Here we note that love for the great sacrament of the Eucharist, understanding it as “the sacrament of God’s love for the human race, ... the sacrament of the unity of people with God through the eating of His Flesh and Blood” (337, pp. 128–129), arose among the All-Russian pastor during his school days. years, and perhaps even earlier, if we take into account the memory of one of his contemporaries. “In Kronstadt, the large bell of St. Andrew’s Cathedral buzzes with rare strokes, indicating which of the Gospels is read at the evening reading of the Passion of the Lord. Father John himself serves. When he begins to read a chapter of the Gospel, he apparently moves far away from everything around him. He experiences the Passion of the Lord with all his soul. He suddenly begins to overtake himself. Words flow in an unstoppable stream. Then he seems to slow down again, drawing out each word. Father John does not look at the Holy Book; From childhood, when he was still a boy in the remote village of Sura, he memorized what was written there. Now he is not with us. He is among us in body, but in spirit and in thought he is in the distant land of Judea...he rises with Christ to a small hill in the vicinity of the capital city” (442, pp. 31–32). An eyewitness described his impressions. But it is quite possible that Father John actually knew the Holy Gospel by heart already in childhood, at least the story of the suffering and death of the God-Man. This touch in the biography of the All-Russian shepherd is not noted by other biographers. Let us remember, however, the miracle in the Arkhangelsk parish school, when the Lord fulfilled the prayer of His chosen one and “gave him the light of reason.” According to Father John, he no longer sat in class the same way as before: he understood everything, “everything remained in his memory.” And it may very well be that the eyewitness is right. In addition, the Gospel was the favorite book of the holy righteous man. “Do you know,” he once said in a conversation with Abbess Taisia, “what, first of all, marked the beginning of my conversion to God and, even in childhood, warmed my heart with love for Him? - This is the Holy Gospel. My parent had the Gospel in Slavic-Russian; I loved reading this wonderful book when I came home on vacation, and its style and simplicity of speech were accessible to my childish understanding; I read and enjoyed it and found in this reading high and irreplaceable consolation. This Gospel was with me in the Theological School. I can say that the Gospel was my childhood companion, my mentor, leader, comforter, with whom I became close from an early age” (439, p. 28). And now let us return again to the walls of the Theological Academy. “Evening time. Who went to the city, to see friends; who have immersed themselves in worldly writers; here and there in groups of students talking about important, valuable, but still mundane issues. And in an empty classroom, student Ivan Sergiev sits over a book of conversations of John Chrysostom... Can't tear myself away. Inspirational interpretations... captivate him. The chest is filled with living delight. High, blessed thoughts burn in your head, and your heart trembles and beats sweetly, happily. And so, in a fit of delight, in a passion for spiritual happiness, Sergiev suddenly loudly applauds the pages of the universal teacher...” (251, no. 4, p. 51). Student Sergiev bought a book with St. John Chrysostom’s interpretation of the Gospel of Matthew with his first earnings from copying someone’s professorial work and fell in love with this book so much that he considered Chrysostom his teacher (439, p. 40). The in-depth study of the Chrysostom orbit was also successfully facilitated by the external environment. For his beautiful handwriting, inherited from his father, Sergiev was offered a job in the Academy office with a small salary of ten rubles a month. He sent all the money he earned to his mother and sisters. But what was important was that the wise student, after ceasing clerical work, had the opportunity to study in solitude, where no one, not even close friends, could interfere with reading his favorite books. But the end of the academic course was approaching, and the question naturally arose: “Where to go and what to do next?” The heart of the young student was inclined towards monastic life, but the Lord showed His chosen one a different path. “Once Father John, after one of his walks through the academic garden, saw himself in a dream as a priest serving in some cathedral unknown to him, in Kronstadt” (439, p. 44). The holy righteous man accepted this vision as a revelation of God. And indeed, he was soon offered a position as a priest in the Kronstadt St. Andrew's Cathedral instead of Archpriest Konstantin Nesvitsky. Under the impression of a prophetic dream, John Sergiev, without hesitation, gave his consent. And, having married the daughter of Father Constantine Elizabeth, on December 12, 1855, Bishop Christopher of Revel was ordained a priest. The school years are over. The great shepherd went through four educational institutions, and now another school was opening before him - not the school of book knowledge and theories, but the school of life, the school of his own experience. A “good worker” entered the “field of God”, whom not only Russia, but the whole world soon recognized. The first steps of pastoral activity “I am a priest, a bearer of the Name of Christ and His grace. I am His church, animated, not made by hands, and must always be one spirit with Him, according to the words of the Apostle Paul: “He who is united with the Lord is one spirit with the Lord” (1 Cor. 6:17) (326, p.33). Father John began his pastoral ministry with deep reverence. His attitude towards his duties was such that one could only be amazed at how deeply, how subtly, with what heartfelt understanding he treated his calling. He looked upon pastoral service as the highest service on earth, a service that has no equal. “You are a representative of the faith and the Church, oh priest, you are a representative of Christ the Lord Himself, you must be an example of meekness, purity, courage, firmness, patience, sublime spirit” (333, p. 14). “The priest, as an angel of the Lord Almighty, must be above all passions and disturbances of the spirit, all worldly addictions or vain fears induced by demons; he must be entirely in God, love and fear Him alone” (333, p. 175). The holy righteous man left us these and many similar thoughts in his diary, but the important thing is that this mood of his spirit was clearly revealed already in his first speech addressed to the Kronstadt parishioners in the first sacred rite - the Liturgy. “I am aware of the height of the priestly rank and the responsibilities associated with it,” Father John said then. “I feel my weakness and lack of dignity to undergo the highest priestly service on earth, but I trust in the grace and mercy of God, which heals the weak and replenishes the impoverished. I know what can make me more or less worthy of this rank and capable of passing this title. This is love for Christ and for you, my beloved brothers. That is why the Lord, restoring the renounced disciple to the rank of apostle, asked him three times: “Do you love Me?” And after each of his answers: “I love You,” he repeated to him: “Feed My sheep, feed My lambs.” Love is a great power, it makes the weak strong, the small great, the insignificant honorable, and soon makes the previously unknown and stranger close, and known, and amiable. May the Lord, who is loving towards everyone, give me a spark of this love, and may he ignite it in me with His Holy Spirit” (439, pp. 51–53). These heartfelt, touching lines testify that Father John approached the throne and entered the preaching pulpit ready, spiritually mature and capable of “shepherding the sheep of Christ” in the spirit of evangelical love. He understood how great the pastoral ministry is and what responsibility he bears before God not only for himself, but also for his flock. Therefore, he based his works on the love of the Gospel, that is, the love that is acquired not by external qualities, but by deeds, according to the words of the Apostle Paul: “Be an image of faithful speech, conduct, love, spirit, faith, purity” (1 Tim. 4:12). From the first days of his priestly service, the young shepherd discovered a special love for church preaching and worship. He preached simply, his speech did not shine with the pearls of oratory. However, a special power was felt in every word - a reflection of the strength of his spirit. Father John willingly performed church services for other priests, without reservations he went to fulfill the spiritual needs of the Kronstadt poor, bringing light, joy and spiritual consolation to their poor homes. But in order to understand the spiritual feat of the active love of a good shepherd, we need to remember the moral state of the flock entrusted to him. In the second half of the 19th century, the city of Kronstadt was a place where vicious, incompetent citizens, “mostly philistines and various rabble” were sent (439, p. 54). These people, called “posadskie,” “huddled on the outskirts of the city in dugouts and shacks, wandered the streets, begged and drank” (441, p. 25). It was impossible to walk through the city streets at night without risking attack and robbery. In addition to the townspeople, unskilled workers also lived in Kronstadt, loading sea vessels with goods. But their morality was no different from the morality of the deportees. “The husbands drank, the wives and children lived in hopeless poverty, in hunger and cold” (441, p. 25). And “the sailors (according to Father John himself) spent most of their time at sea on their ships, once ashore, they tried to use their free time to the fullest extent, to get as much pleasure as possible” (213, p. 21). And in this “dark kingdom” of vicious people, suddenly a ray of the Sun of Truth flashed in the person of a true servant of Christ. The young shepherd hurried to the aid of these spiritually perishing people, extended a helping hand to them, and opened his sensitive, loving heart. Love! What could be higher than this virtue? “By loving our neighbor,” says Father John, “we love God; By honoring every person, we honor the image of God, God Himself and ourselves” (333, p.224). “Love every person, despite his sins. Sins are sins, but the basis in man is one – the image of God” (332, p. 141). Having drank to the dregs in childhood and youth the bitter cup of poverty and grief, Father John took it to heart and understood the need of the Kronstadt poor. They became the first eyewitnesses of his evangelical active love. This love knew no bounds. He gave away everything, down to the last two-kopeck piece that was needed for travel from Oranienbaum to Kronstadt, and even down to the last boots. “More than once during the absence of Father John, shoe merchants came to his house and, handing his wife a pair of boots, said: “Take this, mother, yours will certainly come again without boots” (213, p. 9). And indeed, their assumptions were justified. And here is another of the many examples characterizing the personality of Father John as a shepherd. “He comes to a poor family, ... he sees that there is no one to go even for food supplies, because from one corner can be heard the painful groans of the sick mother of the family, from the other the incessant crying of half-starved, cold, sick children... Then Father John himself goes to the store to buy provisions, to the pharmacy for medicine, or brings the doctor - in a word, he surrounds the unfortunate family with purely related care, never, of course, not forgetting about material assistance, leaving there his last kopecks, of which he himself had too little at that time” (109, p. 17). So the young shepherd tried to fulfill the commandment of love for one’s neighbor, imitating his Chief Shepherd, the Savior of the world. “My sweetest Savior,” Father John cried out, “You, having gone out to serve the human race, did not only preach the word of heavenly truth in the church, but flowed around cities and villages, did not shy away from anyone, went to everyone’s houses, especially to those whose warm repentance You foresaw with Your Divine gaze. ...Grant us also to have this communion of love with Your people, so that we, shepherds, are not confined to Your sheep in our houses, as in castles or dungeons, leaving only for services in the church or for services in houses, according to one duty, with memorized prayers. May our lips open to speak freely in the spirit of faith and love with our parishioners. May our Christian love for our spiritual children be revealed and strengthened through a lively, free, fatherly conversation with them” (333, p. 146). We spoke very briefly about the pious life of Father John in the first years of pastoring among his parishioners, and now we will try to reveal his inner spiritual life. From the very first days of my high ministry,” Father John wrote in his autobiography, “I made it a rule for myself: to be as sincere as possible about my work, shepherding and priestly service, to strictly monitor myself and my inner life. To this end, first of all, I began reading the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, extracting from it everything that was edifying for myself, as a person in general and a priest in particular. Then I began to keep a diary in which I recorded my struggle with thoughts and passions, my repentant feelings, my secret prayers to God and my reverent feelings for deliverance from temptations, sorrows and misfortunes” (35, p. 3). Apparently, academic and seminary education was not enough for him. Having entered the pastoral path, he simultaneously crossed the threshold of yet another school, the last one - the school of life, where he carefully studied the word of God, pastoral work and the science of sciences - knowledge of oneself. “I’m still learning” (171, p. 36), Father John often repeated throughout his pastoral ministry. And the lessons of this teaching were preserved in the pages of his diaries. Knowing his inner man taught the All-Russian pastor how to fight passions and the invisible enemy of our salvation, gave him the opportunity to experience the power of prayer and repentance, and also taste the sweetness of grace-filled communion with the Lord in the sacrament of Holy Communion. “If I receive communion worthily,” said Father John, “I am visibly renewed, I come to life after the death of sin: in my mind there is an extraordinary light, in my heart there is peace, joy in the Holy Spirit” (304, p. 116). That is why, from the first days of his pastoral ministry, he made it a rule to serve the Divine Liturgy as often as possible. With such a spiritual dispensation, a young shepherd appeared in Kronstadt. At first, the residents looked at Father John with surprise and even embarrassment when he, “with his arms crossed on his chest, with his gaze directed into the distance, brilliant, inspired, but far from the world” (171, p. 38), walked through the streets of the city. “Some even considered him an abnormal person, called him a holy fool” (171, p. 38) and laughed at him. The rector of St. Andrew's Cathedral also had a hostile attitude towards Father John. He did not like the fact that Father John sought to serve the Liturgy every day, and therefore often took Saint Antimins to his apartment. “Father John had to face various consequences more than once.” Either he was accused of indecent behavior during worship... then... of unauthorized absences” (439, p. 122). Several times Metropolitan Isidore of St. Petersburg interrogated him and forced him to serve with him, searching for “what was special, even sectarian, about him, as the closest clergy assured and reported” (439, p. 123). But the holy righteous man was not embarrassed by these adversities and troubles, but continued to live his inner life, immersed in the depths of the spirit seeking the knowledge of God. Prayer continued to serve him as his only weapon against temptation. Perhaps it was at this time that the holy shepherd wrote in his diary: “We must love our neighbor even more when he sins against God or against us, for then he is sick, then he is in spiritual trouble, in danger, then we must have mercy and pray for him and apply a healing plaster to his heart - a word of affection, admonition, reproof, consolation, forgiveness, love” (332, pp.314–315). There was some grumbling at home, too. Caring for the poor and needy very often put the young couple in a difficult position. Giving everything, down to his last shoes, Father John doomed himself and his wife to extreme poverty, but remained unchanged. “I am a priest,” he repeated, “what is there? This means there is nothing to say: I belong not to myself, but to others” (439, p. 54). And here is another fact testifying to the pure, chaste, God-loving soul and strong will of the young shepherd. In his diary he left the following entry: “Except for the Lord Jesus Christ with His Father and the Holy Spirit, there is no good for me on earth. He is my only bliss... After God, there is nothing more precious to me on earth (as it should be)... the human soul” (332, p. 237). It was the desire to devote himself entirely to serving God and people that forced Father John to maintain virginity in marriage. Everyone understands what a difficult task the young shepherd took upon himself. But he raised it boldly. The young wife did not accept celibacy in marriage so easily. Tradition testifies that she even filed a complaint against her husband with the diocesan bishop. But the young priest convinced him to voluntarily agree with him: “There are enough happy families, Lisa, without us. And you and I will devote ourselves to serving God” (35, p. 22). And so they, like brother and sister, lived together for fifty-three years. Here it is appropriate to cite Father John’s thoughts on how he treated temptations. “Glory to Thee, Lord, Our Father, the All-Wise Tester of my love for You and for my neighbor. Do not leave me without temptations, if Your wisdom and truth pleases and is beneficial, not a single day of my life; may it be planted, may it be established, may my love for You and for my neighbor be purified and exalted, and may I not appear at Thy Judgment empty before Thy face” (332, p. 273). This is how the pastoral soul matured, which was destined to contain all of Russia. The Kronstadt poor and sufferers, receiving material and spiritual help from him, helped him get out of the darkness of condemnation and slander of his ill-wishers and rise to the heights of well-deserved glory. The reciprocal love of the flock became Father John's reward. In the first years of priestly service, Father John was appointed teacher of the Law of God at a theological gymnasium. To educate souls for the Kingdom of Heaven—this is the task the new teacher of the law set himself. He believed that it was not enough to make students learned and useful members of society; it was necessary to educate them into good, God-fearing Christians. And the loving shepherd, possessing a rare gift of teaching, successfully fulfilled his task. The father's merits were appreciated by the parents of his pupils. “Many children have passed through your holy school,” they said to Father John on the twenty-fifth anniversary of his teaching activity. ...You yourself, without noticing it, with your fiery love for God and endless mercy for your human brothers, lit with your living word in... your disciples the torch of true knowledge of God; and with his holy example and mercy he filled their young hearts with the fear of God, faith, hope in God and love for Him and their brothers” (439, p.98). And how touching was Father John’s farewell to the teachers and students of the theological gymnasium! Parting with his beloved shepherd, the director said: “Dear Father John, our dearly beloved mentor in the Law of God and our spiritual father! Allow me, on behalf of myself, my colleagues and my pets, to say a short word to you. We are all saddened by the thought that you are leaving our gymnasium and parting with us. You know with what stubborn persistence I held you back in recent years... but, in the end, I had to submit to your will, give in to your desire to leave the gymnasium, which was caused by your exceptional circumstances” (439, p. 99). But there was one circumstance: suffering souls began to flock to Kronstadt from all corners of Russia, thirsting for spiritual consolation from the All-Russian shepherd. Altar Server of the Lord “I love to pray in the church of God, especially in the holy altar, at the throne or at the altar of God, for I am wonderfully changed in the church by the grace of God; in the prayer of repentance and tenderness, thorns and bonds of passions fall from my soul, and it becomes so easy for me; ...it’s as if I’m dying for the world and the world for me with all its blessings; I come to life in God and for God, I am completely imbued with Him and am one spirit with Him” (333, p. 17). The Russian people soon discerned where priceless wealth was located, a source of spiritual joy from which they could draw a cup of “living water.” A modest priest visiting the shacks of the Kronstadt poor suddenly found himself in the very center of people's life. People came to him from everywhere. People of all ranks and all ages sought him out: professors and students, adults and children, gentlemen and servants, humble workers and sick, spoiled, criminal people. They brought him their pain and suffering. They walked in the hope of receiving spiritual help, healing, advice or even a blessing. Here is a touching meeting. A fifteen-year-old boy came to Kronstadt. “I walked to you... for four weeks to see you and ask for your blessing,” he said to Father John. - And why did you come, and walk in the cold for four weeks? There was no need at all, you have a priest in your homeland, you should have asked him to bless you,” the Kronstadt shepherd objected to him. “I came to ask for your blessing, you bless me.” “You shouldn’t have come from afar,” Father John repeated again. “And bless me,” the young pilgrim kept repeating. The loving shepherd put his hand on his head, and the boy beamed with joy. “The Lord bless you, and here’s something for your journey,” and Father John put five rubles on his hand.... The boy was embarrassed. “When they give you money, take it,” the priest told him. “Will you pray for me?” - said the boy. “I’ll pray,” answered the good shepherd (78, No. 10, p. 156). Such was the love and faith of the Russian people in the gracious help of the All-Russian shepherd. What is the reason for such an extraordinary influence of Father John on the people? Why was every Russian soul drawn to him, like iron to a magnet? We will not repeat ourselves: the evangelical love of the holy righteous man for his neighbors was described in the previous chapter. But the highest virtue is not just love for people; immeasurably higher than her is another virtue - love for God and sincere faith in Him. It was these Christian virtues that the holy shepherd was filled with. The Faith of Christ was the native element of his spirit, he lived by it at every moment of his life. From this infinitely deep well the holy righteous man drew the heavenly gift of prayer, and the strength to carry out his pastoral labors, and boundless love for people, and the gift of healing human mental and physical ailments. Father John tried to direct his every desire, every thought, every movement of his heart to God. He “seemed to have lost his personal existence, his soul, as if he had ceased to live a separate personal life, his soul was completely immersed in the spirit of Christ, his life, in his own words, became life in Christ. There was never a moment in the life of a shepherd when it was possible to serve anyone or anything other than Christ and the brethren in Christ” (262, p. 141). “Oh, holy faith! - Father John cried. “With what words, with what songs will I glorify you for the countless benefits for my soul and body that you have given me, for all the powers that you have accomplished and are performing in me” (333, p. 69). “How many crooked aspirations of the heart have been corrected! How many times have sins been cleansed and the soul saved from spiritual death! And how close the Lord is to the believer” (333, p.26). This closeness with the holy righteous man was obvious. “The Trinity is my life,” he said, “my light, peace, deliverance, my salvation, my beauty, my health, my contentment... She is everything to me” (320, p. 153). The life of the All-Russian shepherd was a mystery to many contemporaries. Indeed, how can one not be surprised when he, remaining in the position of a simple parish priest in a multi-staff cathedral clergy, ascended to such a height of holiness. After all, the ascetics, in order to conveniently complete the spiritual feat, moved away from the world. And Father John, in the midst of a worldly situation, so dangerous and full of stumblings, achieved such perfections. “I wanted to know,” recalled one of the Russian bishops, “what is the secret of his spiritual power? If this comes from spiritual qualities, then from which ones? Does this come from his fiery love for people? Or from the great power of mind and word? Or from the willpower that conquers him? Or from the attractiveness in his personality? Or from the most beautiful order in the church? Where is the root and basis of his strength? We will allow ourselves to cite these memories without abbreviation. Firstly, in order not to tear apart the eyewitness story; secondly, to show the situation, the way of life in which the holy shepherd lived. “It was July. The weather is good. I traveled by boat along the sea bay from Petrograd to Kronstadt. It was Thursday, four o'clock in the afternoon. From the ship I walked straight to the cathedral. The church is majestic, surrounded by a clean garden with flowers. Above the entrance to the kindergarten there is an inscription: “Passage to unskilled workers and lower ranks is prohibited.” I’ll be honest: I didn’t like it; this shouldn’t happen at the Church of the All-Russian Shepherd. I enter the church and inquire about the time of services and about Father John. Fathers say no, he will arrive at night. Everyone in Kronstadt did not call Father John by name, but simply said “father”. Weekday vespers are taking place in the cathedral. Nothing special about either reading or singing. Everything is in the church and the service itself is going on, as in a simple village... I left the church, and I was surrounded by the hostesses of the shelters. Each one insistently invited her to her place, citing the priest’s blessing. Their impudence was downright unpleasant. I’m going to the House of Diligence named after Father John. It was clean, but there were no free rooms. Involuntarily I go to one of the shelters. It turned out to be a bit dirty here, the people are simpler. There are stories about the priest's miracles... People have been waiting for the priest for a whole month. He was on a trip to his homeland, to the Arkhangelsk region, and only now returned. “If you are a priest,” they tell me, “read us the rule for Holy Communion.” “Good,” I answer. I read the rule for them and for myself. About two dozen people prayed. At five o'clock in the morning I rush to the cathedral. Full of people. There are high people of all ranks, and there are simple ones. Noisy. They take candles and place them near the holy icons. I enter the altar. There were about a dozen visiting priests there, like me, and secular people. I hear the impressive voice of the elder: “How dare you enter the solea and the altar with the bars locked? I’ll call the police... I’ll tell the priest...” “I’m leaving, I’m leaving!” - answers the guilty one. I think to myself: “It’s amazing, it’s strange that here, in the altar, the matter comes to the police.” I look with the eyes of Father John - I can’t see him. Finally, the priest himself appears from the side altar. With a nervous gait he approached and bowed to the ground before the holy throne. Then he approaches everyone present in turn, asks where they are from, and gives everyone a brotherly kiss. Then he went up to the altar and began to read telegrams and letters, apparently asking for prayers. From the altar he again approached the holy altar, placed telegrams and letters on it, pressed them with his hand, and he himself knelt down in prayer. After praying, Father John left the altar. By this time, during the service, the canon of Matins had already begun. Irmos are sung by left-wing choir fans. The canon was read: a sharp voice could be heard, the pronunciation was unusual and even strange. I think: “The readers here are not exemplary.” I became interested and looked out of the altar. So what? Imagine my surprise when I saw with my own eyes that Father John himself was reading and singing. Matins ends and Father John, passing by me, invited me to serve the Divine Liturgy with him. I see that, by the way, it turned out to be my preparation yesterday. The entrance prayers were quickly read and proskomedia performed. So we stood at the Holy Altar and the Liturgy began. I followed Father John's every move. The priest said: “Blessed is the Kingdom of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit,” and his face changed. At first his eyes went somehow deeper, then a kind of radiance appeared in his eyes and in his whole appearance. He said the exclamation with special emphasis in his voice and straight from the depths of his soul. Then he turned out to look as usual again. He began to read prayers - and again there was radiance. I stopped reading and again looked ordinary. He read the long prayer during the Cherubic Song with lightning speed: he looked at the book and finished. Apparently, he did not read, but with his whole being he experienced what was said in the prayers. There was a shine in the face. Particular inspiration appeared in the face of Father John when he said the exclamation: “Take, eat, this is My Body...”. It was clear here that for him this was not the Kronstadt Temple, but Jerusalem itself, Golgotha ​​itself. He spoke with the fullness of extreme power, his face shone with rays of inspiration. His eyes watered. With his mood, Father John united everyone around the holy throne, and our cheeks also became very moist. Then I realized where the being, where the very essence of the spiritual power of Father John was: HE DID DIRECTLY FROM THE ORIGINAL SOURCE, that is, he drew his strength through prayer from the Lord God. Obviously, he had that very faith that the Savior said was capable of moving mountains” (429, pp. 4–6). The way Father John served the Liturgy amazed everyone present, and many eyewitnesses described this “unearthly service” with a feeling of deep tenderness. In a separate chapter we will talk about this in more detail, and here we will give some more memories in order to more clearly show the spiritual appearance of the holy shepherd. “The first exclamation was made,” says one of the eyewitnesses. – The first part of Father John’s Liturgy is predominantly... a prayer service. At this time, he recognizes himself as a prayer book for people and constantly remembers that all these people, ... captive in the power of sin and vanity, sick both physically and spiritually, are waiting for his intercession ... Father John is overwhelmed by the consciousness of enormous responsibility before these weak ones, ... and as if he is in a hurry to pray for them; he prays impulsively, persistently, does not ask, but demands from God that the demands of these unfortunates be fulfilled; with the authority of a priest appointed by Christ, he grabs the hem of the Lord's robe, demanding mercy. The prayer is unusual, invincible, exciting... The second moment of the Liturgy begins with the Great Entrance. Throughout the second half of the Liturgy, until the transubstantiation of the Holy Gifts, he devotes himself to experiencing the holy pictures of the Gospel past. From that time on, especially after “I Believe...”, he was there, in Gethsemane, in the Upper Room of Zion, near Golgotha. He sees the Lord. John on His breasts. And here He, the Lord, lifts the cup. Father John hears His voice in his heart: “Take, eat...”. Here he is holding the holy paten in his hands and, touching its edge with his lips, he prays. The breath of the Spirit is felt, it is felt that Father John “hears” the approach of grace and is waiting for it and calling for it. The moment of transubstantiation is the greatest moment in the Liturgy of Father John. There is celebration and victory here. Father John mentally sees the Lord on Calvary, but in the glory of the risen Victor. He dies for us on our Sunday. And the weapon pierces the soul: sorrow for the sins of mankind, which brought the Lord to the Cross, and joy for His sacrifice. At these moments the shepherd himself ascends to Golgotha ​​for the Lord, and sorrow turns into the joy of resurrection. The struggle of tears and joyful delight, the gradual victory of solemn joy over repentant sorrow - this is the greatest and most terrible thing that makes the service of Father John unusual. Father John begins the prayer of transubstantiation. “Lord, Who is Your Most Holy Spirit...” For the first time he pronounces these words solemnly and victoriously, but more or less calmly. This is still only a deeply religious priest. The second time the voice rises and trembles. It intensifies the connotation of authority and joy. We hear that he already knows everything, is confident that a great miracle is about to happen, hears the approaching Light of the Never-Evening and joyfully peers forward, ready to say: “Hosanna is coming, welcome!” Father John reads for the third time: “Lord, Who is Your Most Holy Spirit...”. His wide-open eyes see, it seems to me, the Lord Himself, coming to be sacrificed and given as food to the faithful. He does not see Christ and angels in visual images (at least, we do not know about this), but he feels the presence of Christ with his whole being - more tangibly, more clearly than can be seen with the eyes. “Here He is, here,” his lips seem to whisper, and this “here” is clearly visible in his eyes (170, no. 42, p. 707). But then the great Mystery took place. Father John “falls to his knees in tears, stands up, holding his heart with his hands, ready to burst out of his chest, to beat and tremble here, on the throne, closer to the concluded Mystery of Christ, looks, admires through tears at the Chalice... and his soul clings to the Divine... In wonderful solitude with Him, he forgot the whole world before this new daily Golgotha, at this feast of the Last Supper” (254, No. 50, p.808). These vivid, expressive eyewitness accounts of Father John’s inner experiences during the celebration of the Liturgy cannot be considered unreliable, since they are confirmed by the words of the holy shepherd himself. The joy of redemption, the feeling of filial love for God - these are the main moments of Christianity that deeply entered his soul. “Oh, holy Liturgy, Divine, all-wise, all-perfect, all-purifying, all-saving, all-sanctifying! - Father John cried. -...Wonderful is your strength, your greatness, your comprehensiveness! You are praise and glory to the All-Good, All-Holy, Consubstantial and Indivisible Trinity! You are the union of Heaven and earth - angels and men! You continually bring down to earth the incarnate God and the Holy Spirit together with the Co-essential Father! You turn the earth into Heaven! You make earthly people heavenly, and how many of them you have made so—there is no number—in all the past centuries and in the current ones, and you will make them in the future” (337, pp. 161–162). After communion of the Holy Body and Blood of Christ, the face of the holy shepherd changed. The fatigue that was noticeable before the Liturgy is no longer visible. He was again ready to work until late at night. “After communion,” Father John testifies of himself, “I change in a wonderful way. Before communion, I sometimes fear myself like a monster, because I see inside me the abyss of all evil, restrained and suppressed by tension towards the opposite virtues, and after communion I become pure, meek, which in itself is impossible for me. The hundred-headed monster of sin calms down inside me, freezes, I am no longer afraid of myself, but completely satisfied with myself: there is such peace in me, such wonderful calmness! Glory, glory, glory to the Divine Mysteries” (304, p. 128). No less amazing was the performance of the Sacrament of Repentance by the All-Russian pastor. In the first years of his pastorate, when there were relatively few visitors, Father John confessed everyone individually after the Liturgy. Kronstadt was especially crowded during Lent. At this time, according to the biography, the holy shepherd had to perform the Sacrament of Repentance from two o’clock in the afternoon until two o’clock in the morning, and sometimes immediately after confession begin the service of Matins (109, p. 65). One can imagine how much patience and strength was required to profess such a mass of people! But the working shepherd never sat down. “Standing all the time, leaning on the lectern, he, with his characteristic patience, listened to everyone, urging them to look into the most remote recesses of the heart, and often shed tears together with the repentant” (109, p. 66). But the fame of the holy life of Father John grew, and this pilgrimage to Kronstadt to the holy shepherd took place not only during Great Lent, but almost daily. Naturally, he could not confess each pilgrim separately. And if we also take into account the fact that every day he received many letters and notes with requests to visit the sick in the capital? Therefore, Father John, with the permission of his spiritual superiors, introduced general confession into his pastoral practice, excluding private confession. But let us note that he did this out of necessity, as having the richest experience of spiritual life and having a special blessing from God for this. “The vision of one layman in the church in the name of the Holy Apostle Andrew the First-Called is remarkable,” he wrote in his diary, “namely the vision of the Savior, extending His Divine hands to everyone present during general confession and the resolution of my sins and embracing everyone. I thank the Lord for this vision, for this mercy, which informs us that the matter of general confession is pleasing to Him and is done in accordance with His Divine will” (337, pp. 346–347). After general popular repentance, the communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ usually continued for more than two hours. And how much awe, delight, quiet joy could be seen on people’s faces! But then the service in the church ended. Surrounded by a crowd of people, Father John went out into the street, got into the prepared carriage and again hurried off to service, but in a different way - to serve his neighbor. The Miraculous Power of Prayer “No matter how many times I prayed with faith, God always listened to me and fulfilled my prayers” (333, p. 321). In the city of Kronstadt, in addition to the House of Diligence and several hotels, there were up to twenty apartments where pilgrims stayed. Sick, overwhelmed by grief, doomed to suffering and poverty, they wanted to see and receive advice or help from Father John. Not everyone had time to stay for a few days, and sometimes there was not enough money, so the holy shepherd tried to satisfy their requests every day. He was the first to extend a helping hand, bent towards the people's suffering, pitied the vicious and forgave the repentant criminal. After the Divine Liturgy, due to the many visitors, he could hardly find a time to go home for lunch or rest. And if sometimes he managed to do this, then people were already waiting for him here, and on the desktop lay a mass of letters and telegrams asking for prayerful help. “I’ve had a sore throat for two years, food won’t go away, I live on milk and water, the doctors refused to use it, they recommend surgery. Bless me, I ask you to serve a prayer service, for I have seven children,” one letter said. “Pray, I’m sick, I had one son, all my hope was in him, my breadwinner has now drowned. I’m suffering, poverty, help,” said another. But here is a telegram, perhaps the most interesting: “Pray for the health of a Muslim” (171, pp. 119–120). Having read the correspondence and dismissed the people, Father John, after a short rest, began to tour apartments with visitors. Here he either served a prayer service for the sick, or consoled the mourners with his warm conversation, or provided financial assistance to those in need. Detours in Kronstadt are completed. It's time for the shepherd to think about rest. But no, Father John comes home again to change his cassock, and now he’s in a hurry to visit the sick in the capital. Having with him the epitrachelion, the Holy Gospel, the Cross and spare Holy Gifts, he began visiting the addresses previously planned. Upon entering the apartment, the holy shepherd usually said: “Peace to this house. Where is the patient? Take me to him." After resting a little and asking his family about their marital status, he immediately went into the room prepared for prayer. After secretly praying on his knees, he invited those present to pray. “Let us pray,” said the holy shepherd, “the Lord said to His disciples: “Where two or three are gathered in My name, there am I in the midst of them” (Matthew 18:20), and there are many of us gathered here, and if we have gathered with faith and love, then He is undoubtedly present among us. So, friends, let it be done to you according to your faith.” And, setting an example to others, he began to pray fervently with tears: “Lord Jesus Christ, our God,” the words of the prayer were heard in the silent silence, “who for the sake of our salvation deigned to bear flesh, so that you glorified the wonderfully verbal nature of your ineffable compassion and goodness, and who in true repentance promised to forgive those who turn from the depths of sin... O good Lover of mankind, who made creation with one word and created man from it, see to this, through Thy ineffable love for mankind, this fallen one and the slave of sin was accepted and sanctified, so that Thy hand would not completely perish the work, giving to this His saving commandments in memory of Thy coming and Thy commandments, and Divine incarnation..." (439, pp. 231–232). Then, having read the Holy Gospel and performed the blessing of water, he sprinkled the sick person with holy water; if it was necessary, he communed the Holy Mysteries of Christ, and then, after a short affectionate conversation, hurried to another place. We will not talk in detail about how Father John returned to Kronstadt, how again, crowded by the people, he received a lot of letters and distributed money to the needy, how he visited the seriously ill at a late time if emergency help was needed, but we note that the holy shepherd’s working day ended after midnight. A peculiarity of Father John’s pastoral ministry was that he almost never performed the Sacrament of Anointing on the sick (at least, biographers do not talk about this), but served a prayer service for the blessing of water. Apparently, the words of the Apostle Paul are appropriate here that “the law is not made for the righteous” (1 Tim. 1:9). Strong faith in God's gracious help worked miracles. “He believed that God was good, and therefore would he really not fulfill his prayer... And Father John walked to God directly and boldly, as if insistently demanding, without leaving Him until he received what he asked. The thought was felt in his prayer: “You created everything, from the last blade of grass to me. Everything is in Your power. How come you won’t hear and help with everything I ask you for? So give it, do it like that! I won't leave until I get it. I will not stop crying loudly before You, like the Canaanite woman. I will not let go of Your robe from my hands until I receive what I ask for. If you refuse, I won’t leave. If you push me away, I’ll come again. I won’t stop screaming. Fulfill it, because my prayerful knocking to You will not cease” (251, No. 4, p. 52). And the Lord fulfilled the prayer of His chosen one. “Baby Paul and Olga,” says Father John, “by the infinite mercy of the Lord and through the prayer of my lasciviousness, they were healed from the spirit of infirmity that possessed them... In Pavel, the little one, the infirmity was resolved by sleep, little Olga received peace of mind, and her dark face became clear. Nine times I went to pray with bold hope, hoping that my hope would not be disgraced, that it would be revealed to the interpreter, that at least for my persistence the Lord would give me what I asked for; that if the unrighteous judge finally satisfied the woman who was troubling him, then how much more will the Judge of all, the Most Righteous, satisfy my sinful prayer for innocent children, that He will look at my work, at my walking, at my prayer words and my kneeling, at my boldness, at my hope. This is what the Lord did: he did not disgrace me, a sinner. I come for the tenth time - the babies are healthy” (332, p. 302). “Faith,” says Father John, “is the greatest good in earthly life. It unites a person with God and in Him makes him strong and victorious” (332, p. 66). She made Father John himself a great lamp of Orthodoxy. The Kronstadt shepherd resurrected for his contemporaries the miracles and exploits of saints, which they were accustomed to only reading about in hagiographic literature. He testified to the truth of these life stories and confirmed by personal example the words of Christ the Savior: “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do will he do also, and greater works than these will he do” (John 14:12). The Lord raised the dead, cast out demons, healed diseases, restored sight to the blind, and conquered the elements of nature. And what about the holy righteous John of Kronstadt? – Biographer I.K. Sursky testified that with his prayer Father John resurrected a dead fetus in the womb (442, p. 244). The shepherd also had power over unclean spirits, and cases of healing of bodily diseases are impossible to list. Moreover, the power of prayer was so great that the boundaries of space disappeared and the sick were healed in absentia, far beyond the borders of Kronstadt. Here is a story about the miraculous healing of a blind young man. “This was in the last years of Father John’s life. Having arrived in Kronstadt, says one pious landowner, to see Father John, I accidentally met on the street my friend Dmitry Alexandrovich Slavyansky, the head of the famous Great Russian choir. I learned from Dmitry Alexandrovich that his choir was singing mass in St. Andrew’s Cathedral that day. Of course, I was present at this mass, which was performed by Father John himself... At the end of the mass, D. A. Slavyansky whispered to me that he invited Father John directly from the cathedral to come to the hotel, where he stayed with his choir to serve a prayer service... I immediately went to the indicated hotel. Soon Dmitry Alexandrovich arrived there with his singers, some of the guests and, finally, Father John. When, at the end of the prayer service with the blessing of water, all those present reached out to venerate the Cross, I noticed that Dmitry Alexandrovich, among others, was leading in front of him some strapping young guy, whose facial expression and uncertain manners clearly showed that he was blind. Finding himself in front of the priest, Dmitry Alexandrovich placed the blind guy in front of him and began to ask Father John to bless him. Father asked who he was and how long he had been blind? Then Dmitry Alexandrovich began to explain that, once in Kyiv, at the entrance to the caves, he drew attention to a group of blind people ... who were singing their pitiful song. From the general choir, one voice stood out sharply, childish, clear. It belonged to an eleven-year-old blind boy. Dmitry Alexandrovich, amazed by the boy’s hearing and voice, took him into his choir. “I’ve had him ever since,” he added, “he has a wonderful voice, and he himself is a good guy, although a little simple-minded and incapable...” The blind man, hearing these words, raised his head and said: “It’s good for you to say that, but what is my life like! I would like to see..." Father John looked at him intently and asked: “Do you want to see?” “Yes,” was the answer. Then the priest with his left hand extended the Cross to his lips, and with his right hand he scooped up some holy water from the bowl that the sexton held near him, and ran his wet fingers over the guy’s sightless eyes, saying: “Pray, God heals every ailment through prayer.” He shuddered and recoiled from the unexpected touch of cold water. Father John scooped water from the cup a second and third time and, with the same words, wet the patient’s eyes. After that, Dmitry Alexandrovich stepped aside with him, giving space to others. In the evening, staying with a friend, I learned from him the details concerning the blind guy, whose name, if my memory serves me correctly, was Mitya. The next day I was hastily summoned by Dmitry Alexandrovich to the hotel. Arriving there, I learned a thing that, if not for the evidence of my own eyes, I would never have believed... Deep at night, Dmitry Alexandrovich felt that someone was shaking him strongly by the shoulder and shouting in a wild voice: “Get up, Dmitry Alexandrovich, get up!” Thinking that something terrible had happened, he jumped out of bed. A blind man, Mitya, stood in front of him with a candle in his hands, shaking all over with excitement. Dmitry Alexandrovich! - he did not speak, but shouted in a voice that was not his own, in which one could hear horror and delight, - but I see! By God, I see it! A candle, I see... and you!..." (213, pp. 43–46). The miracle of the healing of the blind young man is very reminiscent of the healing of the man born blind in the Gospel. The evangelist says that for a long time people could not believe the miracle. “How did your eyes open?” (John 9:10) - they asked the blind man. The healed man answered: “The man called Jesus made clay, anointed my eyes and said: “Go to the pool of Siloam and wash.” I went and washed and received my sight” (John 9:11). If you asked a blind young man how he regained his sight, he would have to say: “Father John of Kronstadt washed my eyes three times with holy water, and I began to see.” But the holy shepherd, avoiding human glory, attributed the miracles he performed only to God and explained them this way: “Those who touched the Savior’s clothes were healed. Why are those who still use holy water with faith being healed? – The cross, immersed in water with the prayer of faith, is, as it were, the Lord Himself, the Life-Giving One. Just as the Savior’s clothes were imbued with His life, so the water into which the Life-giving Cross is immersed is itself imbued with life, and that is why it is healing” (333, p. 261). And here is another miracle that makes us remember the name of the Old Testament righteous man - the prophet of God Elijah. “Even in the evening,” says an eyewitness, “when we were sailing up the Northern Dvina, ...we were shrouded in a light haze. Undoubtedly, forests were burning somewhere far away. In the morning... we stopped at the first village we came across to celebrate mass as usual... When Father John finished reading the canon, the church was already crowded with people praying. The church elder told the priest that Yagryshi and neighboring villages were suffering greatly this year from a three-month drought. To top off all the troubles, a forest fire began, which, as it approached, threatened the homes of the peasants, so on behalf of everyone... he asked the priest to pray for the sending of rain. “I left the church before the end of mass,” the narrator continues, “and to my great surprise I saw that the entire horizon was covered with thunderclouds...” But now the mass is over. People poured out of the church in a thick mass... Everyone joyfully looked at the sky, already half covered with clouds, and shared with each other the impressions produced by the prayer of Father John. When the priest entered the ship and his crew began to prepare for departure, it began to rain... The steamer set sail, and we sailed away from the shore. The rain began to fall harder, but the people did not disperse, and we could still hear the joyful singing of a crowd of thousands, until the downpour that came from the sky completely drowned out the voices of the happy peasants” (94, No. 46, p. 794). This was in 1903. And a year later, in his diary, Father John wrote: “I thank You, Lord, that several times this summer You have already given, through my prayer, abundant rain, filling the rivers and filling the fields, and giving a bucket after a long drought, for everything is easy for You to do” (399, p. 198). The life of Father John in itself was the greatest miracle. To awaken faith in people, teach love, go to the Kingdom of Heaven and lead others - this was his life purpose. And people, responding to the call of the good shepherd, followed him. “I have always glorified and glorify You, Lord, before everyone, and You have already glorified me everywhere, but I am unworthy of Your mercy for my sins, unworthy of glory on earth” (399, p. 184). Since the fame of the holy life and deeds of the Kronstadt shepherd spread throughout Russia, letters and telegrams began to come to Father John from all over our fatherland and even from abroad with requests for a visit. He was invited everywhere, from the royal palace to the last hut of a poor peasant. And in this sense, the words of a contemporary are true that “the whole of vast Rus' in this case can be called one continuous parish of the good shepherd Father John of Kronstadt” (439, p. 328). We have already talked about how the All-Russian shepherd spent his day, so, naturally, he could not satisfy the requests of all petitioners. But, despite the lack of time, the holy shepherd visited many cities of Russia. In 1885 he made a trip to Voronezh. In 1890 he was in Kharkov. In 1893 in Kyiv, Vilna and the Volga. In 1894, he again traveled along the Volga, from the city of Uglich in the upper reaches of this royal river, to the city of Tsaritsyn in the lower reaches. There are known records of visits to the city of Omsk. Every year since 1891, Father John traveled to his homeland in Sura, and spent two days of each month in Moscow. “I had to go with the famous mitred archpriest Father John of Kronstadt,” recalled an eyewitness. “It was not a journey, but a triumphal procession.” He was met everywhere by governors, bishops, clergy and thousands of people. They greeted us with ringing bells, with honors, with love” (92, No. 4, p. 65). Here he is traveling on a steamboat - and the banks of the river in all the places where there are houses nearby are dotted with people. The news of his passage flew like lightning from village to village. And if the ship did not stop and continued its journey further, then people ran along the shore after it, not wanting to lose sight of the holy shepherd. In all the cities where Father John came, only large squares could accommodate everyone who wanted to see and pray with him. It was touching and touching to watch him squeeze through the crowd. Some kind of spiritual current, like an electric current, permeated her upon meeting the holy shepherd. From all sides people caught his hand to kiss him, touched his clothes, and what joy did he experience when he was able to hear a word of consolation from the shepherd. “It’s difficult to understand the psychology of the crowd,” says a contemporary. “After all, everyone loves Father John and no one wants to cause anything unpleasant to him, and yet the same crowd threatens their “dear father” with danger every minute.” Everyone understands well that there is no physical opportunity to bless everyone individually when there are thousands of people in the crowd, and, despite this, at the sight of Father John, the entire crowd, like one person, rushes at him and threatens to cripple him” (94, No. 42, p. 65). And Father John? “He smiled meekly and affectionately and greeted everyone. He understood that to free himself from this crowd meant to offend people. And from communicating with him, people received a kind of push, awakening them from spiritual sleep. Before them stood something bright, holy, something that had been drowned out and forgotten in the bustle of the world. The only thing that was needed was remembered – the Kingdom of God. Most often, Father John traveled by ship. But let us note that even in these days the sacrament of the Eucharist was at the center of his spiritual life. Every day on the way, he served the Divine Liturgy in those churches that he passed by around eight or nine o’clock in the morning. Moreover, it could be either a monastery, or a city cathedral, or simply a poor parish church. If Father John noticed that the church was lacking in something, for example, the clergyman’s vestments were dilapidated, there were not enough candles or other church supplies, then he certainly helped as much as he could. After the Liturgy, he returned to the ship and continued on his way. After resting a little in the cabin, Father John began his usual work: writing a new sermon, or recording his thoughts and impressions in a diary, or answering letters and telegrams that he received in huge quantities from all over Russia. “I rarely saw Father John on deck without his inseparable Gospel in his hands,” recalled one of those who had the opportunity to travel with the All-Russian shepherd, “he prayed all the time, occasionally taking his eyes off the Gospel in order to transfer them to nature, which he loved infinitely and in which he saw the greatness of God” (94, No. 42, p. 714). In 1891, Father John made a trip to his homeland. This was not a walk for relaxation, but a pilgrimage to the place of the first Divine revelations, to where God spoke to him and from where he called him to serve the entire Russian people. The holy shepherd loved his native Sura. Here, through his efforts, a stone church, a parish school, a sawmill and a brick factory, a house for a priest were built, and a few years later a convent was founded. “It was a bare place here,” a fellow villager testified, “there was nothing except an old church on the bare sand. And now you can’t even recognize the old church, Father Ivan renovated it, and now he’s built a new one, which surprises everyone” (171, p. 224). The biographer notes that since 1891, the holy shepherd came to his homeland every year (171, p. 202), but stayed here no more than three days, because during this time he managed to do everything planned: inspect all the new monastery buildings, visit schools, the factory, go twice to the new monastery monastery, serve matins and mass, visit the local clergy, his sister, and introduce all the sisters monastery To remain on the fourth day would mean to remain in order to do nothing, “and this is the most difficult thing for Father John, who is alive, quick in his movements and accustomed to incessant work” (94, no. 42, p. 714). All trips of the All-Russian shepherd are described, including a visit to some inconspicuous corner of Russia. Yes, this is understandable. The Lord said to His disciples: “You are the light of the world. A city standing on top of a mountain cannot hide. And when they light a candle, they do not put it under a bushel, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to everyone in the house” (Matthew 5:14). And the Kronstadt lamp illuminated not only the Russian land. Its light penetrated far beyond its borders. Residents of any city considered it a great happiness to receive a dear guest. And they could not hide this happiness. Within a few days, a detailed description of the great celebration appeared in the press. It is a known fact that the residents of the city of Samara built a church in memory of Father John’s stay with them. To show how great the people's love for the holy shepherd was, we will present living eyewitness accounts. In 1890, Father John visited the estate of the Kharkov landowner P. Ryzhov. “In the first days, dear priest lived in Ryzhovka relatively quietly and calmly. But what began to happen here two or three days later is difficult to convey... People crowded everywhere. It even filled the garden. Flowers and flower beds in the garden were trampled and wiped off the face of the earth... During Father John's stay at the Ryzhovka estate, approximately one hundred thousand people visited him. There were days when seven to eight thousand a day came to him for blessing. After the first two days of Father John’s stay in Ryzhovka, she literally found herself in a state of siege. Thousands of people camped near the estate. Here they drank tea, ate a snack, and slept. Some waited in line for several days. “Ryzhovka” is located ten miles from Kharkov. Almost every train brought there at least five hundred passengers. There were so many tickets issued for each train that at other times would not be sold in two months. Thanks to the extraordinary crowd of passengers, ten to twelve additional cars were attached to the train. And to maintain order, a reinforced police force was sent here. The city was also very worried. Long before the arrival of the dear priest, he had already begun to talk about him. “He saved my wife,” said one. “She was already dying, all the doctors refused to treat her. I sent him a telegram. “Pray, I will pray too,” he answered. And suddenly there was an unexpected turning point in her illness, which amazed the doctors, and she is now completely healthy.” “He saved my son,” said another. Hundreds of such stories circulated around the city. And so, when Father John arrived in the city, he was literally besieged by people who earnestly asked him to visit one or another house where the sick were at that time. Many extremely touching scenes could be observed then in every house that Father John visited. He barely has time to arrive somewhere - a crowd is now growing on the street... On the fifteenth of July, at the request of Kharkov Archbishop Ambrose, Father John served the Liturgy in the city cathedral for the first and only time... in the concelebration of the entire city clergy. And “it was a misfortune, not a service,” as one of the eyewitnesses put it. The crowd pressed forward and almost burst into the altar, pressing behind them. The singers sang in the altar. All exits were made in the altar in front of the royal doors. After the service, the iron bars in the cathedral were broken by the onslaught of the crowd. With difficulty, Father John got out of the cathedral, wearing only a cassock and without a hat... Due to the complete impossibility of performing prayer services in churches, Father John, not wanting to offend the Kharkov people, decided, at the suggestion of the Right Reverend Ambrose, to serve a prayer service on the twentieth of July in the cathedral square. The cathedral square, as well as the neighboring streets and alleys, presented an unprecedented spectacle that day. The people were so crowded that, as they say, there was nowhere for an apple to fall. All the roofs of the houses were dotted with people wishing to see the Kronstadt shepherd. On this day, according to the testimony of many, more than sixty thousand people were present at the prayer service” (439, pp. 338–342). And here is a memory of Father John’s visit to the city of Kazan. “He had just stepped onto the pier when he was literally knocked down and squeezed by a huge crowd. There was no way to go further and we had to go back. The situation turned out to be very difficult. Then the mayor came out to the crowd and said loudly several times that Father John would not come out until the crowd parted and gave free passage, that such behavior of the crowd would completely deprive Kazan of the happiness of seeing Father John within its walls and that he could be seen in the cathedral, where he would serve mass today. These words had the desired effect. Those standing in front, holding hands, formed two continuous chains with free passage. As Father John approached the prepared crews, the pressure became stronger, so that it was no longer possible to restrain it. Pressed on all sides, Father John slowly moved forward, without, however, refusing anyone a blessing. By the way, with a special joyful feeling, he blessed and kissed one child, whose parents, bringing him to Father John, declared that this child had been saved from obvious death by the absentee prayers of the respected shepherd. With extraordinary efforts, Father John was finally pulled out of the crowd of thousands and literally carried into a carriage, where the mayor sat next to him. As soon as the carriage, escorted by mounted police guards, started moving, a crowd of several hundred people rushed after it. Some, with obvious risk, rushed to the steps of the carriage, grabbed and kissed Father John’s hand, touched his clothes and then raised the touching hand to their lips. Many knelt down and made the sign of the cross. Others threw envelopes into the stroller. All along the route from the pier to the city and along all the streets along which Father John’s carriage followed, the people greeted their dear guest with low bows... First, Matins was served in the cathedral, at which Father John, as usual, read the canon, and immediately after it - the Liturgy... The Kazan clergy mainly gathered in the altar, who followed the service of Father John with intense attention and reverence. The church was so crowded with people that there was no way to enter it. The crowd stood like a strong wall facing the iconostasis, which could not but complicate the sacred rites. The stuffiness was so strong that rain literally poured from the ceiling both in the church and in the altar. Not only the church, but people filled the entire porch, the bishop’s courtyard, and the entire square and street leading to the cathedral. At the end of the service in the cathedral, in order to protect Father John from the inevitable and dangerous crush, it was necessary to escort him out of the cathedral through the bishop's chambers through the back door. But even here there was such a crowd of people that the carriage could not arrive, and it took extraordinary efforts to snatch and carry out Father John, carried away by the crowd, which rushed after the rushing carriage” (439, pp. 364–367). There is no need to describe visits to other Russian cities. Similar scenes were everywhere where the All-Russian shepherd was met. This is how the Russian people appreciated the righteous life of Father John. The holy shepherd appeared as a people's priest in the full sense of the word, a great people's elder, nourisher and spiritual father. “It is good in all respects to give to the poor: in addition to pardon at the Last Judgment, here on earth, alms-givers often receive great mercies from their neighbors. And what others get for a lot of money is given to them for free” (333, p.24). Reverently peering at the spiritual appearance of Father John, you are involuntarily amazed at the wealth of his virtues. Like a valley decorated with various fragrant flowers, the life of the holy shepherd was decorated with many exploits and good deeds. We will not list all the virtues of the righteous. But we note that the main one - love for neighbors - is most confirmed by his charity. The Church knows a special category of saints - unmercenaries. One can easily include Father John among them. Even in the first years of the pastorate of the holy righteous man, an interesting “institution” appeared in Kronstadt, which was called the “army of Father John.” Every day, early in the morning, even before dawn, this “army” lined up at the house of the holy shepherd in anticipation of alms. People were so accustomed to receiving their “share” that they became angry and “went on strike when for some reason the amount of money given by Father John was reduced” (262, p. 103). Over time, the charity of the Kronstadt shepherd reached colossal proportions. Hundreds of thousands of rubles passed through his hands every year. And he gave all this money to those in need, without refusing anyone; Moreover, carefully avoiding publicity, the holy shepherd tried to act according to the covenant of Christ the Savior, so that the left hand would not know what the right hand was doing (Matthew 6:3). “Once,” eyewitnesses say, “a woman gave Father John an envelope with money. Without opening it, he handed it to another woman standing right there. The donor made a movement to grab Father John’s hand and cried out: “Father, there are three thousand rubles here!” To this he replied: “That’s what she needs” (441, p. 39). In his written works, the unmercenary shepherd pointed out the reasons that motivate every Christian to do charity. According to Father John, it is mercy towards others that should be most characteristic of a Christian. Why? – Because the Lord Himself showed an example of endless mercy towards people. He sent “His only begotten Son” into the world, so that everyone who believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life (John 3:16). He founded His Church and gave every person the opportunity to partake of Divine grace through the Sacraments. “The entire New Testament of our Lord Jesus Christ primarily bequeaths to us mutual love and mercy; He teaches us this in various parables. ...Charity should be especially characteristic of a Christian because he is and is called a member of the Church of Christ, the members of which are his co-members, or members of a single body with him, and since in this body there are many weak members, ... there is nothing more natural and fair than to sympathize with a weak or needy member and help him” (366, pp. 196-197). Man is the highest creation of God. On it, as on the most expensive treasure, God put His seal - His image. And therefore, “isn’t it the greatest madness,” says Father John, “isn’t it atheism—to spare for man, for this image of God, for this partaker of the Divine nature, for whom God will be everything (1 Cor. 15:28)... to spare food, drink, clothing, housing and anything earthly” (332, p. 271). Christians of the apostolic age had everything in common. “The rich and wealthy voluntarily donated their property and money, and what they collected was kept by the primates of the Church, who used it to support the poor, widows, orphans, and the sick” (366, p. 200). “We must be guided by the history of the apostolic times, by the example of the primacy of the Church” (333, p. 373), teaches Father John. And besides, “we have nothing of our own, but everything is God’s. And rich people unfairly keep their surpluses in their treasuries, while there are many poor people” (333, p. 372). Finally, an important incentive to charity should be the fact that it “is very useful for the benefactors themselves, it strengthens their sense of philanthropy, brings the purest joy to their hearts, attracts the love and affection of their neighbors to them and, most importantly, acquires for them the love and favor of God” (366, p. 201). This is how many reasons prompted the holy shepherd to works of mercy. And could his loving heart not tremble when the poor people of Kronstadt came to him for help? However, it was not always possible to help a person with material means. There were people who had no means of subsistence simply because they drank every penny they could get their hands on. For such people, reasonable work was necessary. And so, on the initiative of Father John, the House of Industriousness appeared in Kronstadt, where not only healthy, but also sick people could work. This unusual establishment had a women's sewing workshop, a shoemaker's workshop for boys, a people's canteen, a shelter, a free children's library, and a Sunday school - in a word, the Kronstadt pastor provided for all the needs of his parish, responding with deeds to the demands of the time. But soon there was a strong fire in Kronstadt. The House of Industriousness also burned down. However, this did not shake the energy and spirit of Father John. He took the disaster that befell him as a test from God, and in 1882 he built a new stone building of this charitable institution. Years passed. Popular rumor had already surrounded the face of the Kronstadt shepherd with a halo of holiness, and it was rare that a family in Kronstadt did not consider him their patron and intercessor. People were firmly convinced: while Father John was alive, not a single person would die from poverty. Rumors about him continued to spread beyond Kronstadt. And this humble priest became a benefactor of the entire Russian land, a people's hero in the truest sense of the word. Here are a few thoughts from a selfless shepherd about how alms should be given and under what conditions it benefits the benefactor. “Alms,” says Father John, “is a seed; if you want it to bear good and a hundredfold fruit, make this seed good, giving in simplicity and from a kind, merciful, compassionate heart” (333, p. 203). “Do good to the poor willingly, without suspiciousness, doubt and petty inquisitiveness, remembering that in the person of the poor you are doing good to Christ Himself” (333, p. 163). “Those who give bread or money to the hungry with pity, with an evil eye and an unfed heart, are the same as putting poison in their bread or in their alms, although this poison is spiritual, invisible” (332, p. 209). “Alms are good and saving when combined with the correction of the heart from pride, malice, envy, idleness, laziness, gluttony... and other sins” (332, p. 301). To give a complete picture of Father John’s charity, it is necessary to talk about the churches and monasteries built with his funds. When distributing donations, Father John was guided by the following rule: “God has neither Greeks nor Jews. I don't have my own money. They donate to me, and I donate. I often don’t even know who and where sent me this or that donation. That’s why I donate where there is a need and where this money can be useful” (439, pp. 558–560). This is how the holy shepherd thought of himself humbly and modestly. But the people who received alms from him did not hide the fact that he donated “where there is need,” having the gift of foresight. Here is an example from the life of schema-abbess Tamar, when even before her abbess she underwent monastic feats in the Georgian Bodbe monastery. This “monastery, which had just been converted from male to female,” says Mother, “at first was in dire need of material resources. Sometimes there was not enough money or provisions in it, and they would not lend money in the shops. And then one day, when the lack of everything was especially felt, Mother Abbess (Juvenalia) and I mournfully went to the church to pray for help to be sent to us from above. We stand and cry. Suddenly, a sister going to the post office submits a summons for two hundred rubles for certification. The money turned out to be from Father John. He wrote to his mother (Abbess Yuvenalia): “I am sending, dear, two hundred rubles for your extreme needs.” This was a great surprise, especially since until now we had neither acquaintance nor correspondence with Father John. Obviously, he himself foresaw in spirit that somewhere far away in the Caucasus, in a newly formed convent, the sisters were in poverty, and he sent his labor contribution to support them” (14, p. 8). It is impossible to list all the generous donations Father John allocated for church construction. According to biographers, churches arose everywhere: in Siberia, in the far North, in the center of Russia, and in the capital itself. Several times an American missionary turned to the unmercenary shepherd for financial help to build a church. How many donations were made by Father John secretly from people? “Only God knows this.” But true almsgiving is not just about giving money. “He is truly merciful,” says Father John, “who talks with everyone from the heart, and not with the mind or lips, who gives everyone sincere, heartfelt respect, who preaches the word of God and serves from the true heart, unfeignedly - in a word, who embraces everyone and carries everyone with love in his heart” (333, p. 149). And this is exactly what the All-Russian shepherd was. He cared for all of Russia and gave spiritual alms not only to the laity, but also to the monastics. It is known that the Venerable Seraphim of Sarov founded the Diveyevo convent, the Venerable Ambrose of Optina founded the women’s community in Shamordino, and the hieromonk of the Gethsemane monastery at the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, Elder Barnabas, founded the Iversky Vyksa convent in the Nizhny Novgorod diocese. Like them, the holy righteous John of Kronstadt became the founder and spiritual leader of several women's monasteries. The founding of the St. John the Theological Convent in his homeland was caused by the desire of Father John to give a firm foothold to the Orthodox people of the north, lost among the large population of schismatic Old Believers. On the territory of the entire Arkhangelsk region there were only two convents, Kholmogorsky and Shenkursky, while schismatic monasteries “in the impenetrable forests could be counted in dozens” (439, p. 573). The construction of the Surskaya monastery progressed very quickly. In the autumn of 1899, the ceremonial foundation stone was completed, and by the summer of the following year the construction of a wooden building and a wooden single-altar church in the name of the Apostle and Evangelist John the Theologian had already been completed. Among the first nuns of the monastery, Father John accepted about thirty poor Kronstadt girls, whom he first sent to Abbess Taisia, the abbess of the Leushinsky convent of the Novgorod diocese, for training in monastic life. A close spiritual relationship developed between this pious old woman and the holy shepherd. Father John constantly maintained correspondence with her and visited the Leushinsky Monastery several times. It was necessary to see with what love the abbess and the sisters of the monastery greeted him. “Do not forget why you have gathered and live in the monastery,” Father John taught them, “not for peace and bodily pleasure, not for sleep and the enjoyment of food and drink, although you are not deprived of earthly bodily nutrition, which has been generously prepared for you, but for the labors and feats of prayer, abstinence, physical and spiritual labor, for obedience, humility, patience and reflection on the eternal future blessings prepared for those who love God in Kingdom of Heaven... Prepare for an answer for your entire temporary life, correct yourself day by day, give up your sinful habits and worldly habits, addictions, prepare your hearts as a dwelling place for God” (399, pp. 142–143). Having established the Surskaya convent, Father John wished to strengthen its existence by building two farmsteads: in Arkhangelsk and St. Petersburg. However, the St. Petersburg metochion was soon destined to become a separate convent in honor of the Twelve Apostles. On this occasion, the Kronstadt pastor wrote to Metropolitan Anthony of St. Petersburg the following: “Having founded, with God’s help, with the help of good people and with incessant daily prayerful efforts, a magnificent and extensive courtyard with a majestic church, under the name of the Sursky courtyard, to support the convent I founded in my homeland in the village of Sursky, Arkhangelsk province, I found that this building in the capital is too artistically and extensively, so that it would be a metochion and be under two principles of spiritual management: the St. Petersburg ruler - the metropolitan and the Archangel bishop, and that it would be better for it to be an independent St. Petersburg convent and under the jurisdiction of one metropolitan of St. Petersburg...” (439, p.574-575). Father John's request was fulfilled, and the metochion was turned into the Ioannovsky Convent, named after the heavenly patron of the Kronstadt shepherd, the Monk John of Rylsky. But this monastery, having become an independent tree, in turn gave a new sprout, a new branch - the Vaulovsky women's monastery, located near the city of Rybinsk. Through the zeal of the holy shepherd, the Vorontsov Annunciation Convent in the Pskov diocese was also established. So, several women's monasteries and many churches are the fruits of the generous hand of the All-Russian lamp. Father John fulfilled the Gospel commandment of mercy. And for this the Lord glorified His chosen one and awarded him great holiness. After all, His words are not false: “I will glorify those who glorify Me, but those who disparage Me will be dishonored” (1 Samuel 2:30). “In my old age (79 years old), every day there is a special mercy of God, every hour and every minute. My physical strength is exhausted, but my spirit is cheerful and burning towards my beloved Bridegroom, the Lord Jesus Christ. How many guarantees of mercy I have received and receive from God in this life, I hope that I will receive in the future life after death. And death is birth into eternal life by God’s mercy and love for mankind” (320, p. 153). Patristic experience distinguishes two states in the spiritual life of a Christian. The first is the many-sorrowful path of the cross, a time of struggle and struggle with oneself, one’s old man, the world and the devil. The second state is blessed. In it, the ascetic feels deep peace of soul, through the grace of Christ’s victorious passion, and even here on earth, he feels the guarantee of Heavenly bliss. The first path is common and inevitable for every Christian. The state of grace is the lot of only some saints of God, such as the holy righteous father John of Kronstadt. Having gone through the common path of sorrows and the feat of the cross, he reached the measure of the age of Christ and appeared as a wondrous, grace-filled man. In the God-loving heart of the holy shepherd, the ineffable light of God’s grace quietly shone, warming his entire spiritual being. Neither the beauty of the world, nor wealth, nor glory, nor anything earthly could distract him from his love for Christ. Together with the Apostle Paul, he could say: “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” (Gal. 2:20). The Lord rewarded His faithful servant with the gift of miracles, the gift of prophecy, and the gift of consolation, advice and spiritual intelligence. Once, in a dream vision, the holy righteous man had the great happiness of contemplating “face to face the Queen of Heaven and hearing Her sweetest, blissful, approving voice: “Dearest children of the Heavenly Father” (337, p. 346). Dream visions testifying to God's favor towards Father John were repeated several times. February 3, 1902: “Before awakening,” says Father John, “I saw... the living Baby Jesus in the arms of His Most Pure Mother, looking at me with His holiest, most gracious, caressing eyes, and the Most Pure One Herself, looking at me very graciously” (399, p. 274). And on the night of May 27, 1905, the vision was repeated: “I saw...” the holy shepherd wrote in his diary, “the Eternal Child, the Lord Jesus Christ, in the arms of the Most Pure Virgin Mother, in a simple form, tenderly turning His hands and His gaze towards me; my heart yearned for Him with tenderness and love, and I touched His feet with my lips, and the Lady mercifully turned Her gaze to me, deigning to kiss the feet of the Most Pure Child” (310, p. 128). These gracious consolations were for the Kronstadt shepherd a sign of reciprocal Divine love. But the all-Russian lamp was extinguished. His incessant labors exhausted him, but still, burning with love for Christ, he continued to celebrate the sacrament of the Eucharist every day. Four months before his death, Father John wrote to Abbess Taisia: “My health is almost at the same level: sometimes it gets better, sometimes it gets worse; the latter happens because of my carelessness. I serve the Liturgy every day and give communion to the people. In my absence there were almost no people in the cathedral, but with my arrival it began to fill up” (364, p.99). According to biographers, the holy shepherd predicted his death 13–15 years in advance, when the foundation stone of the new Naval Cathedral in Kronstadt was being laid. After the welcoming speech, he said: “And when the walls of the new church are brought under the roof, then I will no longer exist” (439, p. 721). And in the fall of 1908, the construction of the cathedral was coming to an end, the walls were put under the roof, but Father John’s health also deteriorated sharply. On December 6th, the day of remembrance of St. Nicholas, he barely served the Liturgy. His strength left him and only with outside help was he able to return home. For the next three days he received communion at home. However, on the tenth of December, feeling a slight surge of strength within himself, the holy shepherd, despite the doctors’ prohibitions, decided to celebrate the sacrament of the Eucharist in St. Andrew’s Cathedral. This was the last Liturgy of the All-Russian pastor. The illness especially intensified in the last three days of Father John’s earthly life. On the eighteenth of December, he could no longer get up to meet the priest with the Holy Gifts, as he had done before, and received communion only of the Holy Blood. The next day passed in great suffering. In the evening, Father John began to complain of a terrible fever throughout his body. “Father is dying,” this sad news, like lightning, spread throughout Kronstadt. In St. Andrew's Cathedral they decided to serve the Liturgy without waiting until morning to give communion to the sick person. The people present at this night service cried; The clergy also cried. At the end of the Liturgy, although with difficulty, we managed to give Holy Communion to the holy shepherd. And on the morning of December twentieth, at seven forty minutes, he quietly passed away into eternity. At the request of the deceased righteous man himself, he was buried in the Ioannovsky Convent in Petrograd. The entire Russian land saw off its beloved shepherd on his last journey with great sorrow. From Kronstadt to Oranienbaum and from the Baltic Station in Petrograd to the Ioannovsky Monastery one could observe crowds of crying people. Oh, how hard it was for them to part with their father, under whose prayerful cover they lived so warmly and comfortably! “Cold, empty, lonely,” says a contemporary. - How gratifying it was to think, to feel that there, by the sea, in a white house, prayer never stops, and when we, weak people of a poor land, rest in our sleep from our sins, there this righteous prayer, profitable to God, is heard for us. They lived, they fell; believing in God, they betrayed Him, but they were consoled by the fact that this crystal-clear man lives among us, who fulfilled the entire law of Christ. This angel walked among us, spoke about Heaven as a close and familiar land, he missed Heaven, “he had a desire to be resolved and to be with Christ” (Phil. 1:23). Now he flapped his wings and rose to his native region in a happy flight... Should we feel sorry for him, called to the throne of God, saturated with the vision of the longed-for Son of God and personally worshiping That Most Wonderful Queen of Heaven, Whom his faithful heart so glorified on earth? We will feel sorry for ourselves that we were left without such a person. And let's not forget what he showed us. He showed the happiness of the spirit, gave visible, real evidence of faith, showed how much power there is in living, active love and how beautiful and fruitful life is if you live according to Christ. We stand looking at the sky, hoping to find there a mysterious trace of his path. Lord, support and comfort the orphaned flock. You took the shepherd to Yourself and killed the shepherd, but do not scatter the sheep of the flock!” (253, no. 52, p. 856–6). Chapter 2. Pastoral advice from Father John to the celebrant of the service “Constantly pay attention to yourself so that spiritual life and spiritual wisdom do not dry out in you. Think often about everything you read, or sing, or listen to in church, or sometimes at home. Live the life of the saints, by prayer, by their wisdom, by their virtues... Let your loins be girded and your lamp burning (Luke 12:35)” (333, p. 174). Five years have passed since the Kronstadt shepherd died. “It seems,” says a contemporary, “it’s time to forget Father John Sergiev. After all, modern people generally have such a short memory. But the righteous Father John of Kronstadt will and will remain in eternal memory. To this day, people remember and love the priest. The church where he rests is always full of worshipers. I was in this church at the grave of Father John on a weekday, and the church was so crowded that I barely made it into the altar. The priests who perform God’s services here told me that this happens every day, from one hundred to three hundred people receive communion every day. ...Every day, requiem services are held at the grave of Father John, one after another” (262, p. 42). It is not easy for a modern person to imagine that just recently, at the beginning of our century, the Russian Church had a shepherd who, without exaggeration, can be called All-Russian - a shepherd whose love, mercy and other virtues became a complete reflection of the Gospel teaching. “The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep,” said the Lord. “But a hireling, not a shepherd, whose sheep are not his own, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs...” (John 10:11-12). Is it possible to find anything in the personality of Father John that contradicts this gospel ideal? Did Father John understand this Gospel covenant of Christ the Savior correctly? Let us present the answer to the Kronstadt shepherd himself. One day one St. Petersburg archpriest told him: “You are so tired, father, you don’t give yourself any rest!” Father John replied: “What do I need peace for, my friend! Our peace will be there (he pointed to the sky), if only we earn it here. And can the shepherd be at peace when not all the sheep yet hear his voice, and some don’t even want to hear, while others groan and beg for help. Shouldn't the shepherd rush to their aid? How many tears, needs, sorrows, infirmities, how many sins our sheep have!... Should the shepherd rest and sleep when their destruction does not sleep” (171, p. 145). So, this is exactly how Father John of Kronstadt spent his pastoral ministry. Even during his lifetime, his contemporaries set him as an example to all clergy. Father John “is a treasure of history” (262, p. 47) - noted one of his admirers. Soon after the death of the priest, Archbishop Anthony of Volyn said: “From now on, every protege should consider it a crime for himself not to know the unparalleled life of Father John, should get acquainted with his works, should henceforth be guided by his thoughts in life” (208, pp. 84–85). Anyone who has even briefly touched upon the study of the diaries of the holy shepherd “My Life in Christ” cannot but agree with the opinion of Vladyka Anthony. Truly, this life in Christ, this is an experimental knowledge of God and self-knowledge, this is a theological creation. The two conversations of Father John with the shepherds of Nizhny Novgorod (1901) and Sarapul (1904) that have survived to us are imbued with rich spiritual experience. To them we can also add the word of the holy righteous man, spoken by him for the edification of shepherds and those preparing for shepherding on the day of his seventieth birthday. In these conversations, Father John talks about his personal pastoral experience, but, nevertheless, they cannot be otherwise regarded as advice and instructions that every priest can and should apply in his pastoral ministry. What moral and pastoral advice can a celebrant of a divine service draw from the legacy of Archpriest John Ilyich Sergiev? Apparently, it is no coincidence that already at the very beginning of his conversations, Father John touches on the main question - the question of the basis of Christian life. “...I try to be a true shepherd,” he says, “not only in words, but also in deeds - in life. Therefore, I strictly monitor myself, my spiritual world, my inner work. I even keep a diary where I record my deviations from God’s law; I trust myself and try to improve” (441, p. 169). Addressing the Sarapul shepherds, Father John said: “I fulfill the ancient great rule: know yourself. This, in fact, is the content of my whole life; and to this day I have not stopped “knowing myself.” Through this I recognize my helplessness in all respects, and this makes me humble. ...Constant study of my nature forces me to be constantly careful and constantly ask God for gracious help for cleansing from sins. And this same knowledge of my human weaknesses makes me help others and pray for them, sympathize, and forgive. The study of my human nature is especially valuable to me because through this I learn the main properties of God; I know for myself, I have experienced how merciful, long-suffering, omnipotent, and quick to obey our Lord is in helping us. He is the Source of our mental and physical health, spiritual purity, spiritual strength” (441, p. 173). Here is advice for you, shepherd, on how to avoid vanity and pride, how to learn humility and patience, how to gain tears of repentance and tenderness. Father John placed a high value on priestly service. “The priest is an angel, not a man”; he constantly has a conversation with the Lord Himself and “the Lord constantly answers his speech” (332, p. 33). Glorifying with the angels, the priest forms with them “one council, one Church, one family of God... by the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ” (332, p. 227). He is empowered by the grace of the All-Sanctifying Spirit to accomplish the rebirth and sanctification of sinful humanity. Therefore, “is it a matter of carnal pleasure for a priest, when he must irrevocably enjoy the one and only Lord, may He grant him the request of his heart? Is there any time for carnal pleasures, when he has so many spiritual children presenting to him their many different spiritual and physical infirmities, in which he needs to sympathize with them spiritually, give sincere and sound advice, when every day he faces a feat with all his heart and with tears to pray for them before the Lord, may the mental wolf not run upon them and plunder them, may the Lord give them success in life and faith and spiritual reason! Is it possible for a priest to enjoy carnal pleasures when he often has to perform services in church and stand before the throne of the Lord, when he so often has to perform the Divine wonderful Liturgy and be a performer and communicant of the Heavenly, Immortal and Life-giving Mysteries, when he so often has to perform other Sacraments and prayers” (332, pp. 296-297). And if we also take into account how often the shepherd has to pronounce the all-holy name of the Life-Giving Trinity - Father, Son and Holy Spirit - then what kind of mouth should he have? “Even more, how spiritually pure the heart must be in order to contain and feel the sweetness of this most honorable, magnificent and venerable name! Oh, how a priest must distance himself from carnal pleasures, lest he become flesh in which the Spirit of God does not dwell” (332, p. 296), exclaims the holy shepherd. As you can see, the above instructions of Father John call the clergyman to fight with himself and the invisible enemy of our salvation. But everyone will agree that this is not an easy task and spiritual warfare cannot be without temptations or even simple failures. “If failure occurs in business,” the holy righteous man warns, “one should not succumb to despondency” (353, p. 28). After all, morality in not a single ascetic was formed without struggle. And any spiritual growth is usually preceded by a test. And a shepherd, more than anyone else, needs spiritual experience. He “needs to experience for himself the power of faith, and the sweetness of prayer, and the remission of sins, and when it is unsuccessful, and spiritual sorrows when they befall, and gracious consolations, so that in prayer to God for believers he can say: “Give them the same good as You always give it to me, unworthy,” - in order to ask for everything from his own experience” (332, p. 76). Reflections on the inevitability of temptations in the life of a shepherd make us remember another law of spiritual life: the need for constant improvement. “He who does not gather with Me,” said the Lord, “scatters” (Luke 11:23). Therefore, “we must move forward in spiritual life, ascend higher and higher,” says Father John, “increase more and more the stock of good deeds; if we stand at one point of moral perfection, at one step on the ladder of Christian ascent, then it’s the same as going backwards; if we don’t collect, then it’s as if we’re wasting” (353, p. 36). Father John learned from personal experience how difficult the struggle is with the incorporeal enemy - the devil: But a priest must care not only about his own salvation: he is a prayer book, an intercessor, a mediator between God and his flock. And here is the pattern: “The more people you ask for benefits from the Lord,” says the holy shepherd, “and the higher these benefits, the stronger the devil opposes the praying priest” (353, p. 9). Most often in this case, the enemy acts through despondency. In a conversation with the shepherds of the city of Sarapul, Archpriest John revealed three reasons for the appearance of this spiritual illness and gave some advice for its healing. “Teach, father, to fight despondency in the work of shepherding,” one of the shepherds addressed Father John. – At first there is a terrible despondency from one’s own sinfulness, one gives up when one remembers the words: “To the doctor, heal yourself,” teaching doesn’t come to mind; and now - despondency. “It’s in vain,” answered Father John. – Here you need to remember about duty. The thought of duty should have a compelling and encouraging effect on the shepherd. “You are authorized by the Church, you must do,” this thought should both inspire the shepherd and, of course, disperse any despondency. And this despondency is from the enemy! “But here, father, there is another form of despondency - from the blasphemous thoughts that appear in the head during the most sacred moments of the service. “Well, this is despondency,” Father John said energetically, directly from your lack of faith. Blasphemous thoughts must be despised; struggle here is unnecessary and harmful; just don't pay attention! But if whatever thoughts lead you to despondency, this is due to weakness of will, which means that you give these thoughts time to dominate you, perhaps even enjoy them... From here despondency only follows! So you don’t need to bring your soul to despondency! Don’t you know how quick the Lord is to obey, how quickly He fulfills all your requests? And so, at the very beginning, with fervent prayer, drive away from yourself all mental confusion; at the right time, the sinful mood captured by prayer completely disappears and can never bring a truly and ardently believing person to despondency. “But, father,” the co-questioner continues, “I also experience a particularly difficult state of despondency at the sight of triumphant evil.” “That’s a different matter,” said Father John. – This is truly difficult to worry about; I often have to go through a similar situation. Here you need to strengthen yourself with prayer and firmly believe that the Lord is able to turn even the most evil, in the ways known to Him alone, to good” (441, pp. 175–176). “Where the machinations of the devil multiply, there the grace of God abounds” (353, p. 9), said the Kronstadt shepherd. By his personal example, Father John showed that shepherding is a feat of love. But love does not withdraw into itself, it is sociable and simple. The Apostle Paul revealed the properties of this highest virtue: love is long-suffering, merciful, does not envy, does not boast, is not proud, is not rude, does not seek its own, is not irritated, does not think evil, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices in the truth, bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things (1 Cor. 13:4-7). These rules should form the basis of pastoral ministry. However, their implementation deprives the pastor of his personal life: it merges with the life of the parish. A single Christian family emerges. That is why Father John said: “I am a priest. What is there! So, there is nothing to say. I don’t belong to myself, but to others” (262, p.54). Not only a priest, but also every Christian should strive to acquire gospel love. And “in order for you to test yourself whether you love your neighbor according to the Gospel,” advised Father John, “pay attention to yourself at a time when people offend you, scold you, laugh at you, or do not give you due respect, the respect accepted in the community, or when subordinates sin against the service and are faulty. If you are calm at this time, are not filled with the spirit of enmity, hatred, impatience, if you continue to love these people the same way as before, to the point of their insults and malfunctions, then you love your neighbor according to the Gospel” (333, p. 81). According to the Gospel teaching, the one who truly loves his neighbor will give him primacy, “the greatest will be a servant” and “the first a slave” (Matthew 20:26–27). Christ the Savior set an example of true love and humility. He is the Chief Shepherd and Ruler of the world - at the Last Supper, having accepted the duty of a servant, he washed the feet of His disciples (John 13:1-5). How should shepherds love each other - after all, they are united by a common cause, a common concern for the salvation of their neighbor. Moral union between clergy is especially necessary to maintain peace in the life of the parish. Insincere pastoral relationships cause temptation and criticism from parishioners. The law about the action of the shepherd on the spiritual life of his flock was clearly formulated by the Lord in the words: “So let your light shine before people, so that they may see your good deeds” (Matthew 5:16). The godly life of a shepherd is the best edification. It is no coincidence that the author of the book of the Apostolic Acts, already in the first verse, drew attention to what Christ the Savior did, and then to what he taught. So, first the deed, and then the word. The word will only be heard if it is confirmed by the pious life of the shepherd. “To manage others,” says Father John, “you must learn to manage yourself in advance; in order to teach others, you must acquire knowledge yourself” (332, p. 184). The doctor “must be healthy himself, so that those being treated do not say: “Doctor, heal yourself” (Luke 4:23)” (332, pp. 380–381). In the written heritage of the holy righteous man, a pastor can find a lot of advice on how to heal his spiritual wounds. “When you feel hostility and hatred towards any of your co-workers, senior, or equal, or inferior, or towards any of your acquaintances or strangers, due to any vices or disgusting qualities of character, immediately throw away your hostile feeling and look impartially at yourself, remembering your countless, disgusting passions and character traits, and hate yourself, and love your neighbor and pray for him, for we are all in sins and in troubles” (303, pp. 28–29). “If your brother does something incorrectly or somewhat negligently during the service, do not be irritated either internally or externally against him, but generously condescend to his mistake, remembering that you yourself make many, many mistakes in life, that you yourself are a man with all your weaknesses, that God is long-suffering and abundantly merciful and forgives you and all of us our iniquities without number” (332, p. 157). The pastor also needs to remember that “passion is hot, vague, thoughtless, evil, impetuous, and therefore a person in passion, for example, in anger, says a lot of thoughtless, untrue, fictitious, evil things that he would not say in a calm state. Therefore, knowing from experience this property of passions, firstly, do not speak when you are confused or angry; and excuse hot-tempered and irritated people when they hurl curses and reproaches that are unfair and just” (333, pp. 201–202). “Do not hesitate,” says Father John, “to remain in this state that is harmful to you, but immediately bow your knees and confess your sin before the Holy Spirit, saying with all your heart: “I have offended You, Holy Soul, with the spirit of my passion, with the spirit of malice and disobedience to You.” And then from the bottom of your heart, with a feeling everywhere of the presence of the Spirit of God, read a prayer to the Holy Spirit: “Heavenly King, Comforter, Soul of truth, Who art everywhere and fulfills all things, Treasure of good things and Giver of life, come and dwell in me and cleanse me from all filth, and save, O Blessed One, my passionate and lustful soul.” (332, pp. 217–218). According to Father John, “every priest is an apostle in his own village or parish” (333, p.409). He was entrusted from the Lord with a priceless treasure - the immortal souls of men, redeemed by His Blood (337, p. 78). And therefore, “just as light and warmth are inseparable from the sun, so holiness, teaching, love, mercy for everyone should be inseparable from the face of a priest” (333, p. 202). “Receive every person who comes to you, especially for a spiritual purpose,” says the holy shepherd, “with a gentle and cheerful look, even if he is a beggar or a beggar, and inwardly humble yourself before everyone, considering yourself lower than him, for you were appointed by Christ Himself to be the servant of all, and everyone is His members, although, like you, they bear the wounds of sins” (333, pp. 37-38). “Try to achieve childlike simplicity in dealing with people and in prayer to God. Simplicity is the greatest good and dignity of a person” (333, p. 301). And “if you want to prove your devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ with all your soul and with all your heart, willingly and humbly serve the sick in their homes, bringing and teaching them the Holy Life-Giving Mysteries of the Most Pure Body and Blood of the Lord. Treat the sick whom you have to give communion... treat with tenderness and meekness, like a nurse treats her children, remembering how the Lord loved us all” (395, p. 80). Orthodox consciousness elevates the priest to the level of a mediator, interceding for people before God. This understanding of shepherding is determined by the word of God (Heb. 5:1-3). This is exactly how Father John of Kronstadt understood priestly service. “Priest of God! - he exclaims, “Believe with all your heart, always believe in the grace given to you from God, to pray for people... may this great gift not be in vain in you” (333, p. 267). “The Lord, as the most loving Father of children, is pleased when we sincerely pray for people” (333, p. 38). “Prayer for others is very useful for the person praying himself... it cleanses the heart, confirms faith and hope in God, and kindles love for God and neighbor” (332, pp. 272–273). The idea of ​​interceding for his flock before God is also expressed in Father John’s personal prayer before the start of the weekly service. We will present the text of the prayer verbatim, so that every priest, if he deems it necessary, can use it in his practice. “Lord, behold, this begins the week of my service, unworthy of You, the King without beginning and before the ages, of serving, of standing before Your terrible and life-giving throne, and of interceding for myself and for Your people, so that You may cleanse the sins of all; a week of service to the Most Heavenly, Most Pure, All-Redemptive Divine and Terrible Mysteries, the service of truth, the service of incorruptibility and immortality, renewal and deification, the highest, Divine service, of which there is nothing holier and higher in the world. Help me in this ministry every day without ceasing, may the grace of Your Holy Spirit protect me from all sin, keeping me with the saints” (337, p. 79). In the church of God, during divine services, a great mystery takes place: the rebirth of the human soul by the grace of Christ. But the disembodied enemy, having captivated a person with carnal lust and addiction to the world, seeks to hinder the Christian and does not allow him to experience the sweetness of prayerful communion with God and the saints. Often the shepherd’s heart is struck by insensitivity, so that his prayer is insincere, cold and inattentive. “The devil,” says Father John, “is such an evil spoke that at all times and everywhere climbs into the eyes of your heart, overshadowing and suppressing them, it is such a poisonous dust that constantly floats in our mental atmosphere and sits causticly on the heart, eating away and drilling it” (332, p. 257). But “let us not become discouraged by the slander of the enemy,” the holy shepherd consoles, “but let us take courage and strengthen ourselves, looking with the eyes of our hearts at the Hero of Christ, who stands invisibly before us and secretly accomplishes rebirth in our souls” (333, p. 89). “When embarrassment and some kind of powerlessness of the heart prevents you from saying the words of prayer during a service, then consider this embarrassment and powerlessness to be an enemy’s dream,” advises Father John, “throw away despondency, cowardice and timidity, and speak about the name of the Lord slowly, calmly and deliberately louder, and you... will receive cheerfulness and strength!” (332, p.386). During church prayer, a priest must feel the Lord next to him and be firmly confident that “as soon as he thinks and says something, it will happen. It is so convenient and easy for the Lord to fulfill our requests, to create or implement something according to our word” (332, p. 294). The written heritage of Father John Sergiev contains rich material for reflection on prayer and worship. Here you can find explanations of individual prayers, and simple but convincing examples and instructions that encourage a Christian to pure heartfelt prayer at home and in church, and advice on how to maintain a prayerful mood, and even a number of your own prayers, imbued with simplicity and strength of spirit. We will devote a separate chapter to a detailed study of this subject. Here we will give only some advice from the All-Russian pastor, which will help the priest prepare more thoroughly for the celebration of the Divine Liturgy. Preparation for this “unearthly ministry” begins for the shepherd at home. The church charter presupposes the fulfillment of the prayer rule, which consists of several canons, akathists and prayers before Holy Communion. In the canons and akathists to the Savior and the Mother of God, according to Father John, “all the great deeds of our God concerning our redemption and salvation are collected” (337, p. 300). These prayers should revive in the pastor thoughts about communion with God and the incarnation of God. The canons to the guardian angel and the saints of the day strengthen the consciousness of their sinfulness, and the canon and prayers before Holy Communion immerse the pastoral soul in the contemplation of the greatness of the Holy Mysteries of Christ. The significance of the prayer rule for pastoral work is quite obvious. But in order for it to bear its natural fruit, it must be fulfilled conscientiously. The holy shepherd calls for this and offers a number of instructions. “To whomever you want to pray, first ask in your heart to be worthy to bring him a heartfelt prayer, praise or thanksgiving, for only with strengthening from the Holy Spirit can we pray, with strengthening from those holy saints through whom we want to pray to the Savior... If you want to pray to the Lady, call on Her from the heart, so that She will grant you to unfeignedly bring Her prayer or praise and thanksgiving with all your heart. If it is an angel, call on the Lord, may he grant you the dignity to offer Him a prayer, or to sing His goodness, the lightness and goodness of His nature. If it is a saint, call upon the Holy Spirit, by Whose holiness they are sanctified, ... for all of us only when strengthened by the Life-giving Holy Spirit can pray worthily and life-giving” (353, p. 45). “Never sleep in the evening before the evening rule, lest your heart become white from untimely sleep, and lest the enemy stifle it with petrified insensibility in prayer” (353, p. 40). “When you pray, as a rule, especially according to a book, do not rush from word to word without feeling its truth, without placing it on your heart, but do and constantly do the work to feel in your heart the truth of what you are saying; your heart will sometimes resist this with laziness and petrified insensitivity to what you read, sometimes with doubt and unbelief... - don’t be proud, conquer your heart, give it to God as an auspicious sacrifice... Don’t rush to pray somehow: for half an hour of prayer you will gain three whole hours of the healthiest sleep. Are you in a hurry to get to work? Get up earlier, don’t wake up, and pray fervently, and you will gain calm, energy and success in your affairs for the whole day” (353, pp. 39–40). This last instruction is especially important for the pastor. Lack of time, sometimes negligence and laziness, and the so-called “habit” of prayer due to frequent church services can give rise to another bad habit - mechanical, hypocritical prayer. “When praying,” Father John continues, “keep to the rule that it is better to say five words from the heart than ten thousand words with the tongue” (353, p. 43). It is unfair to think that Father John advises shortening the prayer rule. He talks about the quality of prayer, that prayer should always come from the heart. But it takes a long feat to warm it up. “It’s strange to think,” notes the All-Russian pastor, “all the more so to demand that a heart that has become seasoned in the bustle of everyday life could soon be imbued with the warmth of faith and love for God during prayer... The Lord Himself expresses His will that we pray not briefly, when he presents as an example a widow who regularly went to the judge and bothered him with her requests (Luke 18:2-6)” (353, p.44). “How can we learn to speak the truth in our hearts in prayer? “We need to bring each word of prayer to the heart, put it on the heart, feel its truth with our hearts, recognize all the need for us of what we ask of God in prayer” (353, p. 41). According to the Kronstadt pastor, only those who “have learned inner prayer with a pure heart can pray hastily... But those who have not acquired heartfelt prayer must pray slowly, waiting for the corresponding echo in the heart of each word of prayer” (353, p. 40). In addition to what has been said, we will give a story from the life of Father John, which will help the pastor understand the purpose of the prayer rule. Once a priest turned to the Kronstadt shepherd for spiritual advice. Before healing his spiritual wound, Father John invited him to concelebrate the Divine Liturgy with him the next day. But the priest, citing his unpreparedness, replied: – Thank you very much, Your Reverence. ...With the greatest pleasure I would like to serve with you, but today I can no longer prepare for serving the Liturgy, there is not enough time. Let me do it another time! – Another time!.. Another time!.. – Father John repeated several times in a low voice, lowering his gaze. Then he looked seriously at his interlocutor and asked in a raised voice: – And when the Lord calls to serve the Eternal Liturgy, shall we then say: Another time? No! Then we need to prepare right away and we won’t ask for time for this... So it is here... We think that preparation for serving the Liturgy consists of reading everything required by the rules, and sometimes we don’t even have liturgical books at hand; How can you prepare without books?! Eh, father, father!.. You and I should know that it takes a little time to prepare for the celebration of the Liturgy, but that’s exactly how much time is needed to accept God into your heart. God! Come and inhabit us! And there are many books with which you can prepare for serving the Liturgy. Look at the sky - the heavens will tell the glory of God! Look at the earth - every breath there and every creature praises the Lord!.. Here is a book, just by looking into which you will immediately open your heart to the Lord!.. The trees of the field, the mountains and hills, all the animals and birds... - everything praises the Lord. And He will come to you, and here, in your heart, He will create an abode for Himself. Without the Lord in the heart it is impossible to serve the Liturgy. How can you get Him to come to you? This cannot always be achieved by simply fulfilling the church charter. The Lord is always near us. Call Him and sigh about your sins, about your wicked life, and boldly ask: “Have mercy on me! Cleanse those who have sinned” (457, No. 3, pp. 37–40). The holy shepherd did not deny the prayer rule. No! But he emphasized that every priest must prepare for serving the Liturgy constantly, or, better said, must be ready at any moment - with the help of heartfelt prayer of repentance. After all, the prayer rule is a means for maintaining the prayerful spirit and acquiring repentant feelings. For Father John, prayer was the breath of the soul, and every word of prayer was the breath of the Holy Spirit. “Tell me, father,” one of the shepherds asked him, “during your constant travels, how do you fill your free time?” “I pray,” answered Father John, “I pray constantly. I don’t even understand how you can spend time without prayer” (441, p.174). Yes, indeed, he was a great all-Russian prayer book. “If anyone wants to understand Father John of Kronstadt correctly,” argues Metropolitan Benjamin, “he must look at him the way he looked at himself throughout his fifty-three years of priesthood. And preaching was not his main business... In the first place he should have had, and was, divine services in different types of the daily cycle: Vespers, Matins... And especially, exclusively, above all, the sacrament of the Eucharist” (35, pp. 75–76). In Russia there were spirit-bearing elders to whom thousands of people were drawn, and wise saints, theologians who ruled the helm of the Church, and ascetics, hermits who often surprised people with their exploits, and even exemplary shepherds whom the Orthodox world revered, but there was no such zealous celebrant as Father John of Kronstadt, who was especially zealous for the sacrament of the Eucharist. This idea will be clearer if we quote the words of the righteous man himself: “One day I was left without God’s service and I felt in myself the impoverishment of spiritual life, the impoverishment of grace, the presence of sinful power, and a considerable struggle was needed with sinful intensifying attractions. The service and communion of the Holy Mysteries renewed my being, and I arose as if from a dream. God bless! “Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you will not have life in you” (John 6:33). The word of my Lord and God is true” (15, p.43). Father John understood the Liturgy as a sacrament of endless Divine love for the human race. And therefore, first of all and most of all, he advised the shepherd to acquire the love of the Gospel. “He needs her every minute, every moment... But especially... during the Divine Liturgy” (353, p.6). Preparing himself for the performance of this greatest Sacrament, the priest “must be embraced by love for God and his neighbors, ... there should never be a shadow of anger or grief in him towards anyone or addiction to anything earthly: whether for food, clothing, decoration, official distinction, or personal appearance. He must always be on high, God’s, holy” (353, p. 7). “You, priest of God, servant of the Most High Creator,” says the holy shepherd, “serve the Liturgy with fear and proper preparation, especially if you serve daily, see how you make your womb, which happens daily, through the communion of the Holy, Life-giving Mysteries of Christ, the church of God, whether it is not an instrument of gluttony and delicacy, an instrument of the devil, who through the womb he dragged the human race into hell and subjected it to damnation. Hold fast to the fast commanded by the Savior, pay attention to yourself and others, and save yourself and the people” (353, p. 19). It is no coincidence that Father John draws the pastor’s attention to fasting. The experience of ascetic life has shown that fast fatty food, due to its nutritional value and coarseness, especially affects the spiritual state of a person. Most often, the soul, from excessive satiety, is subjected to despondency and melancholy, and unclean prodigal movements arise in the flesh. Therefore, the Kronstadt pastor advises “a priest who partakes of the Holy Mysteries daily ... to eat meat less often and in small quantities” (353, p. 19). The spiritual and pastoral experience of the holy righteous father John of Kronstadt, collected in his written works, is so great that it is difficult to cover and convey all his advice and instructions. But every celebrant of worship should, perhaps, remember one more remark of the holy shepherd, based on personal experience. As you know, Father John amazed those present with his concentration during the Divine Liturgy. That is why one of the shepherds of the city of Sarapul asked to explain how he managed to achieve this. “I achieved this only through habit,” was the answer. – Learning to quickly concentrate in prayer and master oneself is a big task. ...Here you need repentance, a quick reproduction in your soul of the image of Christ or the Cross of the Lord and full awareness of your spiritual contamination and helplessness” (441, pp. 174–175). An addition to this answer can be found in the memoirs of Bishop Arseny (Zhadanovsky). The future Bishop asked Father John the same question and received the following answer: “...For concentration during the Divine Liturgy, the preparation for it itself is important, in particular, abstinence in everything in the evening, preliminary repentance and reading the prescribed rules. The more attentively and enthusiastically we perform it, the more soulfully we celebrate mass. The day's canon should not be missed; I almost always read it myself and through this I seem to enter into the spirit of the events being remembered, and when I leave it, I always feel unprepared” (15, p.9). Vladyka Arseny left one more interesting remark. If Father John “read the rule, then he delved deeply into every word, which is why in his instructions we find many notes, like the following: the expression is underlined: “Keep my damned soul,” and in the margins it is written: “Indeed, how damned I am” (15, p. 18). Who would not agree that the holy righteous John of Kronstadt is an amazing phenomenon in our Russian Orthodox Church. A careful analysis of his inner state and fiery love for God and neighbor allowed him to rise to the heights of spiritual perfection. And he calls every shepherd to this perfection: “Listen, pay attention to yourself, to your heart’s thoughts, O priest of God, and do not be bound by worldly lusts and pleasures! Let your sweetness be one God and the human soul; be a lover of souls, and not a lover of money or a lover of voluptuousness” (332, p. 353). Chapter 3. Father John officiating at the service In this chapter we will try to present to the clergy the ideal of a shepherd - a performer of worship. In our discussions we will be based on the writings of Father John of Kronstadt and, mainly, on his diary entries. But what are the diaries of Father John? The modern theologian Archpriest Georgy Florovsky wrote: “Rarely does anyone read... the wonderful diary “My Life in Christ” as a theological book. Of course, there is no theological system in it, but there is theological experience and testimony about it. This is the diary of a contemplative, not a moralist. And prayer is not lyricism, not only the aspiration of the soul, but precisely its meeting with God, the breath of the Spirit, spiritual reality” (468, pp. 400–401). And according to the testimony of Metropolitan Veniamin (Fedchenkov), this wonderful book contains “not the far-fetched advice of a preacher, not the cold reflections of a theologian, but the experienced delights of a seer of miraculous revelations” (34, p. 9). One cannot but agree with the opinion of Father George and Vladika Benjamin. Indeed, Father John was a theologian who did not so much speak and interpret about the divine world as he did and taught. He did not have any “distance or gap” between word and deed. Everything that the holy shepherd wrote about is nothing more than personal spiritual experience. Therefore, in order to show the ideal of a shepherd - a performer of divine services, we need to talk, first of all, about Father John himself. When discussing Father John’s performance of the Church Sacraments, we will adhere to a certain sequence. First, let's talk about the Divine Liturgy. Firstly, because the holy shepherd “lived and breathed” this Sacrament. Secondly, because the Liturgy is the main and central part of the daily cycle of worship. The sacrament of Repentance is closely connected with the Eucharist, as a preliminary to it, so we will talk about it further. And finally, after this we will talk about the other Sacraments: Baptism, Confirmation, Anointing and Marriage. However, we note right away that the paucity of information about Father John’s performance of the last four Sacraments does not allow us to delve deeper into this issue. The main source here is the priest’s sermons and only partly the diary entries; The life writers actually have no personal eyewitness accounts or research on this subject. Before moving on to a consistent description of how the holy shepherd of Kronstadt performed divine services, let us present a few of his thoughts on the meaning of the Sacraments in the life of every Christian and especially a shepherd. “When it comes to the Mysteries of God,” says Father John, “do not ask internally: how does this happen? You don't know how God created the whole world out of nothing; You cannot, and you should not know here, how God does anything in secret. The mystery of God is a mystery and must remain a mystery for you, because you are not God, you cannot know everything that is infinitely known to the All-Wise, Almighty God. You are the work of His hands, His insignificant creature” (332, p. 37). “Reverer with all the strength of your soul before all the Sacraments and say within yourself about each Sacrament before performing or receiving communion: “This is the Mystery of God.” I am only an unworthy leader or participant in it” (332, p. 282). In the Sacraments it is customary to distinguish between two sides: visible and invisible. The merciful Lord “by our corporeality... binds, so to speak, His presence and Himself to materiality, to some visible sign. For example, in the sacrament of Communion, He Himself completely inhabits the Body and Blood; in Repentance acts through the visible face of the priest; in Baptism - through water; in Confirmation - through chrism; in the priesthood - through the bishop; in Marriage - through a priest and crowns, he crowns himself; in the Blessing of Anointing - through oil" (333, p. 296). But these visible signs are conductors of God’s invisible grace. And one can only be amazed at the wisdom and boundless Divine love. The Lord said: “I will build My Church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against It” (Matthew 16:18). According to Father John, this is said not only about the church hierarchy, but also about all the Sacraments, “which are established for all centuries and have passed for many centuries and millennia unchanged” (333, p. 16). It is useful for every shepherd to remember these words of the Lord. They can inspire him when performing the Sacraments and strengthen weak faith. “The priest, by the ineffable generosity of Christ God, is vouchsafed a whole sea of ​​God’s grace through the frequent communion of the Holy Mysteries of the Body and Blood of Christ and through the performance of other Sacraments. From him everyone should draw the grace of Christ in abundance, and he should take all measures to spread it wider and wider, and not keep it only within himself... He should live worthy of such grace, multiply it like a talent given by God” (337, p. 313). “However, in the Sacraments,” says the holy shepherd, “everything is done for the sake of the grace of the priesthood, with which the priest is invested, for the sake of the Supreme High Priest Himself - Christ, Whose image the priest bears on himself. Therefore, although he wears the dignity unworthily, although he has weaknesses, although he is suspicious, unfaithful or distrustful, nevertheless, the Mystery of God is accomplished soon, in the blink of an eye” (332, p. 293). “By the grace of the Most Pure Mysteries I stand and walk upright and do not turn to evil if I remain vigilant over myself. It’s so good to receive communion! So powerful are the Life-Giving Mysteries!” (304, p.93). As far as we know the history of the Russian Orthodox Church, never, during the entire period of its existence, has there been such a zealous performer of the Divine Liturgy as the holy righteous Father John of Kronstadt. We met for the first time someone who so sincerely and deeply experienced the theological experience of the Church, who so enthusiastically enjoyed church services. For Father John, the Liturgy was everything in the world. “There is nothing higher and greater than all the Liturgy - neither in heaven nor on earth” (337, p. 157), said the priest. “Liturgy is spirit and life... Man is continually restored, renewed, saved by the Most Pure Body and Blood of Christ, adored” (337, p. 137). “Oh, wonderful Liturgy, universal Liturgy, Divine and God-creating Liturgy! Oh, a sign and demonstration of immeasurable love for the sinful world, perishing in sins... And I, a great sinner, - this is how the holy shepherd humbly spoke about himself, - owe all the days of my prosperous life only to the Liturgy, which intercedes daily for me “with the unutterable sighs of the Holy Spirit” (337, p. 159). “I die when I don’t serve the Liturgy” (34, p.36). It was in the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist that the Kronstadt shepherd drew spiritual and physical strength, and only thanks to this “wonderful, majestic service on earth” (337, p. 158) he achieved the degree of a seer of divine revelations. In one of his pastoral conversations, Father John directly indicated that he serves the Liturgy and receives Holy Communion of the Body and Blood of Christ as often as possible and, if possible, daily “in order to maintain a constant prayerful mood and communion with the grace of God... each time drawing from this Most Holy Source rich and powerful strength for various pastoral works” (213, pp. 25–26). However, a study of his diary entries allows us to indicate a number of other reasons. As you know, Father John was a man of the deepest, astounding faith. But “faith,” notes Metropolitan Benjamin, “is the fundamental positive type of communication with God. Living faith is living communication” (35, p.79). Every Christian knows that it is in this great sacrament of Communion that faith reaches its highest expression. After all, here, in the Holy Mysteries of the Body and Blood, Christ Himself is presented. And so Father John, as an ardently believing Christian and as one who seeks the heights of communion with God, saw in communion truly COMMUNION with Christ God. “When I receive communion worthily...” he said, “then the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, my God, are in me” (35, p. 81). Let us point out another reason. The Kronstadt shepherd understood the priesthood as intercession before God for the flock. And “The Divine Liturgy, as a repetition of the Redemptive Sacrifice, is the highest form of this intercession and intercession before the Most Holy Trinity of the Son of God Himself and the One Mediator between God and people (1 Tim. 2:5), Christ the Lord” (35, p. 81). Let us also note that the holy righteous man in this sacrament of sacraments - the Liturgy, saw a means by which one can ask God for everything necessary, that is, useful, for the soul and body. “By performing the Liturgy reverently and with a pure heart,” he says, “one can and should firmly hope that through it we will ask God for everything that is necessary for our souls and bodies: forgiveness of sins, health and salvation, and the well-being of the living in all things; and the mercy of God, forgiveness of sins and repose with the saints to all who have passed away in faith, repentance and hope of eternal life. The Liturgy is omnipotent, omnipotent, for imagine what kind of Sacrifice is offered at it? - The Only Begotten Son of God Himself. If God did not spare His Only Begotten Son for us, then how will He not give us everything with Him!... So, priests of the Holy Orthodox Church, firmly know and remember what is in your hands the means to propitiate God for all people, for the whole world, for this is the universal Sacrifice” (337, pp. 136-137). And who came to Kronstadt to the All-Russian shepherd? – People with a wide variety of requests and needs, sick and grieving, and often having lost all hope of salvation. And Father John, at the Divine Liturgy, uniting with Christ or, better to say, communing with Him, became a living vessel of faith and life-giving grace, from which all those who came drew health, joy, peace, spiritual strength and strength. Realizing the power of the Life-giving Mysteries, the holy shepherd advised the sick to approach the Cup of Life more often. It seems no coincidence that the example he gave in his diary about the miraculous healing of a sick person after worthy communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ. “Someone who was mortally ill with inflammation of the stomach for nine days,” he says, “and who did not receive the slightest relief from medical benefits, as soon as he received communion of the Life-Giving Mysteries on the ninth day in the morning, by the evening he became healthy and rose from his sick bed. He took communion with firm faith... Otherwise he was on the verge of death” (332, pp. 299–300). Finally, and another very important assumption about the daily celebration of the Liturgy by the Kronstadt pastor. We mentioned earlier that Father John fulfilled the ancient rule “know yourself.” Deep introspection led him to the conviction of how prone man is to sin and how powerful the enemy of the human race is. A person is not able to become a winner on his own; he needs Divine help, he needs the grace of God. And Father John most of all saw this help precisely in the worthy communion of the Body and Blood of Christ. Let us cite his testimony from his diaries for 1905–1906, that is, shortly before his death, where all his pastoral experience was concentrated. “When, with the north wind in summer, the sun disappears, albeit for a minute behind a cloud, it will become a little dark and cold; This is also what happens to the Christian soul when the grace of the Holy Spirit is removed from it, through its negligence and the hiding of the Righteous Sun - Christ, through laziness and its failure to partake of the Most Pure Body and Blood of Christ - it becomes cold and gloomy in the soul... and therefore, verbal creatures, created in the image and likeness of God, must stay firmly close to the mental Sun of Truth - Christ and be illumined by Him constantly through faith and fervent prayer and through the communion of His Divine Mysteries. And what happens to those who completely move away from this Life Sun, ... do not pray and do not partake of the Holy Mysteries? Oh, they are in the darkness of the devil - and they have no life in themselves, according to the immutable word of the Savior” (410, pp. 107–108). The above brief considerations, perhaps, did not fully demonstrate the attitude of the Kronstadt pastor to the Divine Liturgy. Russian Orthodox piety is usually presented as a piety of fasting and penitential sorrow. And this is fair, since we all sin a lot. It is no coincidence that the daily and annual cycle of worship contains predominantly penitential prayers. However, constant grief over one’s sins does not exhaust the entire life of the human soul. For example, the holiday of Holy Easter is coming. In these joyful days of victorious delight and rejoicing, the sorrows of repentance are forgotten, and according to the words of St. John Chrysostom, there is not even a difference between those who fast and those who do not fast, those who strive and those who do not strive - everyone is invited to a spiritual feast. The soul of a Christian also experiences a similar state on other great holidays or on the days of communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ. It pleased God's providence to give Russia such a lamp, which has always been characterized by the spirit of joyful glorification of God. The Holy Righteous Father John of Kronstadt was a Christian who experienced a similar Easter mood all the days of his life. He rejoiced more than he mourned; the grace-filled spiritual victory over sin, the devil and the world constantly rejoiced in him. He brought this delight of spiritual joy into the liturgical life of the Church. “With Father John,” says Archpriest Georgy Florovsky, “the forgotten path of experimental knowledge of God is reopened” (468, p. 401). This path leads to the apostolic age. And the first Christians felt completely unrepentant feelings when they partook of the Body and Blood of Christ. They were united by love for the Savior of the world and for each other. There is no doubt that in the Eucharist there is also an element of redemptive Sacrifice, the Sacrifice of Christ. But the center of the Eucharist is still not in it. Metropolitan Veniamin (Fedchenkov) made a deep analysis of this topic in his work “Liturgy.” Let us briefly summarize his reasoning: “If the central meaning of the Eucharist were in the Sacrifice,” he says, “then this entire Eucharistic canon would be reduced to this idea; she would have to occupy and fill everything. Meanwhile, the Eucharist, as a Sacrifice, occupies only an insignificant part of the canon, namely: from the secret prayer, even the second half of it, read while singing “Holy, Holy, Holy” (With these blessed powers we too...), where it is said that God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son for its salvation; and He, having done everything for this in His life, finally “committed to Himself for the worldly life and salvation,” for which purpose, before His death, He established the sacrament of Communion, the Bloodless Sacrifice of “Body and Blood.” Then the words of the Lord about this are pronounced: “Take, eat...”, “Drink from it all...”; and then the Gifts are offered as a sacrifice to God from His own gifts: “Thine from Thine is offered to Thee for all and for all...” (33, p.9). This, in fact, is where the redemptive moment of the Eucharist ends, according to the thoughts of Vladika Benjamin. Further, he convincingly proved that the entire Eucharistic canon is of a laudatory and grateful nature. Even in the most terrible moments of the transfiguration of the Holy Gifts, the Church sings a hymn of praise. “Let us dwell on this amazing combination: Sacrifice and praise,” continues the Bishop. – Let’s imagine: our son is being crucified, and maybe even tortured, while at this time we... sing praises. The Calvary Sacrifice is repeated in the altar, and at this time people rejoice and joyfully sing: “We sing to You, we bless You, we thank You, Lord.” An amazing combination” (33, p.17). All Father John’s thoughts about the Liturgy are imbued with such a spirit of praise and gratitude. “The Liturgy,” he says, “constantly reminds us of the greatest miracle performed on earth by God, because of His infinite love for people, namely, that God appeared on earth in our flesh, taught people, suffered and died for us and rose from the dead, and through this reminds us of love for God, for truth, for His holiness, for mercy, for heavenly wisdom” (337, p. 140). “...This Sacrament amazes the mind with its greatness and involuntarily attracts every intelligent Christian to reverence, thanksgiving, and glorification of God” (337, p. 129). “The Liturgy is the highest service on earth, the greatest miracle of God’s love and truth, - the service of the immortality of the human race, the greatest victory of God’s mercy over human sins... If the saints sang songs to the Lord for His benefits, equal to the sand of the earth, then we would not thank Him according to His benefits or, better yet, would not do anything special. So great is God’s mercy towards us” (337, p. 156). Now let us move on to the testimony of eyewitnesses who were honored to celebrate the Divine Liturgy together with the Kronstadt shepherd. Most often, their descriptions begin with Father John performing Matins. And this is quite fair. Matins, like other parts of the daily cycle of worship, serves as preparation for this great Sacrament. It is no coincidence that the holy shepherd said: “The reading of the canons at Matins especially greatly elevates me and prayerfully motivates me before the celebration of the Divine Liturgy. I read the canons at Matins myself. What wealth is contained here, what deep content, what wonderful examples of ardent faith in God, patience in sorrow, fidelity to duty in the most severe torment, the Church offers us here every day” (213, pp. 27–28). Therefore, in order to fully understand Father John, to understand how he achieved a high prayerful mood, concentration and empathy for every word of the great Sacrament, we will follow the example of eyewitnesses. From the memoirs of Metropolitan Seraphim (Chichagov) of Petrograd, a close spiritual disciple of Father John. “...Dear Father John amazed and sometimes shocked everyone with the depth of his prayer. Based on my conversations with him, I can only depict his prayerful state in this way: he stood before the Lord, as before the sun, and, feeling the inexpressible brilliance of the divine light, closed his eyes - and clearly felt his presence in the rays of this light and from them the warmth, joy and closeness to Christ the Savior. During prayer, after communion of the Holy Mysteries, the priest sometimes felt the Lord penetrating through his body - into his heart, just as He, after the resurrection, passed through the walls of the house to the apostles, and then he received the consciousness that his invisible soul was calming in the invisible God. But in order to understand the faith and spirit of Father John, it was necessary to pray with him at the altar during the Liturgy. At first, he earnestly commemorated all the living and the dead at the altar, prayed with tears for everyone, boldly asked the Lord for the mourning and suffering, went away from time to time, then returned again and prayed again, knelt down, embraced the paten, and apparently suffered along with the people for whom he prayed. When the Liturgy began, he continued to commemorate at the altar, according to the numerous notes that were read to him, but before reading the Holy Gospel, he always returned to his place and listened with full attention to the word of God, delving into every word, shaking his head as a sign of the immutability and truth of the gospel. After the transfer of the Holy Gifts to the throne, the great prayer book began, as it were, to prepare for a joyful meeting with the Lord and was already thinking more about those present in the church, about their participation in common prayer and in common joy with him, and sometimes prayed for them: “Lord! Many of those standing in Thy church stand idle with their souls, like idle vessels and do not know what they should pray for: fill their hearts now, on this day of salvation, with the grace of Thy All-Holy Spirit and grant them to me, my prayer, my love, filled with the knowledge of Thy goodness and contrition and tenderness of heart; grant them Your Holy Spirit, interceding in them with groanings that cannot be uttered!” (Rom.8:26). Upon the transubstantiation of the Holy Gifts into the Body and Blood of Christ, Father John was completely transformed. The thought of people at first seemed to fly away from him, he began to glorify the Lord, to thank Him for his endless mercy, for boundless love, for the salvation of the human race, for the incarnation of man, suffering on the cross, for the gift of this daily bread and as proof of his faith that the bread and wine were certainly transformed into the Body and Blood of the Lord, by the will of the Lord Himself and by the action of the Holy Spirit, he proclaimed with great, by inner strength that “heaven and earth pass by, but the words of the Lord do not pass by” (Matthew 24:35). Then Father John delved into his prayer for the faithful, for whom he had to boldly ask the Lord Christ. There were days when at these moments he turned into some kind of motionless shadow, as if he froze, standing on his feet, and his face gradually turned from alive to pale, and then dark. As soon as the time came for him to say an exclamation, he instantly came to his senses, opened his eyes, and large tears rolled down his already revived face. At such moments of his service, those present felt eerie and afraid. Father always took a very long time to communicate, with tears; according to him, focusing on firm faith and on the idea that before him was the Blood and Body of Christ Himself, he, communing mentally, transmitted them to the depths of his heart. His face quickly brightened at this; joyful, happy, he folded the palms of his hands, imperceptibly beat them, in his quick and nervous movements, and always ended his service triumphant. While the holy cup stood on the throne, he bent over it, hugged it with his hands, touched it with his head and joyfully prayed, experiencing the holiest hours of his life. After taking the Holy Gifts to the altar, at the first free moment, he approached them again and prayed again... Father John always himself used part of the Holy Gifts and, then, undressed, again knelt before the throne and, bowing his head on it, prayed for quite a long time” (296, pp. 140-143). From the memoirs of Bishop Evdokim (Meshchersky), rector of the Moscow Theological Academy. “During Matins, Father John approached the altar, knelt before it, folded his hands crosswise on the altar, and bowed his head on them. Under his hands he had all kinds of notes asking him to remember the sick and the dead. I looked at him from behind the columns. Her hair fell in strands over her shoulders; it was all illuminated by a weak morning light, barely, barely breaking through the thickness of the morning northern fog. He remained in this position for about ten minutes. It seemed from the outside that he seemed to have died and in front of us there was only his body, abandoned, discarded by his soul, like some kind of clothing. ...Looking at Father John praying, my thoughts involuntarily transported me even to the Garden of Gethsemane, imagining the Savior praying there for us. And in the altar... they gave Father John no rest. First one, then the other, at a convenient moment, approached him with various requests and needs. Knowing well that each of those in the altar came here having some...urgent need, Father John himself sometimes approached first one, then the other. He will ask about need, grief, give good advice... He will caress one, pat another on the shoulder. I read the canon on the choir myself, as always. It was impossible not to pay attention to this reading. Tenderness, enthusiasm, firmness, hope, hope, sadness, deep reverence - everything was heard in this wonderful reading. Father John reads, as if he were conversing, talking with the Savior, the Mother of God and the saints, as if they were here before him, and not there, somewhere in the heights immeasurable for us... The voice is clear, sonorous, sharp. Pronunciation is articulate, distinct, abrupt. ...Not a single word was read by him without meaning or meaning. He pronounces words that are more important in thought and content, even addressing the people, so that people can more deeply comprehend what they are reading. At the same time, he himself, of course, is entirely focused on what he is reading. Nothing will distract his thoughts at this time. He seems to experience everything he reads. ...What is happening in his soul at this time can be judged even by his appearance. The soul of Father John is so imbued with thoughts that he cannot resist making a wide variety of gestures. While reading, he constantly seems to be worried and seems not to be calm. ...Changes tones often. ...During the singing of the irmos or litanies, when he himself is not singing with the singers, he kneels on one or both knees right there on the choir; covers his face with his hands and prays, prays. He prays fervently and tenderly. After the sixth song and litany, Father John exclaims: “kontakion” and reads it loudly, like a victory song of Christians over our defeated ancient enemy. Having finished reading the canon, he quickly enters the altar and falls in deep prayer before the throne. Having strengthened himself with prayer, he again goes to the choir and reads here “verses on praises.” They began to sing stichera in “verse”. Father John at this time was almost dressed to serve the Liturgy. The only thing he was missing was his robe. He quickly and swiftly walked out of the altar onto the choir, joined the singers and began to sing with them. He sang with enthusiasm, deep faith in every word, regenting himself, again emphasizing individual words and slowing down the tempo where it was necessary according to the logical meaning and content of the chant. The singers instinctively guessed these words, this tempo and echoed it with considerable skill and animation. ...How touching it was to look at the singers at this time. It was as if one holy early Christian family sang. Matins ended, they began to ring for the Liturgy... Serving with Father John were hieromonks and white priests in kamilavkas and without kamilavkas, ... young and gray-haired. These were all “aliens”. Father John united everyone; all relatives and friends were here, even if they were only meeting for the first time. “Pray, fellow ministers, that the Lord will allow us to perform Divine service in peace,” said Father John. What profound words! How truly necessary it is for every shepherd to pray in these moments so that nothing will disturb his spiritual peace, so that he will always blaze like a seraphim with one prayer and penetrate deeper into the wonderful heavenly world. The royal gates are open. The first exclamation was made. The Liturgy began. So he suddenly, unexpectedly, impulsively takes the altar Cross and lovingly kisses it, hugs it with his arms, looks at it so tenderly and enthusiastically, his lips whisper the words of prayer, kisses it three, four times in a row, clings to it with his forehead... His lips whispered something again. Father John pronounces exclamations in the same way as he reads the canon at Matins. ...Sometimes he says them, closing his eyes and going deep into himself. It’s hard to even describe how focused and self-collected Father John was during the service. ...Fr. John hardly reveals the ministerial book, since he knows all the prayers from memory. He often reads in a low voice... In the divine service of Father John there are some features, many of which, I think the most important, are impossible to grasp... We will convey some of them. Receiving the Gospel from Father Protodeacon at the royal doors, Father John said: “Peace be with you, brother, as I preach the gospel.” Think about it, what does this mean? What deep thought is hidden here, how much feeling there is, what kind of attitude towards your younger co-worker... Walking with the Holy Gifts during the great exit, Father John said in a low voice: “He was brought out of the city and crucified.” And again, how deeply touching this is, as these lines testify to his deep self-collection and penetration into the sacred rites that he performs... Kissing the concelebrating clergy on both shoulders after shouting “let us love one another,” he said: “Christ is alive and active in our midst.” I stood amazed by these words and involuntarily thought: Yes, here, and not there, somewhere in the distance, is Christ the Savior, not dead, not just like a famous historical figure, but alive, “alive and active.” It became eerie, and my soul was involuntarily filled with great trepidation. I was ready to fall on my face before the throne... Everyone told me that something extraordinary happens to Father John during the Liturgy. And this is quite fair. The closer the minutes of the transubstantiation of the Holy Gifts come, the more and more the mood of the soul rises, beginning to be reflected in the voice and face of Father John... “Woe is our heart,” exclaims Father John, turning to the people and raising his hands to grief. His gaze is directed to the sky, his spirit hovers where the throne of eternal truth and love stands... “We thank the Lord,” he exclaims again. He pronounces the first two words of the prayer “Worship worthily and righteously” loudly, and the last ones more quietly, falling completely silent at the end... “Take, eat, this is My Body.” When pronouncing these words, he places special emphasis on the word “Body” and on the words “for you that is broken.” He pronounces his last words, turning his face to the people. “Drink from her, all of you,” Father John exclaims with deep faith. While pronouncing these words, he repeatedly touches the cup with his finger, as if even hitting it with force. Again the words “for you and for much that is poured out” are emphasized... “Yours from Yours,” Father John proclaims, placing special emphasis on the word “about all,” pronouncing it more drawn out than others. His soul feels how the people gathered in large numbers in this church need heavenly help, and he fervently prays for everyone... “Transformed by Your Holy Spirit. Amen,” Father John proclaims in a sincerely believing tone and, as if to further reassure those in the altar of this truth, he adds: “God appeared in the flesh, the Word became flesh and dwelt in us.” And his lips whispered something else, but I only managed to make out - “surrounded by angelic armies.” But even without words, from the expression on his face, it was clear that Father John’s thoughts were entirely occupied with the Holy Mysteries... Father John experiences deep feelings at these moments. His great reverence for the Holy Mysteries is also revealed in the fact that many times, slowly, without even the sign of the cross, he bows his head before them. Tears flowed abundantly from his eyes. First one, then another handkerchief he took out of his pocket and wiped them off. What did this wonderful husband cry about? There are no tears without deep emotional emotion. There are no tears without a feeling of love and living thought. ...The mood of Father John is so high at these moments that it is involuntarily transmitted to others, illuminating to a significant extent the mood of everyone present here at this time. I was told that some more than once saw angels above the throne at the moment of the transubstantiation of the Holy Gifts. The celestial beings seemed to co-serve with the earth-multiplier when he performed the Sacrament... Don't forget one more moment from this time. During the litanies (before the “Our Father”), after reading the secret prayer, Father John bowed over the throne and prayed in deep reverence. Then he took the paten with the Holy Body in his hands, raised it a little above the throne and, fixing his gaze, prayed with concentration before it. Then he took the chalice with the Holy Blood in his hands, pressed his forehead to it and prayed fervently for a long time. At that time he did not utter a single word, did not make a single movement, and his eyes were almost constantly closed... What a touching, touching, unforgettable picture. How it touches, elevates, excites, cleanses... More than once I subsequently fell in spirit, but as soon as I remembered these minutes, a new living stream flowed into me from somewhere invisible and I came to life again in spirit... Here Father John partook of the Body and Blood of Christ. His face changed. There is no longer on him a trace of that fatigue and some kind of sorrow or sadness that could be seen when he just entered the church today... His face seemed to glow, as if emitting some kind of radiance... Father John was now ready to work again without any fatigue from morning until late at night; in the Sacrament he received strength for all the daily labors and worries ahead of him...” (439, pp. 242–263). From the memoirs of I.K. Sursky. The story of Father John's performance of proskomedia. “Father John approaches the altar. He is full of solemn joy. Already at this time he was overcome by some kind of jubilant prophetic ecstasy. He takes out the Lamb. Look with what loving attentiveness he levels Him, circumcises Him on all sides and reverently places Him on the paten. Then Father John begins to remove the particles. At the proskomedia there were so many prosphoras that they were brought in whole large baskets. The Lord enabled me to repeatedly serve Father John prosphora from baskets that were placed on stools on the left side of the altar. He quickly took out the particles and threw the prosphora into the empty basket standing on the right side. During the proskomedia, many personally approached Father John and asked him to remember his relatives, to take out at least one prosphora, so that he did not have a single free minute. There were always many concelebrants with Father John (priests, archpriests, hieromonks). “Look, look,” he suddenly exclaimed in the middle of the proskomedia, “Father Nikolai, look, Father Pavel, where is there something like ours... Look, here He is, Christ. Здесь Он, здесь, среди нас, и мы около Него, кругом Его, как апостолы». Становилось благоговейно страшно от вдохновенного возгласа. Чувствуется, как ангелы реют крылами. The priests gather around Father John and do not leave him until the end of the proskomedia. Every day, Father John received up to a thousand letters and telegrams, mostly with requests to pray for the healing of the sick, who were considered hopeless by doctors. But there were other requests, caused by various cases of human hopeless grief. Not only Orthodox Christians, but also non-Orthodox Christians, Jews, Mohammedans and pagans made requests. They came from all over Great Russia and from other countries, from Asia and from America... Father John had secretaries to read these letters and telegrams and to respond to them. The question arises, how did those sick people who were asked for in the aforementioned letters and telegrams receive healing through the prayers of Father John, when Father John could not even have time to read these letters? - Here's how. During Father John’s proskomedia, I personally repeatedly saw that piles of letters and telegrams were lying in front of Father John and heard Father John, taking particles out of the prosphora, praying loudly: “Remember, Lord, all those who commanded me to pray for them.” And this short prayer of the great saint of God was enough...” (441, pp. 56–58). From the memoirs of Bishop Arseny (Zhadanovsky). “Father John came straight to the church, (footnote No. 1) entered the altar through the side doors, knelt down in front of the altar, and, laying his hands on it, was sometimes in this position for quite a long time. At this time, the priest repented of all the sins he had committed over the past day, and stood up when he felt that the Lord was forgiving him. Renewed and invigorated in spirit, he then warmly greeted everyone present, put on his stole, blessed the beginning of Matins and went out to the solea to read the canon and daily stichera from the books... The priest read impetuously, placing emphasis on some places, often repeating words, or even entire expressions. Apparently, he took pains to understand everything himself and make it clear to those present. For the same reason, he was interested in the impressions received from his reading. After a short matins and entrance prayers, Father John began the proskomedia, and sometimes left it to one of the priests to perform it. The priest served with concentration; tears appeared in his eyes, especially at the most important moments. Then the power of his prayer and closeness to God were felt... I further recall my stay with Father John in the Aulovsky monastery of the Yaroslavl province. Here... the priest served daily, spoke teachings and gave communion to the people who filled the church in great numbers... By the grace of God, every time I took part in celebrating the Liturgy with the great shepherd (footnote No. 2). I remember Father John himself selected a miter for me, and one day, while drinking some warmth with me at the altar, he asked: “Do you serve good wine for services in Chudov?” I answered: “Average.” “I,” said Father John, “try to buy the best for such a great Sacrament.” When the priest came out with the cup, there was great confusion in the church: everyone was striving for more salt; he, however, treated those present strictly. His voice was often heard: “You took communion yesterday, but today I won’t allow it because you’re lazy and don’t work enough,” or: “Did you go to confession? You must always clear your conscience before the Sacrament.” It also happened like this: seeing the onslaught, and perhaps unworthy, he went to the altar, announcing that he would no longer give communion. Two nuns standing on either side sometimes dared to refute the priest’s remarks; willingly agreeing with them, Father John said: “Well, then it’s a different matter,” and with love he taught the Holy Mysteries to those who wished... “What helps a pastor focus on the Liturgy?” – I asked Father John. ... “It is necessary,” he said, “from the very beginning of the service to enter into the spirit of the Divine Eucharist. That is why I almost always try to perform the proskomedia myself, for it is the threshold of the Liturgy and this cannot be lost sight of. Approaching the altar and saying the prayer: “Thou hast redeemed us from the curse of the law”: I remember the great work of redemption by Christ the Savior from sin, curse and death of fallen man, in particular me, the unworthy. Taking the particles out of the prosphora and placing them on the paten, I imagine on the throne the Lamb, the Only Begotten Son of God, on the right side the Most Pure Mother, and on the left the Forerunner of the Lord, the prophets, apostles, saints, martyrs, saints, unmercenaries, the righteous and all the saints. Surrounding the throne of the Lamb, they enjoy the sight of His divine glory and take part in bliss. This is the heavenly Church, triumphant. Then I mentally descend to the ground and, taking out particles for all Orthodox Christians, I imagine the militant Church, whose members still have to go their own way in order to reach the future kingdom. And so I am called to be a shepherd, a mediator between Heaven and earth, called to lead people to salvation. What inexpressible mercy and trust of the Lord in me, and at the same time, how great and responsible is my duty, my title! The sheep of the verbal flock stand in the church, I must intercede for them, pray, teach, instruct them... Well, will I be cold to my work? Oh no! Help me, Lord, to celebrate this world-saving Liturgy with zeal, fear and trembling for myself and my neighbors! With this feeling I begin to serve and try not to lose the meaning and significance of the Eucharist, not to be entertained by extraneous thoughts, but to experience with all my heart what is remembered in it.” And Father John, I would add, was truly deeply worried, which was so noticeable from his prayerful appearance and the tears that moistened his bright eyes. ...One could observe the power of the priest’s love for God as he celebrated the Divine Liturgy. After the Transubstantiation of the Holy Gifts, when the Lamb of God Himself reclines on the throne, taking away the sins of the world, Father John could not take his eyes off Him, filled with grace-filled tears of thanksgiving. Father John made it a rule to speak a lesson at each Liturgy, having thought it over in advance and sometimes written it down. When going out to the pulpit, he certainly prayed: “Lord, help me to say a word for the benefit of those listening” (15, pp. 1–21). Of no less interest are the memoirs of Father John’s successor as rector at the Kronstadt Cathedral, Archpriest Alexander Popov (†May 19, 1912). For twelve years he performed divine services with Father John and this is what he reported: “The late Father John celebrated the Divine Liturgy daily, during the days of Great Lent - the Presanctified Liturgy. Usually he served the early Liturgy and only on rare occasions, on great and patronal feasts, the late one; On the first day of Holy Easter he celebrated the Liturgy at 8 o'clock in the morning. Preparation for Holy Communion consisted of reading all the stichera and canons of the day or holiday. He read them himself in the choir and sang stichera and troparia together with the psalmist. The hours were subtracted for as long as the time itself required to perform the proskomedia: sometimes one hour was read, sometimes one hour and several psalms of another. On the days of general confession, there were about five thousand communicants, then Father John celebrated the Divine Liturgy on four and five Lambs, and accordingly, on four and five bowls, blessing the Lambs all together and the bowls all together. Since Father John loved to generously impart the Holy Mysteries, the Lambs were large, five pounds each, and the cups were also large, containing four bottles of wine each. The Holy Lamb was crushed into quite large particles, five to six times larger than usual. They communed in three aisles. The service, beginning with Matins at five o'clock, continued until two o'clock in the afternoon. During the celebration of the Divine Liturgy, Father John’s high prayerful mood was resolved either by joy and radiance on his face, or by sorrow and tears. After blessing the Honest Gifts, he usually liked to loudly pronounce the words: “God appeared in the flesh, the Word became flesh.” Having received the Holy Gifts, Father John was filled with such joy that he began to applaud. Father John attended Vespers and the All-Night Vigil very rarely: he loved to serve Matins and perform the Liturgy immediately after them. When Father John celebrated the late Liturgy, he arrived half an hour before the bell ringing and served Matins himself. It began with six psalms; all litanies were omitted; after “God is the Lord” and the troparion, Father John, omitting the psalms, read the stichera “On the Lord, I cried:” from Vespers, “On the verse,” “On the praises” and began the canon, after which followed the great doxology and dismissal. Father John liked singing and reading loudly (he was somewhat deaf) and not drawn out. His ordinary mass without communicants lasted about an hour. He spent a lot of time after mass reading letters and distributing money to petitioners... Father John preached sermons on all Sundays and holidays and quite often on weekdays. On major holidays, when there was a large meeting in St. Andrew's Cathedral, he prepared sermons earlier, printed them, and delivered them in church using the printed version. The first (impromptu sermons) had a stronger effect on the listeners; When reading printed books, his tongue sometimes became slurred. Therefore, he entrusted the reading of the Gospels at all-night vigils and prayers at solemn molebens to his assistant, your humble servant. Father John loved to make the sign of the cross without bowing; he often bowed without making the sign of the cross. He bowed to the ground, and sometimes remained on his knees for several minutes, touching the edge of the throne or altar with his forehead” (439, pp. 263–265). And here is another recollection of another colleague of Father John at the Kronstadt Cathedral. “I will not repeat what has already been written,” he says, “I will focus the reader’s attention on how Father John performed divine services in the last three years of his life (from 1906 to 1909), which he himself witnessed. First of all, I was struck by the fact that Father John performed divine services every day, and this despite his advanced age and painful physical illness!... Usually, Father John served the early Liturgies, which were allowed to him by the highest church authorities, since in St. Andrew's Cathedral, as a non-cathedral, there were not supposed to be two lunches served daily. Love for early masses was also a characteristic of Father John. Father John came to the cathedral early in the morning, sometimes before everyone else. If sometimes, due to very strong attacks of illness, he was several minutes late, then Matins began without him, since he never served ordinary matins, but only read in the choir and sang along with the psalm-readers. ...Having venerated the holy altar in the right aisle and kissed the Holy Cross, the priest goes to the main aisle, and then to the left, where they usually served a simple daily matins. Having venerated the holy altars, Father John himself begins to greet everyone, starting with the clergy, greeting them with exclamations of “good health,” “hello, father,” or “great, my friend!” With the arrival of Father John in the church, everyone will somehow perk up, become wary, excitement begins among the people... “Dear Father” will give communion, which means you need to take a place closer to the pulpit, or even on the pulpit itself. ...This, of course, was reflected in the service itself, sometimes disturbing the clergy, since their voices were drowned out by the shouts and noise of the pressing crowd. ...But then Matins began. From the beginning until the canon itself, the priest prays in one of the chapels, and to the canon, with his light but firm gait, he goes out to the choir and reads the canon he has received. I had to hear this reading in the first years of my ministry, but in the last years - 1908 - Father John no longer read the canon... Sometimes, during the reading of the canon, the priest turned his face to the people, making brief but strongly expressive remarks about what was being read, in order to make what was being read more understandable for those praying. In addition to the canon, Father John sometimes went out to read the prescribed stichera - all this, of course, in order to understand to those praying the meaning and significance of those church readings with which this or that saint, remembered by the Orthodox Church, is daily glorified. Then, after the canon, Father John, as usual, alone reads the “entrance” prayers before the Liturgy and begins to put on his vestments... For freedom of movement, without putting on a phelonion for now, Father John begins quietly, with concentration, to perform proskomedia. Particularly carefully, with all diligence, he prepares the Holy Lamb, giving It a stable and smoothly trimmed appearance, and several times tries on whether It stands well on the Holy Paten. Also, slowly, with reverence, he takes out particles from other proskomedia prosphoras, without saying anything out loud, but praying a secret, heartfelt prayer. Sometimes “dear father” addressed the clergy present with brief remarks. “How good everything is with us, father,” he said to one of the priests, “this great thing is the proskomedia, the preparation of the Holy Lamb, because here, on the holy paten, there is a whole world! But others (Catholics, Lutherans) have nothing like that... They don’t have proskomedia.”... When all the particles from the proskomedia prosphora were taken out, then the priest took out several particles from the prosphora given to him by the parishioners, and sometimes asked not to speak out loud the names of those being commemorated: “Why say the names loudly, speak to yourself, because God knows well who you want to remember.” But this did not always happen; sometimes he listened to the names of those commemorated being spoken aloud. When all the particles were taken out, Father John exclaimed: “Censer, censer!” The concelebrating deacon approached the holy altar with a censer, and the dear priest always paid attention that the censer was not “dull,” that is, with burning coals, and that there was enough incense in it. Sometimes, regarding such a stalled censer, the priest would say to the deacon: “This censer is the image of our hearts! And they can be just as “stalled”, cold, insensitive. Warm up, Lord, our hearts so that they burn with love for You.” At the end of the proskomedia, Father John also did not say any prayers out loud, and only by his reverent bowing of his head it was clear that he was fervently praying his secret prayer, and asked the deacon to speak loudly. Then, after reading the hours, the Divine Liturgy begins. Dressed in a phelonion and miter, Father John again read the prescribed prayers to himself, blessed the concelebrating deacons, and, turning to the priests who deliberately came to him for joint service, loudly proclaimed: “Bless, holy fathers, it is pleasing to God to perform the world-saving, soul-saving, Divine Liturgy.” After the opening of the royal doors, which remained open until the reading of the Holy Gospel, at the exclamation of the deacon: “Bless, Master,” Father John, standing before the holy throne and half-turning towards the people, firmly, separately, with a soulful voice coming from the depths of the heart, proclaimed: “Blessed is the kingdom of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and ever.” forever and ever,” placing special emphasis on the words “blessed” and “forever.” ... “Dear Father” generally did not like slowness, drawn-out service, and in view of his serious illness, he once and for all made it a rule for everyone, both father deacons and singers, that they should “not procrastinate,” but serve and sing promptly, “briskly,” but at the same time, of course, clearly, audibly, loudly, and most importantly, heartily. ...Father left some exclamations after the litanies to the serving priests, which gave him the opportunity to immerse himself even more in prayerful contemplation of the Divine Mysteries of the world economy. When the singers sing: “Glory... the Only Begotten Son and Word of God”... - with the words: “Crucified, O Christ God, having trampled death by death,” the priest took the altar Holy Cross and covered it with kisses, and remained with it until the end of the hymn. Then the priest listens with all attention to the reading of the Apostle and the Gospel, sometimes nodding his head slightly as a sign of confirmation of the divine words. From the deacon he demanded reading not only loudly, but also from the heart, in order to speak not only to the physical ear, but also to the heart, the inner ear. “The Gospel is read not only to beat the air with thunder, but also to beat the hearts - this is especially important and valuable,” said Father John. But then the singing of the “Cherubic Song” begins... Stretching out his hands to the Divine Sufferer, depicted on the open Holy Antimension, and completely immersed in the depths of the incomprehensible mystery of the Redemption of the human race, with his eyes closed (and he rarely opened them), Father John secretly prays, and he reads all the prayers not from the Service Book, but by heart, without touching the Service Book at all... He often takes out a handkerchief and wipes away the tears rolling down his face - these unhypocritical witnesses of truly fiery, sincere prayer and heartfelt tenderness... Of course, all the priests and deacons serving with him are warmed by these tears, and it was often possible to see some of them crying too. ...The Great Entrance - the procession of the Lord Jesus to the suffering of the cross - takes place with sad solemnity. From this moment on, Father John, as it were, introduces himself as a witness to the last days of the life of Jesus Christ. Previously, in this part of the Divine Liturgy, Father John inserted many prayers composed on his own, all of which he collected in his book “My Life in Christ.” But I no longer had to hear these prayers, perhaps for the reason that lately he had been saying all his prayers in secret... After the Great Entry and before the Transubstantiation of the Holy Gifts, Father John’s prayerful mood becomes increasingly heightened, his entire spiritual being is focused on one thought - about the greatest miracle to come... His cry: “Woe is our heart!” - like an electric spark runs through all the hearts that have fallen asleep, stalled... And knowing all the heartlessness of man, all the petrified insensibility of the carnal man, Father John always added at this exclamation: “You, Lord, lift up, lift up to the ground our drooping hearts”... The sonorous voice of Father John is heard again: “We thank, we thank the Lord!” “It is worthy and righteous to worship the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, the Trinity, Consubstantial and Indivisible,” Father John also says out loud, only gradually fading away and going back to his favorite “secret” prayer... Approaching close to the royal doors, Father John speaks to all the people in the church, the words of Jesus Christ: “Take, eat, this is My Body, which was broken for you for the remission of sins.” At the words “this is the Body,” Father John touches the Holy Lamb with his finger. Then, again turning to all the people, he proclaims: “Drink of it, all of you, this is My Blood of the New Testament, which is shed for you and for many for the remission of sins!” At the words “this is My Blood,” Father John touches the holy chalice with his finger, as if lightly striking it... With these exclamations, one could vividly feel that the Body of the Lord was undergoing the torment of the cross, and the Blood of the Lord was being shed for us, standing here in the church... “Thine from Yours is offered to You for everyone and for everything!”, proclaims Father John, placing special emphasis on the word “about all”... The greatest moment of the Liturgy is coming - the implementation of the Holy Gifts! Father John quickly reads the prayer of invoking the Holy Spirit on the Gifts that are presented and on those performing the great Sacrament. With a firm and convinced voice, he pronounces the words of transubstantiation: “And make this bread the Honest Body of Thy Christ,” “and in this cup the Honest Blood of Thy Christ,” “translating it with Thy Holy Spirit.” At the deacon’s final words: “Amen, amen,” the priest decisively and firmly, with a wide cross, blesses the transubstantiated Gifts, then rendering them divine worship. From that moment on, nothing earthly existed for Father John - his heart completely shook off earthly thoughts and rose up in contemplation of the Great Miracle! Reverently bowing to the holy throne and taking alternately the holy paten with the Most Pure Body of the Lord, then the holy chalice with the Most Pure Blood, he offers his pastoral prayers to the Lord Himself. How lovingly he now caresses the Holy Lamb, bending over him close, crying and rejoicing, looking at him. This is how a child caresses his mother, lovingly confiding in her his childhood joys and sorrows, knowing that his own mother will listen to him and will not drive him away!... Then, when the time for holy communion comes and Father John receives communion of the Holy Mysteries, an invisible state of spiritual joy and bliss is apparently reflected on his face - it immediately somehow brightens, blushes, his eyes glow and glow, he is all breathing with extraordinary beauty! It’s nice to look at him at these moments, but it’s uncomfortable, and the priest himself generally avoided being looked at at this time. The peculiarity of Father John’s ministry was that he not only received the Holy Mysteries himself, but also gave communion to the laity, which is why in ordinary times he prepared a large Holy Lamb, which he crushed during the singing of the “sacramental.” ...When the Holy Lamb is crushed and the holy chalice is filled with particles of the Body of Christ, then the priest came out with the Holy Gifts and gave communion to all those who had prepared for the sacrament of Holy Communion, of which there were three hundred to five hundred people every day, or even more, not to mention the Great Lent, when there were several thousand communicants a day. Before Holy Communion, Father John strictly preached his sermon every day. If Father John sometimes happened (on the road, for example) to spend even one day without celebrating the Liturgy and without communion of the Holy Mysteries, then this constituted an enormous deprivation for him! For Father John, the Body and Blood of Christ constituted life, and joy, and breath, and purification, and sanctification, and deification, and everything!” (439, pp. 266–279). It is no coincidence that we dwelled in such detail on eyewitness accounts of Father John’s service of the Liturgy. In many ways they repeat each other, but this is a confirmation of the truth of their testimony. The attentive reader can pay attention to the fact that here are presented testimonies of both the closest spiritual children of Father John and his fellow shepherds, the service of the Kronstadt shepherd at his parish in St. Andrew's Cathedral and in other churches of great Russia is shown, the prayerful mood of the All-Russian shepherd, who was in the prime of his physical strength, and in the last, painful years of his life are conveyed. But everywhere and always the image of Father John of Kronstadt remained the same. This was truly a vessel of the Holy Spirit and a beloved child of the Heavenly Father. There are known memories of Father John of Kronstadt and Metropolitan Veniamin (Fedchenkov) (35, pp. 287–298). But in many ways he repeats other eyewitnesses. Vladyka Benjamin is dear to us because he left a wonderful book “Heaven on Earth,” where he revealed the teaching of Father John about the Divine Liturgy based on his creations. Here is a review of this book from the publishers themselves. “In the book “Heaven on Earth,” Father John lives and acts before us as if alive. We feel the fragrance of his holiness, we are truly present at the service he performs. The greatness and depth of the Orthodox Liturgy is revealed to us... The book “Heaven on Earth” truly gives us an image of Heaven descending to earth in the service of the Divine Liturgy in all its incomprehensible beauty” (34, p. 4). As you know, Father John wrote down his thoughts in the form of fragmentary notes in his diaries. Vladyka Benjamin gave these thoughts a system and arranged them in a certain order. In a separate chapter we will try to present an interpretation of the Divine Liturgy based on the works of Archpriest John, and here we will briefly outline the teaching on the Liturgy of the Kronstadt shepherd, using the work of Metropolitan Benjamin. Liturgy is a heavenly service. “During the Liturgy,” says Father John, “Heaven and earth are combined; God is with people; heavenly angels with earthly people; all the faces of the holy forefathers, patriarchs, prophets, apostles, evangelists, hierarchs, martyrs, saints and all saints! Oh, what a bright, holy, loving, heavenly, beautiful, blissful union!” (34, p.12). “Oh, how majestic, holy, salutary, and desirable is the Liturgy for a Christian! The Church is truly made by Heaven! For God in the Trinity descends on the holy life-giving throne every day and performs the greatest miracle of His mercy, transforming bread and wine into the Most Pure Body and Most Pure Blood of the Son of God and worthy of the believers to receive their communion” (337, p. 133). But who deprives a person of God’s mercy? Who breaks this blissful union? It’s hard to admit and believe, but the man himself. People, from a lack of reasoning, from lack of faith, disbelief and infatuation with worldly passions, turn away from God, while “the work of God performed by the Liturgy surpasses in its greatness all the works of God accomplished in the world, and the very creation of the world” (337, p. 129). That’s why Father John said that “The Liturgy is the best touchstone of our spiritual state: are we alive or dead, what nests in us, what passions, what spiritual weaknesses?” (337, p.154). There is nothing more difficult than to examine the innermost recesses of the human soul. They are full of mysterious beneficial powers, inaccessible and unknown not only to an outsider, but even to oneself. But Father John showed us a way to know ourselves. Find out: how does our soul live? And, undoubtedly, this is the personal experience of the shepherd. What is the essence, meaning, power of the Divine Liturgy, which so fascinated Father John? Where does he get such admiration from? Why did he love this Divine service so much? We must admit that we cannot fully answer these questions, since we are not able to fully comprehend the mystery of the movement of his immense soul, filled with special grace-filled powers and unusual gifts of the Holy Spirit. But the spiritual inspiration that Father John left us in his diaries, those personally experienced feelings allow us to draw some conclusions. Most often, our idea of ​​worship comes down to asking God for various benefits for ourselves. But the Kronstadt shepherd thought differently. “Divine service,” he says, “is a heavenly residence” (337, p. 223). Isn't that a completely different concept? “Divine service in its spirit and composition,” he continues, “is a sacrifice of love, praise and thanksgiving to the Lord. Try to always turn it into a sacrifice of love for God and your neighbors; wish everyone salvation and all good as much as yourself, and pray for everyone and for everyone, as for yourself, fervently, deeply. Wonderful spirit of worship of our Church! It gives wide and high flight to Christian souls” (337, p. 254). In some cases, Father John spoke about the penitential nature of Orthodox worship, but this concerns mainly Vespers and Matins. As for the Liturgy, it is “a spectacle of infinite love, wisdom, omnipotence, truth, holiness and renewal of the human being” (337, p. 149). We will not repeat ourselves again. It was said above that Father John possessed the spirit of joyful glorification of God. Now let us recall what every Christian knows. The love of God was revealed to people in the incarnation of the Son of God. What is a person? Is it fair for him to remain indifferent? After all, everyone will agree that love requires reciprocal love. And again the lips of the holy shepherd call for the celebration of the universal Sacrament. “Without the sacrament of the Body and Blood, without the Liturgy,” he says, “the greatest work of love, wisdom, and omnipotence of our Savior could be forgotten, the fruits of His suffering could be lost; therefore, He commanded to create the sacrament of His Body and Blood in remembrance of Him, and not only in remembrance, but also in the closest communion with Him” (337, p. 153). “The Lord, knowing the weakness of our nature, darkened and aggravated by sin, ... deigned to condescend to us to resemble our being, to take on the form of a slave, human flesh: such is love. “But since He could not remain forever in a human body on earth, but, according to the plans of the economy, it was necessary to ascend with him to Heaven, then for the weakness of all future human races and to remind us of His eternal love for them, of His suffering and death, He transforms, by the Holy Spirit, simple bread into His Body and simple wine into His Blood” (333, p. 285). So, the Eucharist is the sacrament of God’s love for man and, at the same time, a daily reminder to man of his reciprocal love for God. The feelings and experiences of Father John during the performance of the Bloodless Sacrifice were expressed in his calling the Liturgy “the supper of love,” “the marriage of the Lamb.” “What is Liturgy? he asks. And he answers: the Divine Supper, the marriage of the Lamb, at which the Lamb of God is united with the souls of believers” (337, p. 127). “The Liturgy is a constantly repeating triumph of God’s love for the human race and an omnipotent intercession for the salvation of the whole world and each member individually. The marriage of the Lamb is the marriage of the royal son, in which the bride of the Son of God is every faithful soul; The evangelizer is the Holy Spirit” (333, p. 177). But if marriage on earth is considered the highest joy and happiness, then what is this happiness and joy for the Christian soul when it is united with the Heavenly Bridegroom, the Lamb of God? This combination, this delight of communication was felt and experienced by the Kronstadt lamp. “What love for us sinners is manifested daily in the Liturgy! How close God is to us! Here He is - here on the throne, daily, essentially by all Divinity and humanity, offered and tasted by the faithful. What a wonderful communication, what a dissolution of the Divine with our fallen, weak, sinful humanity, but not with sin, which is burned by the fire of grace. What happiness, bliss of our nature, which accepts the Divinity and humanity of Christ God and unites with Him” (337, p. 147). The thought and spiritual contemplation of Father John extend even further. In the Divine Liturgy he saw the mysterious communion and unity of the Heavenly and earthly Church. “Not only earthly clergy and clergy and laity take part in it, but also the heavenly ranks of angels and all the saints of God living in Heaven - and our dead also receive benefits from it...” (337, pp. 158–159). “I am touched by the thought,” said the holy shepherd, “about the unity of the Heavenly and earthly Church” (34, p. 27). And this “thought that all believers on earth - shepherds and flocks - and in Heaven the saints of God, starting with the Mother of God, are one Church, one house of God, one body, the head of which is the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and the soul is the Holy Spirit Himself, can and should have a very beneficial saving effect on the state of the Christian’s spirit... The living conviction that I,” Father John says about himself, “is a member of the Church, serves as the greatest consolation for me, encourages and strengthens in the sorrowful hours of life. What is more valuable, more important, higher, more glorious? “Truly, nothing” (34, pp. 28–29). After all, when “we offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving for the Most Holy Theotokos and for all the saints every Liturgy, then they also intercede for us before the Lord and ask us for forgiveness of sins and great mercy” (337, p. 147). Father John most of all wants to instill in the pastor a sense of communication and unity between the Heavenly and Earthly Churches. He, more than anyone else, needs evangelical love for his flock and the power of intercessory prayer. “As you perform the Liturgy and take out particles in honor of the Mother of God and the saints, then the living and the dead, remember, O priest, what a close connection there is between the Lord and His saints, between Him and those who live piously on earth and those who die in faith and piety; remember what a close connection there is between us and the saints and dead in Christ, and love everyone as members of the Lord and your own members” (337, p. 155). Yes, “a great task and great moral work for a priest is to celebrate the Liturgy, for the most careful preparation for the service is required, always, and not simultaneously” (337, p. 154). This is required by the greatest Sacrament of endless Divine love for the human race. “If Christ is in you through frequent communion of the Holy Mysteries,” says Father John, “then be all like Christ: meek, humble, long-suffering, loving, impartial to earthly things, wise on heaven, obedient, reasonable; certainly have His Spirit within you; do not be proud, impatient, partial to earthly things, stingy, or lover of money” (332, p. 292). “Participants of the Divine Mysteries! Find out how you sincerely commune with the Lord if you commune worthily. What boldness you have towards the Lord and the Mother of God! What purity they must have! What meekness, humility, gentleness! What dispassion for earthly things! What an ardent desire for heavenly, purest, eternal pleasures” (332, p. 58). “The Holy Mysteries are called Divine Gifts, because the Lord gives us completely undeservedly, freely, undeservedly on our part; Instead of punishing us for our countless iniquities committed every day, hour, minute and giving us over to spiritual death, the Lord in the Holy Mysteries gives us forgiveness and cleansing of sins, sanctification, peace of spiritual strength, healing and health of soul and body and every good, solely according to our faith. If the Lord daily gives us Himself and His Divine Mysteries freely for us to partake of, then shouldn’t we urgently give tuna, freely perishable goods: money, food, drink, clothing - to those who ask them from us? And how can we be indignant at those who eat our bread for free, when we ourselves eat for free the priceless and immortal meat of the Body and Blood of the Lord?” (333, p.167). So, the shepherd must have “angelic dispassion, ardent love for God and people, a heavenly mind, the same heart and his own will completely in accordance with the will of God” (337, p. 154). The image of just such a shepherd was presented to us by eyewitnesses in their memories of Father John of Kronstadt. But let's see how humbly the holy righteous man thought about himself? “To celebrate the Divine Liturgy,” he says, “a sublime soul or a person with a sublime soul is needed, not bound by any worldly passions, lusts and pleasures... Where can one find such a worthy priest who, like the seraphim, would burn in spirit, love, glorification, thanksgiving before the Lord for such miracles of His to us and in us of grace and wisdom? I am the first of sinners to unworthily perform this most heavenly Sacrament, for I always have an unclean heart, bound by lusts and pleasures” (333, p. 105). But this is the law of spiritual life: the closer a person approaches God, the more sins and shortcomings he notices behind himself. And Father John’s life was all “in Christ,” he was constantly burning with love for God and marveled with admiration at the divine economy of man’s salvation. “Only under the condition of the image of God in the soul, fallen, but not completely lost,” he says, “the incarnation of the Son of God and the entire economy of our salvation was necessary and possible” (337, p. 135). And again he turns to the Divine Liturgy: “Only under the condition of the immeasurably precious image and likeness of God in man, is the Liturgy necessary and possible - this is the unceasing remembrance of the entire life of the Lord Jesus Christ on earth, His suffering, death, resurrection and ascension and sincere communication with Him” (337, p. 135). “We all love life, but there is no true life in us without the Source of life - Jesus Christ. The liturgy is a treasury, the source of true life, because in it the Lord Himself, the Lord of life, gives Himself as food and drink to those who believe in Him and gives life in abundance to His partakers” (337, pp. 130–131). “If the world did not have the Most Pure Body and Blood of the Lord, it would not have the main good, the good of true life. ...This is the Life-Giving Kvass, which the woman of the parable, that is, the Church, took and put in three measures of flour until it was all leavened (Matthew 13:33). Yes, this is the true Leaven of spiritual, heavenly, holy life, placed in humanity, for the human soul is threefold, according to its three powers: mind, heart, will; - truth, sacredness, love must permeate all these forces, in general the whole life of a person: thoughts, words and deeds” (337, p. 136). Reading the diaries of the holy shepherd, you feel how he admired and could not enjoy this greatest heavenly Sacrament. “What a wonderful living tree this Liturgy is!” (332, p.297). “Instead of the tree of life, there is the Bread of Life; instead of the fruits of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil - the same life-giving Bread of Life. Then it was said: “Touch not, lest ye die” (Gen. 3:3), - now it is said: “Taste and live” (cf. John 6:51). Then Eve and Adam believed the deceiver and died - now, on the contrary, we believe the words of the Lord of life: “this is My Body” (Matthew 26:26), “this is My Blood” (Matthew 26:28), - and we are quickened; by what they fell, they rose; fell by unbelief in God, by disobedience... rose by obedience to faith. There we agreed with the devil against God and united with him - a liar, to our own death; Now we wholeheartedly agree with the Truth Himself - God the Savior, and with a true heart we unite with Him - for our own life, for peace and joy. “Ole of the terrible Sacrament! Ole the mercy of God! Like the Divine Body and Blood of clay I partake and become incorruptible” (canon for communion, canto 8)” (333, pp. 293–294). According to Father John, “the benefit of the Liturgy, performed with reverent attention, is immeasurable not only for the entire Orthodox Church, but also for the entire universe, for all people of all faiths and confessions, for the Bloodless Sacrifice and prayers are offered to the Lord and for the entire universe; Because of the celebration of the Liturgy, the Lord is long-suffering to the whole world and has mercy on the whole world, giving it an abundance of the fruits of the earth, civic success, success in the sciences, arts, in agriculture, in the household, having mercy not only on people, but also on animals that serve man” (337, p. 159). Liturgy is “the lever of the whole world with which all peoples, tribes and languages ​​can be moved towards God; for the Lamb embraces the whole world, Lamb, take away the sins of the world, enlighten all tongues to the knowledge of Him” (337, p. 160). He is “the only Advocate for God and men (1 Tim. 2:5). By His grace, the Mother of God and all the saints intercede for us, whom we gratefully and reverently remember on her several times; in the Liturgy, Heaven, earth and the underworld are united” (337, p. 160). What a deep, mysterious, theological meaning the Kronstadt shepherd saw in this truly “unearthly service.” It becomes clear why Father John sometimes menacingly denounced the insensitive indifference to the Liturgy, why he cried along with the penitents during the sacrament of Repentance, why he felt so deeply in his heart the sins of his flock. “What is more important, more majestic, more miraculous, more holy, more divine, more touching than the Liturgy? But many of the Christians are dead, deaf to her, standing reluctantly, coldly, wandering with their thoughts and eyes. Why? From a lack of faith in the Sacrament and especially from a lack of reflection on its greatness, holiness, life-giving and its fruits - renewal and eternal life. Many are deaf from their heart’s attachment to temporary, perishable wealth, to worldly pleasures, to various carnal lusts” (337, p. 132). “In order to stand pleasingly to God during the Liturgy,” advises Father John, “you must master the subject of the Liturgy... then it will completely penetrate our mind and heart. Who is the best expert and master in the sciences and arts and in industrial, agricultural and other matters? The one who has completely mastered his subject, studied it comprehensively, turned it, so to speak, into his juices and blood, so that he became the soul of his body. And how many obstacles are there for a person to master this greatest subject of the Liturgy? We must put aside all worldly cares and passions and be on our side, with the angels and saints and with the Lord of the angels Himself, we must have a pure heart, we must have the Holy Spirit within us” (337, pp. 156–157). “You need to follow every second with your eyes, ears, thoughts, and hearts every word, action and ritual, so as not to let anything slip, not to miss anything without attention, teaching, edification. Yes, the Liturgy requires a wise soul, pre-purified, not bound by worldly passions and cares, aspiring to grief” (337, p. 144). Very briefly, but completely, Father John presented the subject and content of the Liturgy. It “is an abbreviation of the entire Gospel, a depiction of the earthly life of Jesus Christ, a repetition of His Calvary Sacrifice - the constant immolation, His death for the sins of the world, the remembrance of His resurrection and ascension to Heaven” (337, p. 167). The inspired thoughts of the Kronstadt shepherd capture our cold hearts in a rapid whirlpool of admiration. Of course, we are unable to convey all the spiritual pleasure that Father John received from the Liturgy and left in his notes. His diaries should not be read, but studied, only then can one fully assimilate the wealth of his spiritual experience and understand the soul-saving benefits of feelings and thoughts. Each word of Father John, figuratively speaking, conceals within itself a whole garden of fragrant flowers, reflections of multi-colored stones, a fountain of burning sparks. The depth and richness of thoughts amaze the reader's mind. The Lord gave Russia such a shepherd who acquired the right to historical immortality. Many ascetics moved away from the world into the desert to get closer to God. And Father John was always with the Lord in the midst of worldly rumors. For him, the Church became a desert. “In the Church I am with God,” said Father John, “with the saints, but in the world I am with the world in vanity, with sin. Our soul is like a musical instrument: no matter how you tune it, it will produce sounds in accordance with your mood, harmonious or discordant, spiritual or carnal, Godly or demonic. Tune your instrument spiritually, holyly, in a divine way, to holy sounds and echoes. And this is how the Church attunes the soul” (410, p. 39). And in the Church, the Kronstadt shepherd was able to achieve the level of inspiration of the ancient prophets. We will not talk here about his spiritual gifts, but will only note what concerns our topic about the Liturgy. At the end of the last century, in the library of the Jerusalem courtyard in Constantinople, an ancient monument, the Didache, or “Teaching of the Twelve Apostles,” dating from the end of the first and beginning of the second centuries, was discovered. In this monument, in the chapters dedicated to the Eucharist, there is the text of the Eucharistic prayers prescribed for reading by the presbyters. This is clear evidence of the end of liturgical freedom in the age of charismatic gifts. But the monument makes an interesting remark: “To the prophets,” it is said, “let us give thanks as much as they wish” (465, p. 18). This “ancient prophet” in our time turned out to be the all-Russian shepherd - the holy righteous father John of Kronstadt. Ardent faith, inspiration, and fiery spirit could not keep the Kronstadt shepherd within the framework of accepted liturgical practice. In addition to the texts of the Eucharistic prayers, he composed his own, which he used during the celebration of the Divine Liturgy; we will present these prayers in a separate chapter devoted to the interpretation of the Liturgy based on the works of Father John. Father John could not contain the feeling of love for the Liturgy, for this Sacrament of the Sacraments. As if from an overflowing vessel, this love poured out abundantly onto everyone who, at least once, was able to witness the “unearthly” service of the priest. “Oh, Holy Liturgy, Divine, all-wise, all-perfect, all-purifying, all-saving, all-sanctifying - the voice of the Kronstadt shepherd is heard again! - When I present you with extreme desire and joy in sweet conversations with the people! There is something for the sweetness and joy of all the faithful to talk about when presenting its content and meaning!” (337, pp. 161–162). At the end of this chapter, we present one conversation of the Kronstadt pastor about the Divine Liturgy” (141, pp. 150–153). “My dears, now I will tell you about the Divine Liturgy. If you collect the treasures of the whole world and put them on one scale, and the Liturgy on the other, then the scale with the Divine Liturgy will tip. Only a person does not understand what a treasure he has until this happiness is taken away from him. Unfortunately, man does not value the sun, air, or light. The darkness will come, the air will be taken away and there will be nothing to breathe - then a person will understand and appreciate what he had and what he lost. Those who have the opportunity to attend the Divine Liturgy do not, but those who attend stand inattentively, absent-mindedly, bringing with them worldly thoughts and worries. Why is this so? Yes, because he does not think about what Liturgy is. A person does not understand the full depth and importance of the great Mystery performed before his eyes, meanwhile, of the miracles, this most important is the Divine Liturgy. For the sake of the Divine Liturgy - the Mystery - the sun shines in the sky during the day, the moon at night and the stars of heaven, thousands of them, emit their light, and the earth gives fruit, and therefore we can eat bread. I repeat: the earth only then brings gifts, bread and grapes, that bread and wine are brought to the holy throne every day during the celebration of the Liturgy. The earth gives its fruit not to us, not for us, sinners covered with sores, we are not worth it, the earth gives for the Bloodless Sacrifice and will continue to give as long as the Divine Liturgy is celebrated on earth. There will be no Liturgy - the sun will darken and the earth will stop producing its fruit. Now I will tell you who and when performed the Divine Liturgy for the first time. There is a Sun of Truth in Heaven - eternal, not created by anyone, self-luminous and spilling the Eternal Light. The Sun is God the Father and from Him, the Most Bright Sun, the Divine Ray emanates. This is the Son of God. This is the Divine Ray, the Ray of the wondrous Light. He lit a wonderful Lamp on earth, filling it not with oil, not with oil, but with His Divine, Pure Blood. This is the Divine Liturgy, and our Lord Jesus Christ performed it for the first time in the Upper Room of Zion, at the hour when the Last Supper was celebrated. The Holy Fathers describe that Jesus Christ performed the first Liturgy like this: The Savior took bread, no, it was not bread that He took into His most pure hands, but you, sinful soul, the Savior took you with His most holy hands, raised His eyes to heaven and, showing the Father our sinful soul, said: “I will redeem her with My Blood and the flour of the Cross and I take her sins upon myself,” then Jesus Christ said: “Take, eat, - this is My Body,” having blessed the bread, he seemed to be awaiting His death on the cross, making a sign on the bread—the Cross. Then, taking a cup of wine, he blessed and raised His eyes to heaven, giving it to His disciples, and said: “Drink from this cup - this is My Blood of the New Testament, do this in My remembrance.” This is how the first Liturgy of Jesus Christ was established at the Last Supper. And now bread and wine are brought to the throne, but in the Divine Liturgy it turns into the Body and Blood of Christ. And people, having tasted the Body and Blood of Christ, partake of the Divine Godhead so that the Lord enters the house of their soul, and the soul becomes the church of God. Oh, what great happiness this is! The Lord enters the sinful soul and burns away all the iniquities in it, and the human soul becomes the house of God. So, the Savior left us, as it were, a will, to perform the Liturgy and partake of His Life-Giving Body and Blood. Liturgy is a wonderful gift from Jesus Christ. Liturgy is a bridge over which one can pass into eternal life. Remember - this is the testament of Jesus Christ! Walk along this golden bridge that saves you from the abyss of hell. Do not listen, beloved, to those people who are running from the Chalice of the Savior. These are unfortunate, lost, pitiful people, far from the hand of Christ, they fall into the abyss. Oh, how pitiful, how miserable are these people who exchange Divine service for the dreams of this world, who are deprived by everyday cares of being in the church of God. My friends! Love the church of God. This is the constant presence of God. Hurry there, especially on holidays. There is light there that sanctifies and strengthens every person. There is a holy offering of the Body and Blood of Christ, strengthening us, reviving us, and purifying our soul. Moreover, our Liturgy is also called mass. This is the Dinner and Feast to which the Lord calls through His servants; servants are shepherds. But how many of us are there who do not respond to the call of the Tsar and do not want to listen to the voice of Christ and the Holy Gospel. Not only do they not go themselves, but they also interfere with others and laugh at them. Oh, how unhappy the damned are, depriving themselves of a precious gift; in their delusion they trample the fragrant rose, the Divine Liturgy; Consider for yourself a lost day that day of your life on which you were not able to attend the Liturgy, especially on a holiday! Saint John Chrysostom says that the Divine Liturgy is a great wonderful gift; God's angels envy us, people who have been given the happiness of eating the Divine Body and Blood. They flock in their billions to where the Divine Sacrifice is offered and stand with trepidation before the Holy Throne, covering their faces and glorifying the great Mystery being performed here. The Divine Liturgy is the axis of the world; just as wheels can only move around an axis, so our world can move while having the Divine Liturgy. She is the basis of all life in the world. And if it were not for this, our terrible, sinful world would have perished and collapsed from uncleanness and lawlessness, if it had not been sanctified by these Great Mysteries, the terrible appearances of the Divine Redeemer. At this moment, the throne and the church are consecrated and all those praying are sanctified. The earth, the very air, gives a person everything necessary for life only because the Holy Lamb reclines on the throne - our Jesus Christ - on the paten and in the Chalice under the guise of wine and bread. My dears, thank the Lord that He grants us the privilege of listening to the Divine Liturgy and eating His Most Pure Body and His Life-giving Blood. We pray to You, Lord, for those who, in their delusion, do not want, do not seek to find consolation in the Holy Mysteries of salvation, but You also enlighten them, Lord, and lead them to repentance, so that they know Your saving power.” “My soul! Be ready every day to appear at the Lord’s Court with repentance and virtue, for you do not know when the Righteous Judge will call you to account” (399, p. 119). “Imagine,” says Father John, “what would have happened to you if God had not cleansed your iniquities so often?” (304, p.86). This question is not difficult to answer. The holy psalmist David said that if the Lord had not had mercy on us and forgiven our iniquities, then no one would have stood before Him (Ps. 129:3). And how can one not thank God for great happiness, for the greatest gift of repentance, which, like spiritual healing, revives the soul and body. “Repentance,” says the holy shepherd, “is the greatest gift to a sinner who believes in Him who alone has the power to justify the repentant wicked” (410, p. 85). Let us remember: where did the Divine Teacher begin His preaching? – From the words of repentance: “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17). There is nothing so necessary for a sinner as this priceless gift. “Repentance attracts God’s mercy (395, p. 86), restores the soul to the first kindness, makes it again in the image and likeness of God, takes away the ugliness of sin, and bestows the first beauty, introduces us into a blissful union with God (337, p. 71), gives us an opportunity and a reason... to go deep inside yourself and experience, check your inner content (337, p. 72), establishes peace, tranquility, rightness of spirit, boldness, light, strength, cheerfulness, renewal in the soul” (337, p. 73). “Whoever does not repent and is neglectful of repentance greatly neglects his heart field and allows all kinds of sinful tares to grow stronger in it (395, p. 72). Concealed or not recognized, not felt sin... grows and strengthens deep in the soul of the sinner, the sinner excuses, justifies himself by common custom, common corruption, common non-correction, impunity” (399, p. 252). And, on the contrary, through frequent repentance, “sin loses its power, its charm, its charm” (399, p. 254). According to the Kronstadt pastor, there is another reason indicating the need for repentance. “Whoever gets used to giving an account of his life in confession here,” he says, “will not be afraid to give an answer at the Last Judgment of Christ” (333, p. 14). But what does it mean to repent and what does true repentance consist of? “To repent,” answers Father John, “means to feel in your heart the lies, madness, and guilt of your sins; it means to realize that they have insulted their Creator, Lord, Father and Benefactor, who is infinitely holy and infinitely abhors sin; it means to wish with all your soul to correct and make amends for them” (332, p. 382). True repentance consists in “sincerely, with a contrite and humble heart before God, without mercy, examining your life and your sins and impartially condemning yourself for them, sincerely desiring correction, ... deciding to completely abandon this or that passion” (337, pp. 71–72). It must be “completely free, and... not forced by time and custom or the person professing” (332, pp. 255–256). “Repentance only in words, without the intention of correction and without a feeling of contrition, is called hypocritical” (337, p. 15). The Holy Shepherd of Kronstadt advised when confessing sins to pay special attention to the state of your heart. It was in his cleansing and correction that the righteous man saw the purpose of confession. “Once,” says Abbess Taisiya, “I confessed to the priest, saying (sins) in the order of the commandments. After listening, he said: “All these sins are, as it were, inevitable, everyday, for which we must constantly repent mentally and correct ourselves. But tell me what is your heart like, is there anything sinful in it: malice, enmity, hostility, hatred, envy, flattery, vindictiveness, suspicion, suspiciousness, ill will? This is the poison from which may the Lord deliver us! That’s what’s important” (20, p.28). The psalmist said that “God will not despise a broken and humble heart” (Ps. 50:19). “Why?” asks Father John. And he himself gives the following explanation: “Because it is crushed, broken, and, therefore, uncleanness flowed out of it, like from a broken vessel filled with uncleanness. That’s the trouble if our heart is unclean, bad by nature and from its negligence and depravity, remains intact; in this case, impurities usually add to impurities, and woe to that person who does not crush his sinful heart through self-entry, self-contemplation, and self-reflection. What is the sign of a broken heart? – What is the sign that a vessel filled with liquid is broken? – The one when liquid flows or leaks from it. Likewise, the sign of a broken heart is when tears flow from the eyes. The heart is a vessel of abomination, and from it flow, like stinking streams, evil thoughts, adultery, fornication, false witness, blasphemy, the evil eye, and pride. Therefore, the impurity of the heart comes out with tears. That is why tears in the matter of our salvation are valued very dearly, as a sign of recovery of the soul” (304, pp. 107–108). Let us cite another very important remark of the holy shepherd: in order to learn to sincerely repent of one’s sins before God, one must first learn to admit one’s guilt before a person. “Confess sincerely, with humility before people, your mistakes,” he says, “and you will be able to repent before God” (337, p. 72). We have briefly outlined Father John's thoughts on repentance. But we note that this topic was one of the most important in his preaching activities. The God-loving heart of the holy shepherd could not put up with the vices of people, and therefore he denounced, admonished, taught, without ceasing to call everyone to Christ. And not only in Kronstadt, but in all corners of Russia, people heard the call of the good shepherd. The city of Kronstadt became an all-Russian spiritual health resort. People, young and old, came here, and the holy shepherd, as a spiritual doctor, first of all, advised them to look into their hearts, cleanse their conscience with repentance, and only then proceed to the Cup of Life. Many clergy also came to Father John every day to resolve puzzling questions, learn spiritual wisdom, and learn from experience. And the heart of the All-Russian shepherd was open to everyone. It is still revealed to everyone who carefully reads his diaries and other creations. Using this precious treasure, we present some advice from Father John to the shepherd performing the sacrament of Repentance. “Public confession for a priest is a school of self-sacrifice. There are so many reasons for pride... for impatience, irritability, laziness, contemplation, negligence, inattention. Here is a touchstone of the priest’s love for his parishioners! A priest should by no means live in bliss and especially cherish himself with sleep and pleasant foods and drinks, otherwise the devil will easily captivate his heart with some kind of passion and plunge him into oppression and relaxation... Confession for a priest is a feat of love for his spiritual children... Here it is clear... - he is a shepherd or a hired servant, a father or a stranger to his children, whether he is looking for his own or even Christ Jesus. My God,” exclaims the holy shepherd, “how difficult it is to confess properly! How many obstacles there are from enemies!” (333, p.154). “The slightest mistake on the part of the priest-confessor, the slightest unrighteous movement of the heart - and they, with all their demonic cruelty, enter the heart of the priest and torment him for a long, long time, if he does not soon drive them out, the uninvited guests, with the most fervent prayer of repentance and living faith” (333, p. 389). “The cross, truly the cross is confession! Oh, what a debtor a priest feels to his spiritual children during confession! – Truly an unpaid debtor, guilty of Heavenly truth and deserving of a thousand fires of hell! You see and feel that with the deep ignorance of people, with their ignorance of the truths of faith and their sins, with their petrified insensibility, the confessor needs to pray strongly, firmly for them and teach them day and night, early and late. Oh, what ignorance! They don’t know the Trinity, they don’t know who Christ is, they don’t know why they live on earth” (333, pp. 148–149). “Oh, what great love is needed for the souls of our neighbors in order to confess them worthily, without haste and without getting excited! ...The priest must remember that “there is joy among the angels of God over one sinner who repents” (Luke 7:10). How should he try to arouse repentant feelings in those who repent, who do not know what to repent of, as it should be. The priest must also remember how the apostle taught each of the newly enlightened Christians day and night, teaching with tears (Acts 20:31). All selfishness in the cause of God must be cast aside, the reward must be placed in the One God-Lover of Souls” (333, pp. 131–132). “But we are looking for enrichment, peace, we don’t like work, we get irritated when there are more of them (confessors) than usual! We are looking for a spacious home, rich clothes! Let us not love earthly peace, let us not become lazy, let us not be careless about our spiritual affairs, and let us not lose eternal blessings and Heavenly peace, for having tasted the abundance of worldly peace here, what kind of peace can we expect there...” (333, p. 149). “When confessing,” says Father John, “don’t feel sorry for yourself, don’t rush, don’t get excited, don’t be angry with the children who come. Tell yourself: it is my pleasure to confess in detail my spiritual children, the sheep of my Lord. By this I make a most pleasant sacrifice to my Lord, who laid down His soul for us, and I bring great benefit to the spiritual children themselves, and to myself, because I voluntarily perform my important work and have a calm conscience” (333, p. 386). “When talking with people, especially those who are sick or grieving, depressed by some kind of grief or misfortune, treat them sympathetically, in a brotherly way, as if you yourself were suffering with them. We are the body of Christ, and if one member suffers, then all the members suffer with it” (1 Cor. 12:26) (399, p. 282). “Ask about sins and teach with firmness and sincerity, and not sluggishly and with a divided heart. A firm word will evoke firm repentance, will soon pierce the heart and tear out tears of tenderness and contrition of the heart. But if the priest asks not firmly, but sluggishly, double-mindedly, then the spiritual children, seeing the sluggishness and double-mindedness of their spiritual father, will not be spiritually, heartily disposed to repent” (333, p. 132). “Priests should not be soft to the point of indulging sins and passions when it comes to eradicating passions and bad habits. They must act boldly and persistently, without fear of the malice of others and completely despising it, although in this case their actions must be of the nature of meekness and love and a sincere desire to correct their neighbor. If nothing affects him, then do not pay attention to his anger and whims and do his job with firmness, without being indignant at the antics of anger” (333, pp. 377–378). However, do not think, priest, “to correct it by your own means. We ourselves spoil things more with our own passions, for example, pride and irritability that comes from there, but cast sorrow on the Lord (Ps. 54:23) and pray to Him, who tests our hearts and bellies (Ps. 7:10), with all your heart, so that He Himself will enlighten the mind and heart of man” (332, p. 53). “Oh, how much preparation is needed for confession! How much one must pray for the successful completion of this feat” (333, p. 154). The holy Kronstadt shepherd himself left in his notes a prayer with the following content: “God the All-merciful Father! You, by Your only begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, said: ask and it will be given to you... everyone who asks receives it... Or whoever is of you, if his son asks for bread, he will give him a stone for food... how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask Him (Matthew 7:7-11). By faith, having embraced in my heart what You have spoken, I appeal to You: give me now Your Holy Spirit, so that my heart may be strengthened to undertake the work of confession, to a prudent decision or binding of human consciences, to patience and complacency, to a kind and edifying treatment of my spiritual children” (333, pp. 161–162). When they remember the name of Father John of Kronstadt, they point to his famous general confession. We have already touched on this subject, describing the life path of the holy shepherd, and indicated the reasons that prompted him to exclude private confession. But for complete clarity, an addition should be made. The general confession of Father John cannot be identified with the general confession in modern practice. The latter serves only as a reminder of sins and has a moral and pedagogical purpose, namely, to prepare and prepare the penitent for sincere repentance before the confessor. The general confession of Father John was a general, unanimous public repentance of all those present. Here no one was embarrassed to name their sins out loud in front of everyone and with tears, from the bottom of their hearts, repented of them. According to eyewitnesses, Father John’s confession was exceptional and unique, since he “had the special power of God” (35, p. 296). He had a special gift from God - the gift of knowing human souls. It was clearly revealed to his spiritual gaze which of those present at the general confession repented truly, sincerely, and who repented hypocritically and not sincerely. Therefore, the holy shepherd did not allow everyone to receive the Holy Mysteries of Christ, but only those who were worthy. The general confession itself was such an exceptional phenomenon that it made an indelible impression on those present. This is how an eyewitness talks about it. “Father John went out to the pulpit and stood facing the people. He read a prayer before confession, which mentions the prophet David, and told his whole story in detail; then he read the second prayer and told the story of King Manasseh. Father John spoke in a loud, sonorous voice, and apparently his speech poured straight from his heart, speech not prepared, but felt at that moment. His voice sounded even more heartfelt and warmer when he turned to the New Testament and spoke with tenderness about the All-Forgiving Christ: “In the time of Christ the Savior, it was easy to repent: he came, bowed at the Savior’s feet and poured out his whole soul before Him, washed His feet with His tears, cast all his illnesses and sorrows at His feet - and immediately received relief and forgiveness of sins. Now it’s not the same, now it’s more difficult; one must believe, one must repent with a contrite heart, one must resort to His mercy, one must cry, one must promise not to sin.” Father John spoke for a long time and the hearts of the listeners beat stronger and stronger, the words of mercy and repentance penetrated deeper and deeper; Many were already crying and lamenting, and ordinary women were sobbing loudly. Father John interrupted his sermon, turning to the sobbing women: “Wait, don’t cry, I’ll tell you when to repent, now listen to me carefully.” And the women calmed down, but some cried quietly; apparently, their souls were very heavy and they were very happy to finally hear the words of consolation from their beloved priest. And the priest, becoming more and more moved himself, continued to talk about repentance, gave examples from the Gospel, spoke about the prodigal son, about the harlot, and stopped at the repentant thief: “Many people think that they too will repent at the last minute of their lives. They will say: “Remember me, O Lord, in Your Kingdom” (Luke 23:42) - and by this they will be saved. No, don't count on repentance at your last breath. We must remember Christ all our lives, follow His commandments and more often resort to tearful repentance. The robber is not an example for you. Everything was forgiven to him for the fact that he sweetened the last moments of the Sufferer of the God-Man, sweetened him with his living faith, at a time when the Savior was surrounded by persecutors, when His human nature suffered inexpressibly. Do not compare with him, repent while you are healthy, while you live. I myself, a sinner and damned one, when I repent, tearfully ask God to forgive my iniquities and untruths.” The listeners could not stand the humble speech of the loving shepherd. “Where are we from you, pray for us,” voices were heard from all sides, full of tears and tenderness. “I will pray for you, but you also pray, repent, remember all your sins.” And Father John loudly began to list all the sins and shortcomings of people and, loudly asking: “Do you repent and promise to try not to sin?” - said: “Now repent, ask for forgiveness from the Lord, remember all your sins.” And all the people, all those present, began to pray loudly, sob and cry. I guarantee that not a single one of those present remained cold-blooded, everyone cried and was touched, and he, the universal prayer-booker and mourner, raised his hands and eyes to the sky, and tears flowed in streams from his eyes, and it was clear that he was suffering for everyone, for everyone he asked the All-Generous Lord for forgiveness and help, for everyone who turned to him with confidence, who from the distant countries of our fatherland resorted to his help during the days of illness and sadness. Whoever saw this picture of Father John’s prayer in front of a crying crowd, the eyewitness continues, will never forget it and will find in it moral support and consolation in all the difficult moments of his life. Indeed, “holy antiquity is heard and seen” in this wonderful communication of the shepherd of the Church with his spiritual children. It seems to me that even for an unbeliever and skeptic, but in whose heart a poetic string rings, the picture of the general confession in St. Andrew’s Cathedral will make a strong, enchanting impression and will not be erased from his memory” (78, No. 10, p. 155). Sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation The spiritual life of a Christian begins in the sacrament of Baptism, since Baptism makes a person a member of the Church. Based on the words of the Savior, this Sacrament is also called the Sacrament of Rebirth. In a conversation with righteous Nicodemus, the Lord said: “You must be born again” (John 3:7). But what is being born again? What is revival and why is it necessary? The answer to these questions is given very simply and clearly by the Holy Gospel. “Unless someone is born again,” said Christ, “he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3). And further the Lord explained that being born again is being born of water and spirit (John 3:5). So, the sacrament of Baptism is the door to the Church of Christ and the guarantee of future heavenly bliss. The significance of the sacrament of the Renaissance is explained by the fact that human efforts and means alone were insufficient to heal the soul infected with sin. And therefore, the wisdom and mercy of the Heavenly Physician invented their own, perfect healing - the water of holy Baptism. “Just as our creation by God is the greatest mystery of the goodness, wisdom and omnipotence of God,” says Father John, “so the mystery of our rebirth in Baptism is a sacrament before which the human mind should bow in reverence. Only the infinite Mind of God could conceive and offer the sure means for the cleansing and revival of the human race, corrupted by sin to the bones and marrow, to the very depths of the heart, and the appropriation of a completely alienated and perishing person to God. No mind, not only human, but also angelic, could find a way to do this” (378, p. 6). In Baptism we are “cleansed from the filth of sin and reborn into a new, spiritual, grace-filled life, sanctified and made children of God, a holy nation, a royal priesthood, heirs of God and joint heirs of Christ” (366, p. 307). “As many as you have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ” (Gal.3:27). What wealth, what power in these words, what consolation!” (337, p.208). “Those who were baptized in the name of Christ and the Holy Trinity have put on Christ spiritually: in His truth, holiness, meekness, humility, obedience, patience, self-control; in a word, into Christ’s perfection, into Christ’s image, into all the grace of Christ, “into the new man created according to God in true righteousness and holiness” (Eph. 4:24)” (378, p. 7). In church liturgical practice, immediately after the sacrament of Baptism, another sacrament is performed - Confirmation. Having been reborn for a new spiritual life in Baptism, every Christian needs special grace-filled help necessary for strengthening and growing in Christ. This help is given to the newly baptized person in the sacrament of Confirmation. The Word of God says that “whoever is born of God commits no sin, for His seed abides in him” (1 John 3:9). However, in life we ​​see something completely different. A Christian, reborn in the baptismal font and receiving grace-filled powers in the sacrament of Confirmation, again falls into captivity of sin. This phenomenon is best explained by the parable of the Lord about the treasure hidden in the field (Matthew 13:44). The field represents every person approaching the sacrament of Baptism. The treasure is the fertile seed of rebirth, and the depth where it is hidden is the heart or interior of a person. In the sacrament of Rebirth, the Spirit of God brings an incorruptible seed of grace into our hearts. So, the treasure is hidden in the field. But did every person do what the parable requires? Did you find this treasure? Did he save him from invisible enemies? Did you prefer it to perishable wealth? The meaning shows that a new spiritual feat is required from a person. This reasoning is confirmed by Father John. “A Christian,” he says, “is God’s vessel, God’s church, God’s house. Oh, how... zealously he must shun all sin” (333, p. 96), “A Christian must take care of his spiritual education, for which he was reborn in the holy font by the Holy Spirit and received spiritual rebirth and was sealed with the world or the seal of the Holy Spirit” (395, p. 9). “So,” the holy shepherd calls, “let us always remember that a holy life is required of us... we must live heavenly on earth, as children of God. Our love for God and neighbor must be ardent, unfeigned, selfless, firm, constant. We must constantly maintain purity and chastity, abstinence, do all truth, hate lies, show meekness and patience towards everyone” (366, pp. 318–319). “In our illnesses, we must humbly and deeply recognize our sins and sincerely repent of them and ask the Lord for forgiveness... with the intention not to sin in the future” (367, p. 371), these words were once spoken by Father John in one of his sermons. It is not difficult to notice that the holy shepherd pointed to sin as the main cause of illness. This thought comes from the depths of spiritual patristic experience. “God often punishes the body for the sins of the soul” (290, p. 241), says St. John Chrysostom. “Take away sin and there will be no illnesses, for they come to us from sin” (99, p. 275), - St. Seraphim of Sarov repeats in his instructions. “Where do diseases come from? Where did the injuries come from? - asks Saint Basil the Great. After all, the Lord created the body, not illness, the soul, not sin. “The soul has become damaged,” the saint answers, “by deviating from what is natural to it. And what was the main benefit for her? – Staying with God and uniting with Him through love. Having fallen away from Him, she began to suffer from various and varied ailments” (288, pp. 142–143). So, if sin is the cause of illness, then in order to receive healing, it is necessary, first of all, to seek spiritual healing. One of the means of such healing is the Sacrament of Anointing. The meaning of this sacrament is explained in the apostolic saying: “Is any one of you sick? - Let him call the elders of the Church and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will heal the sick person, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him” (James 5:14-15). From the words of the apostle it is clear that the Blessing of Anointing is a sacrament for the healing of the sick. It is common for a Christian who is exhausted by illness to ask others for prayers for himself, especially church prayers. And the Holy Church, through this Sacrament, comes to the sick person’s bedside not only in order to restore a person’s health, but also “to introduce this person into the love, light and life of Christ, ... to make a person a disciple, confessor, witness of Christ in his suffering” (181, p. 313). The healing of mental illnesses, that is, the forgiveness of sins, brings the Blessing of Unction closer to the sacrament of Repentance. Metropolitan Macarius Bulgakov says that the sacrament of the Blessing of Anointing “is nothing more than ... the replenishment of the remission of sins in the sacrament of Repentance - replenishment not due to the insufficiency of repentance itself to resolve all sins, but due to the weakness of the sick to take advantage of this saving medicine in all its fullness and salvific value” (156, p. 305). The sick person, before proceeding to the Sacrament of Anointing, must be prepared for it through the Sacrament of Repentance, but physical illness does not always enable the sick person to bring sincere repentance for his sins and atone for them with good deeds or other soul-saving means. Some sins may be forgotten, others may not be fully confessed, the patient may not be aware of others, although they are the cause of the illness, and grave sins sometimes bother the sick person’s conscience even after confession. It was for such sick people and for such a purpose that the Lord established the Sacrament of Anointing. There is no doubt that Father John of Kronstadt in his pastoral ministry had to perform this saving Sacrament. Unfortunately, biographers are silent about this, only A. Zybin notes that the holy shepherd “advised the sick believer to resort to the sacrament of the Blessing of Anointing” (109, p. 109). Father John himself left beautiful words in his diary, with which he characterized the grace-filled power of this Sacrament: “The Sacrament of the Blessing of Anointing is spiritual honey, a life-giving drink. What a wealth of hope! What prayers! An extract of the whole Gospel” (333, p.383). Why do biographers say almost nothing about the Blessing of Anointing by the holy shepherd? Perhaps this is explained by the fact that, when visiting the sick, he served a short prayer service. Apparently, here, as in the sacrament of the Eucharist, the reason for the violation of accepted liturgical practice was his ardent faith, and also his fiery spirit and inspiration. As a guess, it can be suggested that it takes less time to perform a prayer service than for the sacrament of the Blessing of Anointing, and the holy shepherd daily had many requests and invitations to pray for the sick and dying. But let us note once again that Father John did not at all diminish the significance of this blessed Sacrament. It is known that at the beginning of 1905, when he became very ill, he wished that the Blessing of Anointing be performed on him. The holy shepherd addressed his assistant and co-celebrant at St. Andrew's Cathedral, Father Alexander Popov, with a letter with the following content: “Your Reverence! It occurred to me to accept the holy sacrament of the Blessing of Anointing according to the rite of the Holy Church, which I ask the cathedral brethren to perform tomorrow (January 3), after the late Liturgy, taking with them from the church the lunch Gifts in the chalice. At the same time, my humble request to all the brethren is to perform the Holy Sacrament, saying everything out loud so that I can hear, feel and pray with you” (433, No. 3–4, p. 52). According to the church press, a few days after the unction, Father John’s health improved, he was already leaving the apartment for a walk (433, No. 3–4, p. 52). Like any parish priest, Father John often had to celebrate the Sacrament of Marriage. “The patron of honest marriage,” I. K. Sursky called one of the chapters of his book dedicated to the biography of the Kronstadt shepherd. The words of an attentive biographer are true. We know of several cases when the holy shepherd, with his prayer and blessing, sealed the marriage union of happy spouses. “I lived in St. Petersburg,” says one girl, “and I wanted God to give me a good and handsome husband. I asked Father John about this, and through his prayers God gave me such a husband from among the singers” (442, p. 187). But the case is even more striking. One young man spent eight years looking for a true, faithful wife. When he turned to Father John for help, after a three-minute prayer of the holy shepherd, three days later he found “the priceless treasure that he was looking for... Father John,” says the witness of the miracle, “with his short prayer made me the happiest man among mortals” (441, pp. 91–93). The above miracles of the prayerful help of the Kronstadt shepherd have nothing to do with his celebration of the sacrament of Marriage; they more testify to personal holiness, but one must agree that they reveal Father John’s view of Christian marriage. He thought and taught about this Sacrament as the Holy Church teaches it. Among the homiletical heritage of the holy shepherd, we came across two words specifically dedicated to the sacrament of Marriage. These are “A kind word to husband and wife” and “An instructive word to the bride and groom,” which, judging by the content, was spoken by Father John before the wedding. This is what the holy shepherd said for the edification of future spouses: “Honest groom and honest bride! You are approaching a great mystery called Marriage, great because the marriage union of husband and wife depicts the most holy union of Jesus Christ with the Church, that is, with those who believe in Him! Just as the husband is the eyes of the wife, so Christ is the head of the Church (Eph. 5:23). Just as the bride and groom in marriage are crowned into one flesh, so Christ and His Church are also one body, for those who truly believe in Him are His members from His flesh and from His bones (Eph. 5:30). Such an important significance of the sacrament of Marriage imposes very important responsibilities on both of you, which you must try to fulfill in every possible way. Your cohabitation must be pure and holy, just as the Lord’s union with the Church is holy; it must be reasonable, loving and peaceful, and inseparable. Your cohabitation must be pure and holy, for the Lord Himself, who in the beginning created man, male and female, combines husband and wife into one flesh for mutual assistance in bodily and spiritual needs and for the sake of multiplying the human race. The goal is high and holy. From now on, you become animated instruments of Divine grace and omnipotence, for through husband and wife the All-Good Creator calls intelligent creatures, His future children and heirs of the Kingdom of God, into existence and life. And you, if the Lord blesses you with them, will have to educate them in the rules of the Orthodox faith and Christian life, serving for them, first of all, yourself as an example of faith, piety and fear of God. And for each other you should be an example of meekness and kindness, self-control, complacency, honesty and hard work, submission to God’s will, patience and hope; help each other, take care of each other, be forgiving to one another, covering each other’s weaknesses with love... There are also unhappy marriages... Why are they unhappy? – Mostly from the dissimilarity of characters, from mutual intransigence, from the obstinacy, arbitrariness and exactingness of the husband or from his impudent disposition, from the infidelity of the husband or wife, from the incontinence or passion for the husband’s game, from the wife’s addiction to clothes, from her waywardness, anger, grumpiness, stubbornness, from the inability to tolerate shortcomings in the needs of life... Always have faith and the fear of God in your heart, prudence, patience, hope; work and pray, go to bed and get up with prayer in your heart and on your lips, do not leave church meetings; diligently fulfill annually the Christian duty of confession and communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ. In these Sacraments you will find, in addition to the grace of cleansing sins and sanctifying your souls and bodies, the grace of firm unanimity, sanctification in the very loins and in the womb of the future generation, renewal of spiritual and physical strength, help, consolation and encouragement in difficult everyday circumstances, healing of illnesses. Your cohabitation must be reasonable, for the holy Apostle Peter says: “You husbands, treat your wives wisely, as with the weakest vessel, showing them honor, as heirs together of the grace of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered” (1 Peter 3:7). And you must always understand why the Lord united you in marriage, crowning you as one flesh. Namely: you must constantly, with your combined efforts, achieve the Kingdom of God, and if God gives children, you must also educate and prepare them, especially for the inheritance of eternal blessings... Next: your cohabitation should be loving and peaceful. And how could it be otherwise? No one ever hates his own flesh, but nourishes and warms it, just like the Lord does the Church. And from now on you will be one flesh. A husband must love his wife as his own body, for he who loves his wife loves himself (Eph. 5:28–29). If you live in mutual love, you will bring down God’s grace upon yourself and your descendants, and God will dwell in you and crown all your undertakings and deeds with blessed success, for where there is love, there is God, and where God is, there is all that is good. With love, peace and tranquility will be established in your home... Finally, your cohabitation must be inseparable - until the grave. Christian love loves to the end, and not for a while - it is firm and constant. There will be temptations for your love from the weaknesses of one or the other of you... - overcome these temptations courageously... do not be irritated, endure, be forgiving, strengthen yourself with faith in Christ Jesus, who will be for you, an honest groom and an honest bride, an everlasting example of holy love, meekness, kindness, patience, your Strength, your Light and Guide, your Protector and Savior to the grave. Amen" (368, pp. 400–403). In his pastoral activities, Father John paid special attention to the topic of raising children. It is the parents who bear the responsibility for the future fate of the child. “A person’s merit before God is not great,” he says, “to give birth to someone like himself... This is God’s work, a work of nature, or nature, characteristic of all animals... But a merit before God is to raise a child and make him... a good member of the family, a devoted member of the state and a good, believing Christian” (410, p. 75). The church of God makes a person such a Christian. The holy shepherd pointed out two reasons that oblige parents to bring their children to church more often. “Firstly, because children are the property of God, children of God, reborn and sanctified by the Holy Spirit in the holy font, and must be raised in the spirit of the Holy Church, in piety and holiness... Secondly, because nowhere so well, so graciously and successfully can children learn sincere piety, sincere love, praise and thanksgiving to God and love for others, as in the church, where the Holy Spirit, the True The teacher, especially, rests and teaches them through everything: through his gaze, through his hearing, through his lips - in the communion of the Holy Mysteries, and directly and directly acts on their pure, impressionable soul” (366, p. 435). In conclusion, let us give one more instruction from the holy shepherd. Future spouses need, on the advice of Father John, to especially diligently abstain from passions, “because passions pass with birth to children and are communicated to them, so that children become miserable heirs of the passions of their parents, as well as their illnesses” (320, pp. 46–47). Chapter 4. Interpretation of the liturgy according to the writings of Father John “It is more useful and much more interesting for the mind and heart of a Christian to know the full composition of the Liturgy, all the prayers and praises to God Almighty and Savior” (337, p. 160). Liturgy, as a church discipline, divides the Divine Liturgy into three components, closely related to each other: proskomedia, Liturgy of the Catechumens and Liturgy of the Faithful. This division is explained by certain historical reasons. It is by no means accidental, but was produced intentionally for the completeness and correctness of the understanding of the Eucharistic service. Knowing the content and meaning of the Liturgy is not only a necessity, but even the duty of every shepherd, performer of this great Sacrament. We have already noted earlier that Vladyka Veniamin (Fedchenkov), a living witness of the ministry of Father John, wrote a wonderful book about the Liturgy: “Heaven on Earth.” The publishers of this book quite rightly claim that, using diary entries containing the spiritual experiences of the righteous Father John, Metropolitan Benjamin was able to “find with his heart the right words to correctly touch the high feelings experienced by this truly unearthly man” (34, p. 4). The purpose of this chapter is to, using in addition to the diary entries of the holy Kronstadt shepherd and his other creations, to give an interpretation of the Liturgy intended mainly for the pastor-clergy. “In order to stand pleasingly to God during the Liturgy,” says Father John, “one must master the subject of the Liturgy... then it will completely penetrate our mind and heart” (337, p. 156). Bowing to the authority of the author of these words and following the tripartite division, let us proceed to explain this “unearthly service.” Moreover, we will try to preserve the style and word of the holy righteous man. Before performing the proskomedia, the clergyman performs a short prayer at the royal gates. It consists of the initial exclamation “Blessed is our God...”, the prayer “Heavenly King”, the Trisagion according to the “Our Father” and the troparia: “Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy on us...”, “Lord, have mercy on us...”, “Open the doors of mercy to us, Mother of God...”. In these short prayers, the priest asks God for forgiveness of his sins and testifies to his unworthiness to perform the greatest Sacrament. “Why does the priest do the entrance prayer before the Liturgy? - asks Father John. “As a sign of humility before the truth of God, as a sinner, unworthy of entering the house of God and standing at the throne of God” (337, pp. 268–269). “The Church is truly Heaven, especially the altar” (337, p. 123). Here is “the throne of God, where terrible Mysteries are performed... So, let us enter the church of God, especially the Holy of Holies, with the fear of God, with a pure heart, putting aside passions and all worldly cares” (333, p. 65). “The human soul is like a clogged hut,” says the holy shepherd. “A lot of rubbish accumulates in it, it is necessary to sweep it constantly and carefully so that it is clean and light, so that there is no fumes and fumes of passions” (326, p. 52). What about the priest who is preparing to perform the sacrament of the Most Pure Body and Blood of the Lord? – How he needs this cleansing! Therefore, after a short repentant prayer, he reverently kisses the holy icons of the Savior and the Mother of God, reading the prescribed penitential troparia, where he again asks for forgiveness of sins, intercession for himself and intercession. Finally, with his last prayer he begs the Lord to give him strength to perform the upcoming service. Liturgy is the sacrament of Love. It reminds us “of the greatest miracle that happened on earth from God, because of His infinite love for people” (315, p. 43). This encourages the clergyman to make peace with everyone. Therefore, the shepherd, after reading the entrance prayers, asks for forgiveness from his co-servants and then, while reading the fifth psalm, enters the altar. “The priesthood of the Orthodox Church, by its nature, is the greatest service on earth, most heavenly, most holy, cheerful and all-sanctifying. The priestly service is mediation between the Creator and creation, the service of incorruptibility for humanity corrupted by sins, the service of reconciliation of criminal creatures with the Creator, the service of sanctification and elevation to holiness and incorruptibility, bringing from death to life, from earth to Heaven” (410, pp. 115–116). The height of priestly service, according to Father John, should also correspond to the beauty of priestly vestments. Before celebrating the Liturgy, the clergyman puts on all the clothes assigned to his rank, and over each of them he reads the corresponding prayer, consisting of the texts of the Holy Scriptures. “Symbolism has an extensive place in the church and in church services” (337, p. 305). It “is the need of human nature for our true spiritual and sensory state. It clearly explains to us very much from the spiritual world, which we could not know without images and symbols” (333, p. 184). “The basis and example of this liturgical symbolism is the Gospel - many figurative and tributary teachings and conversations of Jesus Christ and the holy apostles. For example, the Lord says about the Baptist: “He was a lamp, burning and shining” (John 5:35), “you are the light of the world” (Matthew 5:14)... and so on. Therefore, the things themselves, like the sacred rites in the church, are instructive and edifying” (337, p. 305). “Grace exalted the priest to the level of an earthly angel” (395, p. 55). Therefore, “the priest’s angelic attire during the service... should inspire him that he should be holy, kind, dispassionate, heavenly, vigilant on guard of salvation, like an angel; that I must always proclaim the will of God to people, the truth of God, so that they are not completely mistaken” (315, p. 38). “The priestly and bishop’s epitrachelion is a symbol of God’s grace, covering everything” (337, p. 215). “The robe or phelonion means the armor of righteousness” (337, p. 224). “The deacon’s orarion is a sign of prayer, therefore he offers it often; and to show that the clergyman’s prayer is strong through faith in Christ and the merits of His crosses, there are crosses on the orar. The deacon raises one hand with the orarion in prayer, and the priest, who has received deep grace, raises both hands and has the orarion folded in half” (337, p. 210). According to the thought of the holy shepherd, the priest, putting on sacred clothes, puts on “the weapons of God” (337, p. 165) in order to resist the devil. But then the clergyman put on his clothes. Now he washes his hands while reading the psalm “I will wash my innocent hands”... (Ps. 25:6-12) and, approaching the altar, makes three bows with the prayer: “God, cleanse me, a sinner.” The most important and fundamental action of proskomedia is the preparation of gifts for the sacrament of the Eucharist. The priest pronounces the initial exclamation: “Blessed is our God...”, which “shows that the service will consist primarily of praising God” (337, p. 231). “Marking the lamb prosphora three times with a copy, he says: “In remembrance of the Lord and God and our Savior Jesus Christ,” and then, preparing a square part of the prosphora, signifying the future Lamb or the future Most Pure Body of Christ, he says in the words of the prophet Isaiah: “Like a sheep led to the slaughter,” and so on (Is. 53:7); and with the words: “As His belly is taken up from the earth,” he takes a quadrangular part from the middle of the prosphora and places it on the paten and, cutting it crosswise, says: “The Lamb of God is eaten, take away the sin of the world, for the worldly belly and salvation,” - piercing Him from the side, he says: “One of the warriors with a copy of His rib was pierced and aby came out Blood and water” (John 19:34) (320, p.65). “At the proskomedia, all saints, starting with the Mother of God, are called to participate in the service of the Liturgy” (337, pp. 140–141). On the diskos “the whole Church, heavenly and earthly, the Church of the firstborn, written in Heaven, and the Church warring against the enemies of salvation on earth, are figuratively represented gathered around the Lamb who takes away the sins of the world. The spectacle is majestic, admiring and touching the soul!” (333, p.108). “Here, in figurative, very unequal parts of wheat bread, the following are figuratively represented: 1) the Lamb of God Himself, Jesus Christ, who takes away the sins of the world; 2) the Mother of God, in whose honor a triangular particle is taken from a special prosphora and placed on the right side of the Lamb; 3) the faces of all the saints: the Forerunners, prophets, apostles, saints, martyrs, saints, unmercenaries, the holy righteous Godfather Joachim and Anna, the saints of the day and the saint whose name the Liturgy bears. This is the heavenly triumphant Church, which has unity with the earthly Church; 4) the entire earthly Church is represented in figurative particles: the entire bishopric of the Church on earth, in Christ, as a serving rank during the Sacraments, prayers and teaching, and, finally, the third tribe of the Church is figuratively represented - the children of the Church from the underworld or those who died in faith and repentance. You see,” exclaims Father John, “what a wonderful, all-encompassing Divine union of heavenly, earthly and underworld things! It is joyful, majestic, and divine to stand in the middle of the paten, the Lamb of God, slain and perforated... and next to the paten stands the holy chalice, the image of that wonderful Cup of wine, about which at the Last Supper the Lord proclaimed: “Drink of it, all of you, this is My Blood of the New Testament” (Matthew 26:27) (320, pp. 63–64). Look, shepherd, “how many relatives, friends, and relatives you have in Christ: the Mother of God, holy angels, patriarchs, prophets, apostles, saints, saints, hosts of martyrs, the righteous and all the saints” (320, p. 67). Therefore, “perform carefully, meaningfully, heartily, reverently, gratefully the proskomedia and the entire Liturgy, understand it deeply, be moved and cry before God with tears of repentance and admiration” (320, p.67). “...As you prepare the Lamb... remember with reverence and fear, a grateful heart, the condescension of the Son of God to us, His exhaustion, that He may enrich us with the blessing of the Heavenly Father and the Trinitarian Divinity, with all His holiness and truth and eternal bliss, remember the suffering and death of the God-man for humanity and be convinced of the need to crucify and put to death the old man within yourself with his passions, and remembering that Christ is the Head of His Church, heavenly, earthly and underworld, and that you are a member of the body of the Church; remember your dignity and be worthy of your title. Then, taking out triangular parts in honor of the Mother of God, the Forerunner, the apostles, saints, martyrs, saints, unmercenaries and all the saints, remember them and your Divine articulation and copulation with them and their intercession for us, their earthly members, as they themselves are earthly, glorify the mercy of God, which made them conquerors of sin, enriching them with eternal holiness and deification and making them our intercessors to God and prayer books. Taking portions for bishops, presbyters, deacons and for the entire earthly hierarchy, remember to what high educational and saving service the Lord called the priesthood, teaching and performing divine services and the Sacraments established by God for the salvation of the human race, and guiding it to truth and holiness and eternal life, and honor them as servants of Christ and builders of the mysteries of God and primarily love them for their work of their infinitely great importance, as the apostle exhorts us. When taking portions for the departed, believe in the intercessory power of the Sacrifice of Christ and in the power of the prayers of the clergy... and pray for them earnestly and with hope in God’s mercy towards them” (410, pp. 102–104). “What a great sacrifice of God! How immense and vast it is! How many she redeemed, how many sins she covered, how many souls she revived, renewed, sanctified, strengthened in the fight against sins, temptations, against carnal and incorporeal enemies! How many souls she has deified, enchanted, ennobled, desecrated, immortalized, glorified! For how many countless souls of people living on earth and those who have already died, it is offered to propitiate the Lord God, to petition for their mercy and forgiveness, or for their prosperity, health and salvation!” (337, p.142). From these words of the holy righteous father John of Kronstadt, it is clear how important the commemoration of the living and the dead is during proskomedia. Here “the Lamb Himself in the form of a piece of bread is seen and offered, and the people redeemed by His Blood... are remembered in the image of pieces of bread” (337, p. 154). And when, after the completion of the Sacrament, these particles are immersed in the Blood of Christ, then an even greater sacred-mysterious approach of all those commemorated with Christ the Savior takes place. Having prepared the gifts for the sacrament of the Eucharist, the clergyman takes the censer and blesses it with the prescribed prayer. “The censer with coals and incense,” says Father John, “is a powerful weapon in my hands. This is a sign of the grace, strength, and authority given to me by God - to pray for people all over the world, especially members of the Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. This is a sign of the fiery, fragrant grace of the Holy Spirit, breathing in all believers and ready hearts - the fire and fragrance of His holiness and all grace-filled gifts. But this also serves as the image of the Mother of God, who carried the Coal of the Divinity in Her womb” (337, p. 270). The priest “puts” a star over the censer with incense and places it on the paten above the Lamb in memory of the star that showed the Magi the place of birth of the Savior. Then the paten and the chalice are covered in the same way with coverings, symbolizing the shrouds of Christ. “But listen,” continues the holy Kronstadt shepherd, “what the priest reads, what prayer ends the proskomedia: “God, our God, Heavenly Bread, Food for the whole world, our Lord and God Jesus Christ, who sent the Savior and Deliverer and Benefactor, blessing and sanctifying us, bless this offer yourself and accept it into your heavenly altar. Remember, as the Good and the Lover of Humanity, those who brought and for the sake of bringing us, preserved without condemnation in the sacred rite of Your Divine Mysteries!” What touching Divine love is depicted in this prayer to the Heavenly Father! What an inexpressible love of God for the world, not only by human, but also by angelic spiritual lips! Not any earthly food, not any manna from heaven, but He gave the Flesh and Blood of His Son Himself for food and drink - our closest communion and fusion with Divinity and humanity! Oh, inexpressible love, oh the greatest honor! Oh, condescension that strikes all the angelic, cherubic and seraphim minds! Oh, the wisdom of God! Oh, the truth of God, the mercy, beauty and greatness of the indescribable Sacrament!” (320, pp.64–65). And we, priests, are generally carnivorous, lazy, sinful, unclean... partial to earthly and corruptible things. Oh, Heavenly King, Comforter, Soul of truth, Who art everywhere and fulfills everything, Treasure of good things and Giver of life, come and dwell in us, and cleanse us from all filth, so that we may worthily, with a pure heart, a heavenly mind and spirit, perform such a great Sacrament! – Proskomedia is like a table of contents of the Liturgy, a synopsis (review) (337, pp. 142–143). The last words of Father John indicate that the proskomedia is a separate initial and independent part of the Divine Liturgy. And if the table of contents is a list of chapters and components of the book, then the components of the Liturgy are revealed by the proskomedia. Here we remember two greatest events in the gospel history of the salvation of mankind: the Nativity of Christ and His Death on the Cross. Moreover, the clergyman witnesses these events in a mysteriously visual form, and everyone present in the church witnesses them in a mysteriously educational form from the contents of the hours being read at that time. Before reading them, the church veil is pulled back, which “means the veil covering the sacrament, also the veil between present and future life, in which much is hidden for us, the veil between Heaven and earth” (337, p. 114). The content of the third hour depicts “the saving coming to earth of Jesus Christ and His sanctification of believers by the grace of the Holy Spirit who descended on the apostles” (84, p. 37). And the sixth hour mysteriously points to the suffering of the God-Man on the Cross. During the reading of the hours, the church is censed. This sacred rite also reminds “that Christ, by His incarnation, sweetened the earth, stinking with human sins” (337, p. 195), “filled ... (it) with the fragrance of the grace of the Holy Spirit, that this grace was received in abundance by the Mother of God and all the holy saints of God” (337, p. 223), “that our churches not made by hands - souls and bodies - must constantly be fragrant with the grace of the Holy Spirit and virtues: purity, holiness, meekness, humility, kindness, simple-heartedness, sincerity, goodwill, sympathy, forbearance, patience, impartiality, love of truth, obedience, mercy” (337, p. 114). But let us again recall the thought of the holy shepherd of Kronstadt that the proskomedia is only a “table of contents” of the entire Liturgy. The Liturgy of the Catechumens will testify in more detail about the life of Christ the Savior before He went out to preach, and the Liturgy of the Faithful will testify about the death on the Cross and the Sacrifice of salvation. This part of the Divine Liturgy is rich in didactic material and differs from the Liturgy of the Faithful in its variability. Changes occur depending on the day of the week, the saint celebrated, the time of year, while the Liturgy of the Faithful always remains unchanged, despite any calendar and other features. Before the beginning of the Liturgy of the Catechumens, the clergyman, having bowed three times before the throne, prays to God to send down the grace of the Holy Spirit for the worthy performance of the great Sacrament. He reads the prayers “To the Heavenly King,” “Glory to God in the Highest and on earth peace, good will toward men,” and “Lord, open my mouth, and my mouth will proclaim Your praise.” The prayer “To the Heavenly King” is read at the beginning, because the Holy Spirit is “the Helmsman of the Holy Church and all Orthodox Christians after the Ascension of the Lord into Heaven,” says Father John. “He came into the world to sovereignly promote the salvation of people, so brilliantly and gloriously accomplished by the Son of God. He teaches good, pure, fiery prayer. He enlightens, cleanses hearts, takes away sins, sanctifies, strengthens in the service of God, revives, leads to perfection” (337, pp. 243–244). “When you say... the words of the prayer “To the Heavenly King,” think about them deeply with your thoughts and feel them with your heart. The Spirit of God, the Life-Giving, All-Holy and All-Sanctifying, is everywhere, and there is no place where He would not be in the universe: “Do I not fill Heaven and earth?” (Jeremiah 23:24), He says through the prophet. “The Spirit of the Lord fills the world,” says the prophet. He, together with the Father and the Son, bears Heaven and earth, like the Almighty, in wondrous and all-perfect order and order” (399, p. 187). “...How do we say: “Come and dwell in us?” Does this mean that He is not everywhere, does not fill everything, or does He not exist and does not exist in us? – Like God, the Holy Spirit is indeed essential everywhere, but not everywhere graciously and effectively, for in a sinner, while he is a sinner, there is no Holy Spirit, that is, in his heart, but there is in him the culprit of sin - the devil... But the Holy Spirit rests in all sinners who live righteously or sincerely repent and who cleanse themselves by repentance. However, with creative, life-giving and all-powerful power, although not by presence and communication, the Holy Spirit touches the sinner, supporting his physical life... but the higher, sanctifying, revitalizing and renewing spirit and body power of the Holy Spirit is not in the sinner... Therefore, we, sinners, call on the Holy Spirit: “Come and dwell in us,” for we drive Him away with our sins” (337, pp.289–290). “The Divine Liturgy is a truly heavenly service on earth, during which God Himself is present and abides with people in a special, closest, closest way, being Himself an invisible priest, offering and being offered. There is nothing on earth holier, higher, more majestic, more solemn, more life-giving than the Liturgy! The church at this special time becomes an earthly sky, the clergy depict Christ Himself, angels, cherubim, seraphim and apostles” (333, p. 177). Therefore, during the service of the Liturgy, the priest “must be with his soul, as it were, outside of this world, completely united and merged with God; nothing earthly should possess his heart” (324, No. 22, p. 342). This spiritual dispensation of the shepherd can be helped by reflection on the throne before which he now stands. “What is a throne? - asks Father John. – This is the Sinai of Epiphany, to which the True Lawgiver and Judge of the world ascends. The priest is like Moses, standing before the Lord, conversing with Him as with a Friend and performing the Terrible Mystery of reconciling people with God, bringing a propitiatory and cleansing Bloodless Sacrifice about his sins and about human ignorance. What is a throne? – This is the Divine Golgotha, on which the Lamb of God was crucified and died for the sins of the world... remember vividly what happened on Golgotha ​​for us... What is the throne? – This is the throne of the King of kings and Lord of lords, from which He gives His commands to the faithful; this is the throne of the Judge, who judges the universe in truth and people with justice; this is the department of the Divine Teacher, who speaks the verbs of the eternal life” (315, p. 105). Having asked God for help and having adjusted himself spiritually, the clergyman utters the exclamation: “Blessed is the Kingdom of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages.” This exclamation is the most solemn in Orthodox liturgical practice. “What a sublime and soul-elevating beginning of the Liturgy!!” (337, p.243) - exclaims the holy Kronstadt shepherd. “We constitute the grace-filled kingdom of God, the kingdom of Jesus Christ, the blessed Kingdom of Heaven, in which truth, mercy, holiness, peace, spiritual freedom, also faith, hope and love should reign” (337, p. 243). The Word of God says that nothing unclean or unclean will enter the Kingdom of Heaven (Eph.5:5). Therefore, “when you go to the church of God, as to the Kingdom of God,” says Father John, “first of all, bring repentance to God for your sins” (337, p. 143). The one who is worthy of the Kingdom of Heaven is “who tries with all his might to become like God, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit in holiness, grace, mercy towards others, like God, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, who tries to become like the saints in repentance, prayer, abstinence, patience, meekness, quietness, obedience, unfeigned love” (320, p. 138). The holy shepherd put such a moral meaning into the initial liturgical exclamation. In the incarnation of the Son of God, the immeasurable breadth, height, length and depth of God’s love for the human race was revealed” (399, p. 220), and the mystery of the Holy Trinity was also revealed. “Through the incarnation of the Son of God, humanity was pardoned, reborn, renewed, sanctified, enlightened, deified, deified, established” (422, p. 63). And “therefore... the power of the kingdom of the Holy Trinity should righteously and worthily be blessed and glorified by rational creatures created in Her image and likeness and redeemed by the Blood of the One from the Trinity” (337, p. 182). Check yourself, shepherd! “Does your heart beat with joy and trembling when you remember and pronounce the most holy name of the Uncreated and All-Created, All-Good and All-Blessed Trinity of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit? Oh, what a wonderful name! Oh, most sweet and life-long name! Oh, Beautiful Essential and Eternal Trinity, who gave indescribable beauty to the entire created world, both spiritual and material! Adorn us too in Your image and likeness, having, by our own free will, disfigured and corrupted ourselves with all sorts of sins!” (320, p.2). So, this first breath of prayer must be given to the One by whom “we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28). “In church services, the Church indicates to us objects and needs for which we must pray to God’s mercy with the undoubted hope of receiving them, because we ask in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, who said: “And if you ask the Father anything in My name, I will do it, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son” (John 14:13)” (315, p.3). “Let us pray to the Lord in peace,” proclaims the clergyman. This “great litany, pronounced daily in the church, is a wise litany, a litany of love, in which Christians, living and holy, are represented as one great joint of the body of Jesus Christ.” (333, pp.56–57). The first petition: “Let us pray to the Lord in peace,” inspires those present in the church that the Church of Christ is the kingdom of peace and that we should be at peace with everyone if possible. “If it is possible for you, be at peace with all people” (Rom. 12:18)” (337, p.222). “Do not disturb the peace because of perishable and transitory things, because of your sinful pride. Love the world above all else, as the Lord Himself. May nothing be more valuable than peace and mutual love.” (332, pp. 316–317). “Let us pray to the Lord for the salvation of our souls,” Father John continues his interpretation of the litany. – Whoever sincerely observes himself constantly notices that our soul perishes in various sins, sleeps a sinful death, is constantly captured by the devil and wears strong shackles of passions; notices this and earnestly sighs and prays to the Lord for the salvation of souls redeemed by the priceless Blood of Christ... “About peace from above,” for there is no peace in our bones from our sins (Ps. 37:4)” (333, p. 106). In one of the petitions of the great litany, the Holy Church begs the Lord “for the goodness of the air,” “for the air, like other elements, is infected and stinks with all sorts of human iniquities, secret and obvious, day and night, and carries within itself all sorts of germs of corruption and various diseases” (337, p. 333). All those present in the church, together with the choir, respond to the petitions of the clergyman with a short prayer: “Lord, have mercy.” “What does it mean that is often sung in church: “Lord, have mercy?” - asks Father John. -...This is the cry of someone who repents and expresses a firm intention to correct himself and begin a new life befitting a Christian. This is the cry of a repentant sinner, who is ready to show mercy to others, as one who has been immeasurably pardoned and merciful by God, the Judge of his deeds” (333, p. 201). “By this repentance, this humility, this cry to God for mercy, we differ from demons, or evil spirits, who, having sinned and sinned without number, do not allow even the thought of repentance, due to their pride and malice” (337, p. 303). “The frequent cry of “Lord, have mercy” ... reminds, firstly, that we all stand before the face of the Lord, who listens to our prayers; secondly, that we are His servants, obligated to fulfill His will and constantly breaking it and deserving of severe punishment” (337, pp. 196–197). This short prayer also reminds us that we “must always live in repentance, in humility, and not in arrogance, and in all correction and virtue” (337, p. 295), “teaches constant self-condemnation, ... trust in the mercy of God, mercy towards others, remembrance of the righteous Judgment of God and retribution for the deeds of each of us” (337, p.241). “Whoever says often and from the heart: “Lord, have mercy,” means he is alive and healthy in spirit, and whoever does not speak and is ashamed to speak... is dead or mortally ill” (337, p. 257). Love this prayer, Christian, heartily. “It is so... necessary for a sinner, like clean air for breathing, like sure medicine for a sick person” (337, p. 301). The deep meaning is contained in the last petition of the great and small litanies: “Having remembered our Most Holy, Most Pure, Most Blessed, Glorious Lady Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary with all the saints, we will commend ourselves and each other and our entire life to Christ our God.” “The Church repeats this reminder aloud to us,” says the holy shepherd, “so that we remember the holy, great, divine union of the Church of God - heavenly and earthly, triumphant in Heaven and militant on earth, the close mutual connection of both, the ever-present closeness to us and the readiness to help us in everything - members of the heavenly Church, the Mother of God, the Head of mental instruction, the holy apostles, prophets, martyrs, hierarchs, saints and all saints. So that they surrender themselves and each other in everything, in sorrows and joys, in sins and in truth or virtue, in temptations and misfortunes to the Head of the Church, our Lord Jesus Christ. So that we remember the closeness to us of the All-Good and All-Powerful Head of the Church, Our Lord, and His readiness to protect, preserve, have mercy and save His members, according to His infinite goodness and through the prayers of His Most Pure Mother and all the saints. These words: “Most Holy, Most Pure, Most Blessed,” etc. - extremely important, sublime and rich in content for every truly Orthodox Christian; they lift his spirit, give him indestructible hope in God, strength and strength, and convince him to live holy” (337, p. 242). “Why does all nature and everything in nature revolve wisely and in amazing order? – Because the Creator Himself disposes and controls it. Why is there so much disorder in human nature—the crown of creation? Why is there so much disorder and disgrace in his life? Because he himself decided to dispose of himself, apart from the will and mind of his Creator. The man is a sinner! Surrender all of yourself, all your life to the Lord your God, and your whole life will revolve in a wise, beautiful, majestic and life-giving order, and all of it will be beautiful, like that of the holy men of God, who gave themselves entirely to Christ God and whom the Church offers us daily as an example to follow” (332, p. 342). With this petition, the Holy Church calls us “to realize through deed our devotion to Christ God in all circumstances of life and not to rely only on ourselves, on our minds, on our position, condition, connections, wealth, etc.” (324, No. 22, p. 342). “From the time of the incarnation of the Son of God, the Ever-Virgin Mother of God became the Head of the entire creation, or the Church of God, and the protection of Christians, their insurmountable wall, refuge and intercession” (399, p. 278). “Speak silently and earnestly, priests and deacons of the Orthodox Church, the name of our Most Blessed Lady for all to hear, in praise and propitiation for us, Her sinners and unworthy servants, may she always intercede for us before the Lord of our life, the Lord Jesus Christ, and together before the Most Holy Trinity” (337, p. 333). The answering words of this petition: “To you, Lord,” “instill in us constant and perfect devotion to Jesus Christ throughout our entire life, in all needs, temptations, deprivations, insults from people” (337, p. 241). The chain of prayer petitions ends with a doxology to the Most Holy Trinity: “For all glory, honor and worship is due to You, to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages.” “Short but significant are the exclamations proclaiming the glory and splendor of the Most Holy Trinity,” says Father John. “These exclamations preach about the eternity of Her Being and about the terrible and unapproachable splendor of the Triune God, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit” (410, p. 1). The exclamation after the great litany inspires us with “lofty thoughts about the infinite power and greatness of God, about the infinite goodness and mercy of God and about the eternal Kingdom of God” (337, p. 282). So, the great litany is a divine litany, in it “breathes pure, holy, all-encompassing love, the mind of God” (337, p. 197), in it “all our real needs are indicated, all petitions for everyone and everything, all grateful feelings” (337, p. 197). Our needs, our petitions are a consequence of the Fall, and therefore they turn a person’s thought to this terrible event, but at the same time - to the great mystery of piety, the appearance of God in the flesh (1 Tim 3:16). The Incarnation of the Son of God is also remembered in antiphons. The antiphonal singing of sacred texts from the books of the Old and New Testaments has a deep meaning. “The ancient prophets who prophesied about the Savior, and the apostles, and the holy church hymnals,” says the Kronstadt pastor, “seem to stand together in our churches and correspond with each other, some prophesying, others pointing to the fulfillment of prophecies, or generally chanting alternately” (337, p. 225). It is no coincidence that the psalms of David were chosen for antiphonal singing. “They are excellent guides to prayer and praise to God; ...they are the broadcasts of the Holy Spirit...", helping us "to be filled... with the Holy Spirit; ...they serve as confirmation of the truth of our faith, containing many prophecies about ... the Lord Jesus Christ, which came true on Him” (337, p. 177). The first antiphon expresses a feeling of gratitude to the Lord for His boundless love for man. “Bless the Lord, my soul, and all that is within me, His holy name; Bless the Lord, my soul, and do not forget all His rewards.” What are God's rewards to man? “The Lord is my existence,” says the holy righteous man, “The Lord is deliverance from eternal death; The Lord is my eternal belly; The Lord is my cleansing and deliverance from many sins and my sanctification; The Lord is strength in my weakness, space in my distress, hope in my cowardice and despondency; The Lord is the life-giving fire in my coldness; The Lord is light in my darkness, peace in my confusion; The Lord is the Intercessor in my temptations. He is my thinking, my desire, my activity; He is the light of soul and body, food, drink, my robe, my shield, my weapon. Everything is Lord for me. My soul, love and thank the Lord unceasingly!” (332, pp.383–384). The feeling of gratitude intensifies in a person when he realizes that the Lord is his only hope. This thought is very clearly stated in the words of the second antiphon “Do not trust in princes, in the sons of men, in them there is no salvation... blessed is the God of Jacob his Helper”... Christian! “You are cramped everywhere on earth,” says Father John, “everything changes you: relatives, friends, acquaintances, wealth, sensual pleasures, your body, all the elements change: earth, water, fire, air, light - cling to the one God, “with whom there is no change or shadow of turning” (James 1:17), Who alone is Love” (332, p. 316). “Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen,” the choir sings. “In what way was the glory of the Most Holy Trinity especially manifested - the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit? - asks the holy shepherd. – In man, created in the image and likeness of God, and in the redemption of man by the incarnation of the Son of God. She also appeared and appears especially brightly in the holy people of God; it manifests itself in every person, in providence, protection, mercy, purification, sanctification, long-suffering and in various countless miracles” (337, p. 244). “You, O priests and laity, often give glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, God in the Trinity,” notes Father John. - May this glory be to Him first of all in your hearts, in faith and unfeigned love, in meekness, humility, kindness, abstinence, purity of soul and body, simplicity, in mercy, in obedience to each other, in ardent, unfeigned repentance, in zeal for all good deeds. This is where the glory of the Holy Trinity must first of all come from us sinners. Otherwise, we often send out glory, but we ourselves dishonor the name of God with our non-Christian life” (337, pp. 263–264). “We come to the Liturgy with our absent-mindedness, with our passions and earthly dreams, with our impurity, with our vanity and our outfits and everyday calculations to which our soul has clung. Listen, O Christian soul, to what is sung...: “The only begotten Son and Word of God, who is immortal and who willed our salvation for the sake of being incarnate from the Holy Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary, who was immutably made man, was crucified, O Christ God, trampling death by death, the only One of the Holy Trinity, glorified to the Father and the Holy Spirit, save us.” Do you hear? God incarnated for you, became a man... Do you appreciate it, do you feel it? – Does this elevate you? Does it lift you off the ground? Look how condescendingly and fearfully, wonderfully, terribly the Kingdom of God is approaching us” (337, pp. 132–133). “Before Christ, Heaven was closed for all people, even for the righteous; after His suffering, death and resurrection, it is open to all believers and sincere repentants. Oh bounties! Oh mercy! O wealth of goodness! This mercy of God towards the fallen human race is expressed during the service by the opening of the royal doors, depicting the gates of paradise and the Kingdom of Heaven” (337, p. 179). The Lord once told His disciples: “From now on you will see Heaven open and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of man” (John 1:51). “Now we see,” says Father John, “during... the Liturgy, the clergy ascending and descending into the altar and from the altar, which mean the angels of God... Hence, in the prayer of entry, read secretly by the priest, it is said: “Make (Lord) at our entrance there be holy angels” (337, p. 289). “The precedence of a deacon in the priesthood signifies the importance of the priestly office, as the office of Christ and the apostle. Christ was served by angels, the priest is served by a deacon. In addition, deacon means the Forerunner of the Lord” (315, pp. 38–39). During the small entrance, the third antiphon is sung - the beatitudes. The meaning of these Divine sayings of Christ the Savior at this very moment is explained by the holy shepherd as follows: “Liturgy is the remembrance of the earthly life of Jesus Christ from His shrouds to the tomb, from the resurrection to the ascension to Heaven. Altar means the Kingdom of Heaven or paradise; royal doors - the doors of heaven or the doors of the Kingdom of Heaven; the opening and closing of these gates during the service means the opening and closing of the Kingdom of Heaven or paradise. The beginning of the Liturgy means the beginning of the redemptive ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ to the human race, and the small entrance with the Gospel means His procession to preach the Gospel and His first Sermon on the Mount, in which He pleases those who fulfill His commandments and promises various rewards in Heaven to those who struggle in this world for His sake. Seeing the open royal gates, like the gates of the Kingdom of Heaven, and looking with the eyes of our hearts at the Lord, mysteriously coming in the small entrance, it is natural for us, earthly wanderers, exiles from paradise, to pray to the Lord, like a prudent thief: “Remember us, Lord, when you come into Your Kingdom.” Singing or reading the beatitudes of Christ at this time reminds us both of the appearance of Jesus Christ to preach to the world and of His first sermon on the mountain, and of what virtues each of us must have in order to be worthy of entering into the open Heaven, into the paradise opened by the Cross of the Lord. The Church tells us with this sacred rite something like this: “You were expelled from paradise in Adam for your sins and lost the bliss for which you were created; Paradise was closed for you for many thousands of years, but now it has been opened again by the Son of God; encourage yourself to enter it, for “the Kingdom of Heaven is taken by force, and those who use force take it” (Matthew 11:12); and in order to enter the Kingdom of Heaven opened by the Cross of the Lord, the following qualities and virtues are required of you: poverty of spirit, crying for sins, meekness, hunger and thirst for truth, mercy, purity of heart, and so on; acquire them and you will be in paradise” (366, pp. 155–157). The first commandment reads: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for of them is the kingdom of heaven.” “What is poverty of spirit?” - asks Father John. – We have all seen... the poor physically; therefore, in order to paint an image of spiritual poverty, let us first depict bodily poverty in order to explain the like to similar things. A beggar, as the word itself shows, is one who has nothing of his own, who expects everything from the mercy of God; who is convinced that he cannot think or desire anything good unless God gives good thoughts and good desires, that he cannot do a single truly good deed without the grace of Jesus Christ; who considers himself more sinful, worse, lower than everyone else, who always reproaches himself and does not condemn anyone; who recognizes the clothing of his soul as foul, dark, fetid, worthless, and does not cease to ask the Lord Jesus Christ to enlighten the clothing of his soul, to clothe him in the imperishable robe of righteousness; who constantly runs under the roof of God’s wings, having no safety anywhere in the world except the Lord; who considers all his wealth to be a gift from God and for everything diligently thanks the Giver of all blessings and willingly gives a portion of his wealth to those who demand it” (366, pp. 159–160). So, spiritual poverty is humility. Anyone who wants to acquire this virtue, on the advice of Father John, must “enter into himself as often and deeply as possible, bring to mind and impartially examine with his inner eyes all his sinful thoughts, desires, intentions, deeds from his earliest youth to the present; then we will see that we are drowning in the abyss of sins. Those who are literate can be advised to read more often, in addition to morning and evening prayers, which perfectly depict the poverty of our spirit, the great canon of St. Andrew of Crete, canons and akathists to the Savior and the Mother of God, the canon to the guardian angel and canons for every day of the week; Of course, there is no need to abandon the Gospel and the Psalter, which are the best school of humility” (366, p. 162). “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” “Whoever... has the gift of tears,” says the Kronstadt shepherd, “... knows from experience what bliss it is to cry over the sins of one’s own or others; bliss is inseparable from the weeping of the Gospel, so that the one who weeps naturally receives consolation as a reward. However, there is worldly crying, the sadness of this world: powerless anger cries, humiliated pride cries, unsatisfied vanity cries, offended pride cries... These are sinful tears, useless tears, tears extremely harmful for those who cry, for they cause death to the soul and body... But what exactly should we cry about? First, weep for what you have desecrated and are constantly desecrating the image of God within yourself with your sins. Think, man: God has depicted Himself in you, as the sun is depicted in a drop of water, you have been made, as it were, some kind of god on earth, as it is said: “I said: you are gods and sons of the Most High” (Ps. 81:6), and you daily throw it into the dirt, stain this image with worldly passions, addiction to the world... Secondly, cry because you bear the name of a Christian, but do not fulfill the vows, obligations... given at Baptism and live like a pagan, clinging to the earth and not thinking about Heaven and about the life there... Thirdly, cry because your heart is constantly trying to do everything contrary to the Lord; weep for his evil inclination, unrepentance, and lack of correction. We pray so much, repent, read, sing, so much we partake of the Holy Life-giving Mysteries, which can transform a heart of stone and make it soft as wax, and we do not change for the better due to negligence...! Crying as an internal cry when you feel a rush of unclean thoughts to your heart; cry when you are carried away by pride, anger, envy, greed, stinginess... Cry for your sins, cry for people’s: cry for the fact that many peoples have not yet come to know the true God...; cry that the Christian faith is persecuted in infidel countries...; cry for the untruth that prevails on earth...; cry... for the poverty and helplessness of the poor; cry because Christian love has dried up for many...; that many Christians fall from the heights of redemption and respect neither the Church, nor the Sacraments, nor its teachings. You say: “What good are my tears?” – By this you will fulfill the apostle’s commandment to weep with those who weep (Rom. 12:15); In general, you will fulfill the commandment to love your neighbor, and the whole law is in love. And the benefit is that as a reward for your tears you will receive consolation from God and forgiveness of sins” (366, pp. 168–171). “Now is the time to talk about meekness. “Blessed are the meek,” says the Lord, “for they will inherit the earth.” ...Why are the meek blessed immediately after those who weep? – Because meekness is the fruit and consequence of contrition and mourning for our sins and weaknesses; grief over sins makes a person meek and gentle, like a lamb; and where there is meekness and kindness, there is always peace and bliss... What is meekness, what does it consist of and what are its properties? ...Meekness is the quiet mood of the soul, established in Jesus Christ by faith and love, calmly enduring all evil caused to us by people or the treachery of demons, not indignant or irritated by various oppositions and obstacles to our intentions, willingly forgiving human insults and in every possible way benevolent to our enemies, out of respect for their human and Christian dignity. A meek person never repays evil for evil, insult for insult; does not get angry, does not raise his voice in anger at those who sin and offend... God, our common Father, before whom we sin without number, always deals with us in His meekness, does not destroy us, is long-suffering to us, and benefits us unceasingly. And we must be meek, forgiving and long-suffering towards our brothers” (366, pp. 175–176). Meekness is contrasted with anger and irritability. To avoid these passions, you need to look not “at the sins of others, but at yourself,” says Father John, “to know more about your heart, your mistakes and shortcomings; then we will learn that most of the strife and disagreement comes from ourselves, ... we will learn to be lenient towards others, to forgive their weaknesses and shortcomings and to be meek and patient with everyone. You must be able to control your heart at the moment of insult, suppress anger and dissatisfaction in yourself at the very beginning, make it a law for yourself when insulted by others not to immediately speak and act, but to allow yourself to calm down” (366, p. 179). What does it mean: the meek will “inherit the earth”? “It means that the meek will enjoy longevity and many other blessings in this life, like the meek and long-suffering Job, David or the meek patriarch Jacob, like many saints who shone with meekness in the New Testament, and most importantly, that they receive the blessings promised by God to those who love Him on the land of the living, that is, in Heaven” (366, p. 180). “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” “Have you seen those who hunger and thirst physically, or have you yourself experienced hunger and thirst? - asks Father John. - Why does this greed and thirst happen? Why do some people, for example, sick people, not feel the need for food and drink? “I proposed these questions in order,” he continues, “to better explain spiritual greed by bodily greed. To a greater or lesser extent, we have all experienced hunger or thirst. Tormented by hunger or thirst, a person almost only thinks about how he can satisfy them as quickly as possible... Such hunger and thirst comes from bodily needs and from the lack in the body of those elements that it needs for life; hunger and thirst are greatest in a healthy state of the body. On the contrary, a prolonged lack of hunger and thirst in a person shows his ill health and dangerous situation, as happens with seriously ill people; it comes from a disorder of the internal bodily organs” (366, pp. 182–183). The reason for greed and spiritual thirst - the greed for truth, according to the thought of the holy shepherd, lies in the act of the fall of the first man. Man was created by the Creator “righteous, sinless, holy, and within him flowed a fountain of living water, since he was in union with God. Spiritual food and drink for man then was truth, or the ever-flowing Source of truth - the Lord God... In union with God, man did not know what it meant to hunger and thirst for truth, because he was abundantly satisfied with it. Thus, those who live in complete abundance have no idea about hunger or thirst. Man recognized hunger and thirst when, through sin, he lost righteousness and fell from the Source of righteousness - God, in Whom he could find eternal satiation” (366, pp. 183–184). So, every person now has the necessary need to satisfy his spiritual hunger. Why do many “not feel greed and thirst for justification? This happens because a person, with his carnal wisdom and his constantly sinful, voluptuous, riotous and selfish life, rapes and finally drowns out his conscience. This insensitive state of the soul is the sinful death of a person, which can go from temporary to eternal” (366, p. 185). That is why the Lord pleases people who feel spiritual hunger and thirst within themselves. But “how are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness satisfied? Just like,” says Father John, “how those who hunger and thirst are satisfied physically. One who is physically satiated no longer feels hunger or thirst and feels the body reinforced by the food and drink he has taken. Satisfaction of the soul consists in peace and tranquility of spiritual strength, as a result of heartfelt repentance of sins and cleansing them by grace” (366, pp. 187–188) of God. “Two lives are intended for God’s chosen people - temporary, earthly and eternal, heavenly. This life was given to us independently of us, the future life without us, without our faith and desire, without good deeds cannot be given to anyone, ... we need to educate ourselves for it, stock up on the oil of good deeds or alms” (320, pp. 116–117). Therefore the Lord said: “Blessed are you, for they will be shown mercy.” “What does a sinner need most? “God’s mercy,” answers the holy shepherd, “non-penalty for our sins, continuation of God’s long-suffering toward us, the granting of more time for repentance, the very awakening of the soul to repentance, forgiveness of sins, and, in the end, pardon at the Last Judgment of God.” That is why the Church often says on our behalf: “Lord, have mercy!” So, fellow sinner,” says Father John, “if you have already recognized yourself as the greatest sinner, worthy of all condemnation and torment, if you have known the abomination and absurdity of sins, the immeasurable insult through them of the Lord God and the greatest responsibility for them; If you hunger and thirst for justification and God’s mercy, then try to show the mercy that is possible for you towards your neighbors: “Blessed are the mercy,” says the Lord, “for these will be the mercy.” For mercy to the brethren, you yourself will receive mercy from God; for temporary mercy - eternal mercy, for small mercy - infinitely great mercy; for you will not only receive pardon from eternal condemnation for sins at the Judgment of God, but you will also receive eternal bliss” (366, pp. 191–192). The following reasons encourage a Christian to fulfill the commandment of mercy as much as possible: “First, God’s endless mercy towards the human race in general, towards Christians in particular and towards each of us in particular; secondly, the direct commandment of the Gospel; thirdly, the example of our Lord Jesus Christ and, fourthly, our very name as Christians, that is, members of Christ, members of His body. Add to this,” says Father John, “the sense of mercy inherent in each of us, implanted in our nature by God Himself” (366, p. 197). However, everyone should know that alms do not always bring spiritual benefit to a Christian. “The alms of that person are insignificant,” says the holy shepherd, “who does not give it willingly, ... with regret, with disrespect for the person of his neighbor” (332, p. 211). “Further, we must do good from our own property, and not from someone else’s, to which we have no legal right, and from property acquired by honest labor, and not by theft, deceit and untruth... In order to give sufficient alms, we must limit our expenses, for example, not buy unnecessary and expensive things, which we can easily do without, for this is the theft of the property of the poor, since our surplus belongs to them. We must do good and help constantly, without weakening in our zeal from the difficulties and obstacles encountered in the performance of this duty” (366, p. 203). God also does not like that alms that is given “out of vanity and pride, ... out of a desire for gratitude and reward” (366, p. 202). According to the Kronstadt shepherd, one should “help and do good to everyone, without making distinctions about persons, status, origin, or religion. Everyone who is truly in need should be shown mercy” (366, p. 201). The basis for this is the words of Christ the Savior: “Give to him who asks of you” (Matthew 5:42). And so that after deeds of charity you do not fall into pride and maintain a sense of humility, Father John advises remembering the words of St. Gregory the Theologian: “You will never be more generous than God, even if you sacrificed everything you have, even if you gave yourself along with your property: for in order to give oneself to God, a person receives from Him. No matter how much you pay Him, even more will remain on you and you will not give anything of your own, since everything is from God” (366, p. 204). “Blessed are those who are pure in heart, for they will see God.” “In this commandment the Lord, pleasing the pure in heart, inspires us all to strive to acquire purity of heart... All people are conceived and born in iniquity... Where does this universal sinful impurity come from... when they are created in the image and likeness of God, and God is Most Pure and Most Holy? “From the devil,” says Father John, “...who is most often called in Scripture an unclean spirit... He... having become, after his fall from God, an unclean vessel of all uncleanness of sin, from the beginning he defiled the hearts of the first people with his unclean breath and, deeply infecting their entire being, soul and body, with the uncleanness of sin, passes on this uncleanness, like hereditary corruption, to all their offspring. ...This sinful impurity is so great, so deeply ingrained in human hearts, ...that even the saints... who throughout their lives were vigilant over all the movements and thoughts of their hearts, at times felt within themselves as if an influx or storm of evil, nasty and blasphemous thoughts...; so great that, despite our frequent prayers, the grace of the Sacraments and our teaching in the word of God... it still remains in us and will live with us until the grave” (366, pp. 205–208). But “our entire inner life and our outer behavior depend on the quality, on the life of the heart. If passions live in the heart, then both the inner and outer life of a person are ugly...; if the heart is pure from passions, then a person everywhere shows himself in a favorable form, everyone is pleased to be with him” (304, p. 40). “The purer the heart, the more spacious it is, the more it accommodates loved ones; the more sinful, the tighter it is, the less capable it is of containing loved ones - to the point that... it is limited to love only for oneself, and that is false” (332, p. 52). A pure heart is “meek, humble, unguileful, simple, trusting, undeceitful, unsuspicious, kindly, kind, unselfish, unenvious, non-adulterous” (332, p. 82). But how can one achieve purity of heart? For this, “great labors and sorrows, frequent tears are needed,” says Father John, “unceasing inner prayer, abstinence, reading the word of God, the scriptures and lives of the holy saints of God, but most importantly, frequent repentance and communion of the Most Pure Mysteries and daily self-examination; reflection on how pure man was created in the beginning and how the filth of sin entered the world; about the likeness and image of God in us and about our duty to become like the Prototype - the Most Pure God; about our redemption by the Priceless Blood of the Son of God, about our sonhood in Christ Jesus; about the commandment for us to be holy in all our actions (1 Peter 1:15); reflection on death, judgment and fiery hell. Great tribulations are needed, because they heal the disease of sin, burn away the thorns of passions” (332, p. 208). So, Christian, “watch every movement of your heart; see if it is pleasing to the Trinity and if, on the contrary, it is not the movement of your passionate person” (333, p. 390). “Listen: for cleansing your heart from sins, you will receive an endless reward - you will see God... The feat of cleansing the heart is difficult, because it is associated with great hardships and sorrows, but the reward is great” (333, p. 54). “Blessed are the peacemakers, for these shall be called the sons of God.” “So, those who want to receive eternal bliss must be peacemakers. How to fulfill this commandment? Firstly, each of us, says Father John, ... should not allow passions to disturb ourselves, but reflect them at the very beginning ... and in every possible way maintain ourselves in a peaceful disposition ... Why do quarrels, discords, and disagreements occur among us? – Because we have not learned to hold the impulses of passions in our hearts, eradicating them in the very bud; have not learned to be peaceful within themselves in the depths of their souls... One must be like a dead person or completely deaf and blind in the face of all the sorrows, slander, reproaches, and deprivations that inevitably happen to everyone who wants to walk along the saving paths of Christ. And who will not say that people who have acquired such a mood of spirit are truly blessed, because they have acquired divine grace, the source of peace and joy in the Holy Spirit (Rom. 14:17)... By pacifying ourselves, we must, secondly, be peacemakers regarding our neighbors; We must act friendly with everyone, not give reasons for disagreement and prevent it by all means, ... we must try to reconcile others who are at enmity with each other, if we can, and if we cannot, then pray to God for their reconciliation, for what we are not able to do, God is able to do... A special duty to be reconcilers lies with the shepherds of the Church, who... are appointed to reconcile everyone with God and among themselves. They... must extinguish family disagreements, disagreements between husband and wife, parents and children... and they... especially have a great reward - the name sons of God, if they diligently try to establish peace and harmony between people. They have the duty to reconcile with the Church those suffering from the disease of schism and those who are unjustly at war with her... They must firmly instill in such people that we are all brothers, children of the one Heavenly Father, redeemed by the Blood of the one Lord Jesus Christ and called to inherit the one Kingdom of Heaven, and therefore must live in mutual love and harmony and adhere to the one house of God - the Church... So, “blessed are the peacemakers... They will be called the sons of God,” that is, they will be honored with the greatest honor in the presence of all angels, all men, for there is no higher honor than for a mortal man to be called the son of the Immortal and Blessed God and to become immortal and blessed himself” (366, pp. 212–218). “It is blessed to drive away righteousness for the sake of them, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs.” “By ‘truth’ here we generally mean the Christian faith and life according to the commandments of Christ,” says the holy Kronstadt shepherd; - this means that blessed are those who are persecuted for faith and piety, for their good deeds, for constancy and steadfastness in faith. But why does the world persecute true faith, piety, truth, which are so beneficial for people, bringing unity, mutual love, good morals, peace, silence, order into scattered human societies? – Because “the whole world lies in evil” (1 John 5:19)... and the prince of this world, the devil, who works in the sons of disobedience, hates the truth with hellish hatred and persecutes it, since it serves as a reproof of unrighteousness, pricks its eyes, embarrasses it... This is how the righteous were persecuted in the Old Testament before the incarnation of the Son of God and with His incarnation - the Holy One Forerunner and Archdeacon Stephen; and after His resurrection and ascension to Heaven, the faith of Christ met terrible persecution in the world from Jews and idolaters... Followers of Christ... they had to fight not only with people, with their wickedness, ignorance and malice, but with the whole hell, with Satan and his hasty power... If the gospel word of the Lord Jesus Christ had not strengthened the martyrs...: “It is blessed to drive out righteousness, ... it is blessed when they reproach you” (Matthew 10:28), - ...then who among them could endure such terrible persecutions, such inhumane torment? ...The Lord “said as if this: “Do not be discouraged and do not despair, My faithful followers, ... I will be your support, your strength, your consolation, your inner bliss in all your suffering, adversity and sorrow, in all torture and torment for My name... I myself will be inside you, there will be My Kingdom, the Kingdom of peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. And the word of the Lord came true exactly; the exiles and martyrs for the name of Christ even in earthly life, with all the persecutions, sorrows, deprivations, torments, triumphed over their persecutors, rejoiced and had fun, going to fierce torment... “Love the truth,” Father John calls, “...and reprove untruth with meekness and patience, so that truth reigns as it should, and untruth is put to shame and eradicated.” However, prudence is required here too. “There is no need to declare our truth when the matter does not concern us, when there are people called upon by their position to tell the truth; or when we foresee that the word of truth will plunge us into obvious danger, and no benefit will come from our word. Then it is better to secretly pray to God, so that He Himself will enlighten the unrighteous and guide them on the path of righteousness, or send powerful and capable people to expose unrighteousness! And virtue requires moderation and prudence, so that without prudence, virtue is no longer virtue or loses much of its value” (366, pp. 220–226). “Blessed are you when they revile you and condemn you and say all sorts of evil things about you lying to me for my sake.” “The Lord pleases those who are reviled for His holy name, because He Himself was reviled and slandered by the scribes and Pharisees” (320, p.110). “Are there even now reproaches and persecutions for the truth, for the faith of Christ? - asks Father John, - There are and will be until the end of the world, because the Kingdom of God has not yet come in all its power for many, and for the majority it has not yet come at all; There is still a lot of wickedness and untruth in Christian societies themselves, Satan is not yet bound and freely walks around the earth and passes through the heavenly places, and now, it seems, he is most rampant against those who hold the right faith, “knowing that there is not much time left for him” (Rev. 12:12). Only now he persecutes not with torture, not with executions, but with unbelief, imaginary progress, ... indiscriminateness in faith and daring denial of faith” (366, p. 226). So, Christian, do not be faint-hearted, do not be discouraged, do not be sad, do not be offended when people hate you. Remember the words of the Lord: “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is abundant in Heaven.” This means that “as the righteous endure reproach, persecution, and deprivation on earth for their righteousness, their reward in Heaven increases; here they often lose everything, there they will receive everything in abundance” (366, p.228). But the singing of the antiphons ended. Standing on the pulpit, the clergyman makes a cruciform overshadowing of the Gospel with the words: “Wisdom, forgive.” “We will not be mistaken,” says Father John, “if we explain these words this way: the wisdom of a Christian consists in vigilance and simplicity of heart. “Sorry, let’s hear” – let’s listen with attention; “Forgive me” - with attention, sincerely accepting the Holy Mysteries” (337, p. 196). “I’m sorry – sincerely” (337, p.265). “Wisdom is called the Hypostatic, Eternal Wisdom, who created the universe - the Son of God; wisdom is called all His wonderful providence for the salvation of the human race, His incarnation, life on earth, His teaching, miracles, suffering, death and burial, resurrection, ascension and second coming” (337, p. 311). According to the Kronstadt pastor, this short proclamation by the clergyman reminds those present in the church of the appearance of the Hypostatic Wisdom - the Son of God and calls on them to believe in Him and the work of saving the world accomplished by Him sincerely and sincerely. Feelings of deepest humility, reverence and gratitude to the Lord awaken in the soul of a Christian the words: “Come, let us worship and fall before Christ, save us, Son of God... singing Ti: hallelujah.” At this solemn moment, “members of the spiritual kingdom of Christ - Christians - are invited to the proper worship of the King - Christ, who promised to be where two or three are gathered in His name” (337, p. 222). Next, troparia and kontakia are sung to the saints. Listen, Christian: these hymns speak of living witnesses of “the salvation of faith in Christ, which changed them, purified them, strengthened them in deeds of virtue, regenerated them, renewed them, sanctified them, appropriated them to God and led them to eternal Life” (315, p. 23). The prayerful invocation of the saints in the sequential singing of troparia and kontakia, like a golden thread, is sealed with a brief doxology to the Holy Trinity: “Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit...”, since “their holiness is from Her and She rests in them and is glorified and acts” (337, p. 325). This idea is confirmed by the opening words of the secret prayer of the “Trisagion Chant”: “Holy God, Who rests in the saints, Who is sung by the Trisagion voice from the seraphim and praised from the cherubim...”, which the clergyman reads at this time. The exclamation after this prayer calls on everyone to glorify the Holy Trinity: “For You are Holy, our God, and to You we send glory, to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen". The peculiarity of this exclamation is noticeable when the Liturgy is served by a priest with a deacon, namely: the last words “and forever and ever” are pronounced by the deacon, addressing the people. Penetrating into the spiritual content of the service, the holy righteous John of Kronstadt saw a deep meaning in these words. “Entering the church during the service,” he says, “you, first of all and most often, are resounding with the word of eternity (in the exclamations of the priest) and you feel that... from a vain, corruptible, perverse, transitory world, you have entered another, new, as if Heavenly, eternal world; this circumstance should especially elevate our souls and tear them away, at least for this time, from the temporary, perishing” (337, p. 181). And how necessary it is to pay attention now, when after the Trisagion Song, which “teaches us the worship of the Trinitarian Deity” (337, p. 187), passages of Holy Scripture from the Apostle and the Gospel will be read! “Let’s hear it,” the clergyman proclaims and sends a wish of peace to everyone present: “Peace to all.” The world “constitutes the life of our soul and testifies to the union ... (it) with God. The absence of peace in the soul... is spiritual death and a sign of the action in our hearts of the enemy of our salvation” (332, p. 242). “And to your spirit,” the reader answers. "Wisdom". And then the prokeimenon proclaims, and the deacon says, “let’s remember.” “This indicates the “connection of the Old Testament with the New,” says Father John; - for wisdom means the correspondence of means with ends, principles with consequences, intentions with fulfillment, revelation, prophecy and transformation with their fulfillment. Wisdom is a lofty thought, briefly expressed in a verse – prokeemne” (337, p. 215). “The peace of mind and sweetness felt from time to time in the church of God with the harmonious singing of the choristers and the intelligible reading of the reader and clergy is a deposit for us of that infinite sweetness that those who eternally contemplate the ineffable kindness of the face of God will feel within themselves.” Therefore, “one must be zealous for harmonious singing and intelligible reading” (333, pp. 213–214), says the Kronstadt shepherd. Before reading the Holy Gospel, the priest again teaches “Peace to all.” “According to Father John, these words should encourage the evangelist himself in these sacred moments to have a peaceful spiritual dispensation, “so that in the deep silence of the soul and peace of feelings, read the Gospel without any haste or worry” (337, p. 268). And one more remark to the shepherd: “Saying “May God, through the prayers of the holy, glorious and all-validated apostle and evangelist (name), give you the verb...” - have in your soul great zeal for the word of God, wishing with all your might and praying to God, that it may influence with great power the hearts of all listeners” (315, p. 56). “Reverence every word, every thought of the word of God, ... because ... this is the breath and words of the Holy Spirit” (333, p. 56). “Our heart is like a dark earth; The Gospel is like the sun, enlightening and reviving our hearts” (332, p. 357). Therefore, the clergyman in the prayer “before the Gospel” asks God to give him and everyone present in the church “an understanding of the Gospel... preaching,... let all carnal lusts be overcome, let us pass through spiritual life.” “Brothers! - exhorts the All-Russian shepherd. – Catch with the ear of your heart every word of the Savior in the Gospel and apply it to your heart; This is not the word of man, which has often been false, empty, powerless, blissful, but the word of God, the word of truth, the omnipotent word. Every word of the Lord is life for us and everything said through the lips of the Savior will come true to the last iota - nothing will pass away” (337, p. 81). Having heard the Divine teaching in the Gospel, as if from the lips of Christ the Savior Himself, or the narration of the evangelists about His wonderful deeds, all those present in the church are now called to “pure” prayer for themselves and, especially for people at all levels of ranks and positions, starting with the highest, where it is more difficult for a person, where he has more stumbling blocks and where he needs more help from God. “Since there is not a single superfluous word in the Church, when singing the special litany one must pray especially strongly to God,” says Father John, “from the very depths of the soul, from the most contrite heart, as it is said in the initial petition: “Reciting everything with all our soul, and reciting with all our thoughts.” At this time, it is necessary to put aside the slightest coldness, the slightest inattention of the heart and, burning with a humble spirit, ... offer up the warmest prayer to the Creator for mercy on us sinners” (332, p. 42). We need to “intensify, double and triple our zeal for prayer and with a warm heart, with pure intense thought, pray to God for ... the sacred class of our fathers, who guide us in faith and piety, which is why we speak to the Lord. "God our father"; ...for the blessed, ever-memorable creators of the holy church and all the previously deceased fathers and brothers who lie here and everywhere Orthodox, for the deceased are also members of the Church and our brothers who have great need of our prayers; for the brothers of the church in which we pray, both for the clergy and for all the parishioners; finally, for those who donate to the church (this prayer should arouse the zeal of well-wishers for feasible sacrifices... especially if the church needs many essentials); for those who labor, that is, those who undertake any kind of labor for the church, who sing and for all those who are coming, expecting great and rich mercy from God” (337, p. 237). “We pray for the living and with our sincere prayer we attract to them invisibly, imperceptibly, and sometimes noticeably, the great mercies of God and attract their hearts to ourselves and to God and piety; we pray for the dead, and they, if they have boldness from the Lord, pray for us, not remaining in our debt, so that the Lord always measures for love, for all the good that we, out of sincere love, do for the benefit of our neighbors” (337, p. 257). Listen, shepherd, to what Father John tells you: “Especially every priest should be filled with ardent love and pray for everyone, as a mediator between God and people, as one who is himself burdened with infirmities and who knows from experience the infirmities of human nature” (337, p. 258). Therefore, each petition of the special litany should be pronounced with special attention and reverence. “What strength! What all-encompassing love breathes in her! Whatever we would ask from God, what blessings to both our living and dead brothers, if all these exclamations found a sincere echo in the depths of our souls and we all unanimously, as if with one mouth, prayed to the Lord Almighty, who holds all the living and the dead in His right hand! They would have asked for everything, according to His true promise: “Whatever you ask in prayer with faith, you will receive” (Matthew 21:22)” (337, p.238). Continuing the analysis of the rites of the Divine Liturgy, we should talk about the litany of the catechumens. However, among the works of the holy righteous John of Kronstadt, we were unable to find any indications regarding this part of the Liturgy. But to this moment one can, perhaps, relate the reflections of the holy shepherd about the greatness of the upcoming great Sacrifice and about the moral dignity of the priest. Indeed, if the Holy Church did not allow catechumens to be present during the sacred and sacramental part of the Liturgy, that is, those preparing to receive the sacrament of Baptism, if, in reverence for the shrine of the sacrament of the Eucharist, she commanded people who had committed serious crimes to leave the church, then can the pastoral heart remain indifferent and not shudder from the formidable words: “The catechumens, will you leave?" “A shepherd is a child of the Church, whom she has clothed with the grace of the priesthood and brought so close to the throne of God, as her own, as a friend of God, whom she honored, endowed with great spiritual gifts and advantages, crowned with glory and honor, as a groom of the church, as a servant of the King - Christ, God, Savior and shepherd of souls! How far away all passions should be from him: partiality, self-love, sensual carnal love, pride, enmity, covetousness, laziness, despondency, murmuring... He should be completely imbued with and filled with divine love for everyone and his main concern should be to stand before the throne of God without sin and raise reverend hands for all people and save sooner and later the souls entrusted to him, redeemed by the priceless Blood Christ" (333, pp. 200–201). And yet you can find something completely different. “Here, during the Liturgy, the most heavenly terrible Sacrifice of the reconciliation of people with God is presented, here stands a multitude of sinful people, praying and repenting for their sins and awaiting the humble and bold intercession of the priest before God, and he, the shepherd,” Father John says with regret, “does not cleave to God and does not think and care about the salvation of Christian souls, redeemed by the Blood of the Master, His suffering and death, and, like Judas, about pieces of silver, about the vanity of life, about earthly vanity, and betrays his heart to God and people, ... because his weakness is secretly transmitted to the praying people, as connected to him by the unity of the church body” (326, pp. 34–35). Be attentive to yourself, oh shepherd, remember what the Holy Church tells you about in the opening words of the secret prayer: “No one is worthy of those bound by carnal lusts and pleasures to come, or draw near, or serve You, the King of Glory.” We now begin to consider the most important, central part of the Divine Liturgy - the Eucharistic canon. The word “Eucharist” itself means “thanksgiving for a certain “good gift,” gratitude for grace” (33, p. 12). What gift and what grace does humanity receive? “In the words “Take, eat, this is My Body” and “Drink of it, all of you, this is My Blood” - the abyss of the love of the Divine for the human race,” says Father John. – There is something to think about for anyone who impartially delve into the destinies of God, regarding the human race, and into himself. A sacred thrill runs through all the members, throughout the entire being of every unprejudiced person, not bound by worldly lusts and pleasures, when he listens with his heartfelt ear to these words from the lips of a clergyman. Oh, most perfect love! Love is all-encompassing! Love is the strongest! (337, p.148). Love, which “appeared in all its immensity, for the Lord Jesus Christ exhausted Himself completely for our salvation. Having given Himself for food and drink” (34, p. 30). So, the Eucharist is the sacrament of thanksgiving for the love of God, it is the sacrament of Love. Think, shepherd: what feelings should fill your heart before performing this great Sacrament! You are an intercessor before God for your flock, you are a mediator, human souls are entrusted to you! Don’t you now understand the words of the holy Kronstadt shepherd that a priest “most of all needs to acquire by the grace of God... the love of the Gospel” (34, p. 30). And it can be born from the feeling that the Lord is not only a Righteous Judge and not even so much a “Merciful One” as a “Loving One” of His creation, and, moreover, loving it not according to its merits, but for the sake of His love, His perfection. And moreover, he who loves a creature is imperfect, sinful and even hostile to Him. “How gratifying,” says Father John, “to be sure that there is a Being who loves me most sincerely, most ardently, more than anyone and everyone else in the world - to the point that He gives me, daily, to eat His Flesh and drink His Blood” (304, p. 108). But love requires reciprocal, mutual love. “Earth-born people,” the Kronstadt shepherd again calls, “...be imbued with... the love of Him Crucified on the Cross for you, inflame your hearts with it for Him, as He blazed with His love for you... in the midst of suffering... and do not be indifferent, ungrateful, cold, faithless, reckless and senseless. For you all this wealth of suffering and love, for you this Sacrifice of atonement and salvation. Break away, sober up from the vanity and passions of life, so that with your hearts you can raise the King of all, angelic dorinoshima chinmi!” (399, p.64). And how wisely the Holy Church determined before the Sacrifice of Praise the remembrance of the great entrance and the singing of the Cherubic song. Do you know, shepherd, why at this time you raise your hands in prayer before the throne? – “In remembrance and depiction of the prayer of the God-Man in the Garden of Gethsemane just before His betrayal by Judas,” says Father John, “and in the depiction of Calvary’s suffering” (337, pp. 155–156). “One of the Trinity - Christ, according to His humanity, for at this time His suffering, death and burial are remembered” (337, p. 314). And what is the great entrance itself for? – “In order to depict the leading of Jesus Christ by Roman soldiers and high priestly servants from the Garden of Gethsemane to the high priests Anna and Caiaphas, to the trial of Pilate and Herod, and then to Calvary beyond the city gates, the Calvary crucifixion, death on the Calvary Cross and removal from the Cross; the clergy stopping on the dais means the erection of the Cross and the crucifixion of the Lord; the prayer “May the Lord remember all Christians in His Kingdom” is reminiscent of the prayer of the prudent thief: “Remember me, Lord, when You come in Your Kingdom” (Luke 23:42) (315, pp. 108–109). Just before the great entrance, the choir sang the Cherubic Song - a song that encourages both the shepherd and all those present to forget all worldly worries in these sacred moments and give their hearts to God, “to love Him... with a fiery love, as the cherubs love” (337, pp. 160–161), to become like them. The worshipers, it seems, have already witnessed their likeness to these highest angelic ranks by singing the Trisagion song “Hallelujah.” But this is only the external side. According to Father John, we achieve true likeness when “we fully accept Christ God into ourselves; in our hearts, as on a cherubim throne, we carry Him; We love Him ardently, as the cherubim love, and for the sake of His love we renounce our hearts from all earthly love, for earthly love is incompatible with the love of God” (337, pp. 167–168). After the transfer of the Gifts to the throne, among the prescribed troparions for the burial of Christ the Savior, the Holy Church established the reading of the last verse of the fiftieth psalm: “Bless, O Lord, with Thy good pleasure Zion, and let the walls of Jerusalem be built: then be pleased with the sacrifice of righteousness, the offering and the burnt offering, then they will lay the bullocks on Thy altar.” Father John's attention focused on the last word. “Taurus,” he says, “mean our wordless passions, which we must mortify, quenching them with the knife of self-condemnation, self-reproach, repentance, self-denial” (34, p. 104). The litany of petition that follows also calls for repentance. And the clergyman at this time begs the Lord on behalf of all those present in the church to accept this prayer in order to worthily offer the upcoming Eucharistic Sacrifice. The importance of this secret prayer is indicated by the personal experience of Father John. In this place, realizing his responsibility before God, as an intercessor for people, he added his own words to the usual prayer from the Service Book: on all nurseries of youth and adolescence, spiritual and worldly, male and female, urban and rural, and on all non-student youth; on all spiritual hotbeds, monastic men and women, on Your poor people, widows, orphans and wretched, on those who suffered from fire, floods, storms and cowardice, from shortage of bread and famine, on all those who commanded me, unworthy, to pray for them and on all Your people, for all are Your essence: for You created Thou art them in Thy image and likeness; Thou hast revived them by water and Spirit; You gave them the grace of sonship; You have given the pledge of the Spirit into their hearts, which is more precious, more sanctifying, more affirming, more perfect; You fed them with the Flesh and Blood of Your Son, and there is nothing sweeter; You have given them all Your goodness by nature and grace, of which there is no number; Appropriate us all to You, alienated by sin and the enemy who fights against us, and may no one from us have any gain or spoil for a stranger, You Himself provide for us, Father of generosity and God of all consolation” (337, pp. 168–169). Thus, gradually, symbolically representing the Divine exhaustion, death and burial of the God-Man, the Holy Church tries to awaken in every Christian a feeling of repentance and reciprocal love for the Lover. It would seem that now we can begin the Sacrifice of Thanksgiving, but no, the Church calls us first to testify to our love for our neighbor, and then to our fidelity to God. “Let us love one another, so that with one mind we confess the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.” What wisdom in church worship! After all, “love for God then begins to manifest itself and act in us,” says Father John, “when we begin to love our neighbor as ourselves, and not spare ourselves or anything of our own for him, as the image of God” (332, p. 308). However, for worthy participation in the upcoming great Sacrament, faith is also necessary. She “is the key to the treasury of God” (332, p. 242) and lives only in a simple, kind, loving heart. “Faith,” says the holy shepherd, “is a spiritual mouth: the more freely it opens, the greater the flow of Divine sources entering into it; Let these lips open freely, like bodily lips, and not be constricted by doubt and unbelief” (332, p. 242). There are also discussions in Father John’s interpretations about the need to read the Creed during the Divine Liturgy. It is sung by the worshipers or read by the clergy “so that those present believe and remember that the Holy Trinity participates in the transubstantiation of the Holy Gifts and that the mystery of the Eucharist is the work of the Holy Trinity, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit; so that the priest, without condemnation, with undoubted faith in the goodness and omnipotence of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, would perform the holy Sacrament and then in due time partake of it, for at this special time great faith is needed for the priest, since at this time the enemy intensifies to strike the mind and heart of the priest with coldness and unbelief or to outrage with doubt” (333, p. 426). Once again our attention is drawn to the personal liturgical experience of Father John. After the Creed, he read the following prayer: “Confirm in this faith and with this faith my heart and the hearts of all Orthodox Christians; sowing faith and this aspiration, it is worthy to live wisely; unite in this faith all the great Christian communities that have miserably fallen away from the unity of the Holy Orthodox Catholic and Apostolic Church, which is Thy body and who art the Head and Savior of the body, overthrow the pride and opposition of their teachers and those who follow them, grant them to understand in their hearts the truth and salvific nature of Thy Church and unflatteringly unite with it; gather together the Saints of Your Church and those who suffer from ignorance, delusion and the stubbornness of schism, breaking through the power of the grace of Your spirit their stubbornness and opposition to Your truth, so that they may not perish fiercely in their opposition, like Korah, Dathan and Abiron, who opposed Moses and Aaron, Your servant (Ps. 105:16-18). All the tongues inhabiting the earth have been drawn to this faith, so that with one heart and one mouth all the nations glorify You, the One God and Benefactor of all; in this faith, unite us all with the spirit of meekness, humility, kindness, simplicity, dispassion, patience and long-suffering, mercy, condolences and rejoicing” (337, pp. 169–170). How many petitions to God are there! And they are all imbued with a feeling of compassion and the fiery love of the holy righteous man for his neighbors. “Confirm”, “reason”, “connect”... and everything about faith. Notice, shepherd, how deeply Father John experienced every liturgical exclamation, every word of the great Sacrament, and try to imitate it to the best of your ability! But the most important moment of the Liturgy is approaching. “Let us become kind, let us become fearful, let us bring holy offerings to the world,” proclaims the clergyman. And further, at a more opportune time, he pronounces the apostolic benevolence: “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God the Father, and the communion of the Holy Spirit, be with you all” (2 Cor. 13:13). “The grace of Jesus Christ, merciful, cleansing, saving, enlightening, strengthening our soul, is needed at all times,” says Father John, “and now, in these terrible, heavenly moments, when many heavenly warriors serve with us, tremblingly surrounding the throne of God, the grace of God, enlightening and strengthening the weak, scattered forces of the spirit, is especially needed for us to possibly understand the height and importance of the upcoming Sacrament” (337, p. 145). "The love of God and the Father." Shepherd! This is direct evidence of God’s love for you. Have you prepared your heart to accept this Love? Listen to what the holy righteous man says to you and to everyone present in the church: “In these moments, we all need to feel the boundless love for us sinners of God and the Father, Who so loved the world “that He gave His only begotten Son, so that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:15); and to love Him ourselves with the Only Begotten Son and the Holy Spirit, rejecting all worldly passions. And “the communion of the Holy Spirit” is necessary for us most of all at this time, because without this communion we cannot love God the Father, for only by the Holy Spirit can we cry out to God with sincere love “Abba Father” (Rom. 8:15), for only the grace of the Holy Spirit purifies, sanctifies, enlightens, pacifies and strengthens us for a worthy and fruitful journey during of the most holy sacrament" (337, p. 146). “Woe is our heart,” the clergyman addresses those standing in the church. “At this time, what is required of us,” says Father John, “is complete devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ, His Most Pure Mother, complete trust, complete trust in all circumstances of life, in all petitions, thanksgivings, praises; at the same time - a pure heart, hatred of sin in all its various forms and ardent love for truth in all its manifestations” (337, p. 147). “To what height are you raised by the mercy of God, Christian! You are deified by the incarnation of God, elevated to Heaven, you are made worthy of the Divine Mysteries of the Body and Blood of Christ God, you are mixed, dissolved with God” (326, p. 19). Therefore, you “must have a heavenly heart, think about things above, ascend to those incorruptible and not made by hands abodes, despise the earthly body and all earthly decay, consider it as rubbish and nothing” (310, p. 41). But do we sincerely respond to the call of the cleric, saying about our hearts: “Imams to the Lord?” - “How often... in these moments spiritual thieves undermine our hearts and steal our attention, our faith and love for God and our reverence for the saving Sacrament... Why? - Because where our treasures are, there are our hearts. Because when going to the church, ... we did not prepare our souls for a worthy stand... we did not put aside all worldly cares and worries, did not cleanse our hearts from vicious passions, did not leave all sin behind the threshold of the church, we forgot that standing in the church, we must stand as if in Heaven, for here is the throne of God and the heavenly, terrible and saving Sacrifice" (367, pp.58–59). “In order to sincerely ascend with one’s heart to God, a Christian must continually live in God, love Him, reflect deeply on the works of His Providence, give them their true, saving value, assimilate them with soul and heart and be a heavenly citizen on earth” (337, p. 146). Knowing from personal experience how difficult it is to raise your mind and heart to grief, you too, shepherd, following the example of Father John, pray for all those present in the church. He himself, after uttering the exclamation: “Woe is our hearts,” secretly said: “Lift up with Your Holy Spirit all those who come here to You, the God of our life, and cast away from our hearts all passions of the flesh and soul” (337, p. 170). But now the time has come when with all your soul you need to feel Divine love for fallen humanity and bring reciprocal, filial love. “We thank the Lord!” - the priest exclaims. Reading the works of Father John, you often notice that during the celebration of the Liturgy, he was dominated by a feeling of gratitude, delight and reverent admiration. The spirit of extreme triumph and joy—that was the main content of his God-loving soul. But this is how it should be for the true celebrant of the Eucharist, which is thanksgiving for redemption, a sacrifice of praise for God’s love for us: for the creation of the world, providence for it, for mercy and in general for all the benefits of the human race, revealed and not revealed. "God! What will I bring to You, how will I thank You for Your constant, greatest mercies to me and to the rest of Your people! - exclaims the holy shepherd. - For here I am every moment revived by Your Holy Spirit, every moment I breathe the air You diffused, light, pleasant, healthy, strengthening; I am enlightened by Your joyful and life-giving light, spiritual and material; I feed on spiritual food, sweet and life-giving, and the same drink, the Holy Mysteries of Your Body and Blood and food and drink of material sweetness; You dress me with a bright, beautiful royal robe - with Yourself, according to the Scriptures ... (Gal. 3:27) and material clothes; you cleanse my sins, heal and cleanse my many and fierce sinful passions... For all this I thank, glorify and bless your all-good, fatherly, all-powerful power, O God, Savior, our Benefactor” (332, pp. 233–234). The holy shepherd manifested a special feeling of gratitude and a desire to praise God when reading the secret prayer: “It is worthy and righteous to sing to You...”. To enhance his gratitude, he inserted his own words into it. We will present the text of the prayer read by Father John, highlighting its inserts. “It is worthy and righteous to sing to Thee, to bless Thee, to praise Thee, to thank Thee, to worship Thee in every place of Thy dominion: for Thou art God, ineffable, unknown, invisible, incomprehensible, everlasting, and also Thy Only Begotten Son, and Thy Holy Spirit: Thou art brought us from non-existence into being, (into a rational being and immortal in soul) (footnote No. 3), and you raised up those who had fallen away, (and you restore those who sin and repent a hundredfold every day), and you did not retreat, creating everything, until you raised us to Heaven and gave you the Kingdom of the future; (You, in our very communion of Your Life-giving Mysteries, already raise us to Heaven, for where You are, there is Heaven and Heaven, and, giving Yourself to the faithful, You, together with You, already grant the Kingdom of Heaven, the Kingdom of the future, as a pledge of Your Most Pure Body and Blood) (337, p. 170). For all of these, we thank You and Your Only Begotten Son and the Holy Spirit for all the known and unknown, manifest and unmanifested blessings that have been upon us. We thank Thee also for this service, which Thou hast deigned to receive at our hands, though thousands of archangels and scores of angels, cherubs and seraphim, six-crylated many-eyed, towering pernatium stand before Thee.” Singing a victory song, crying out, calling out and saying: Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of hosts, fill Heaven and earth with Your glory: Hosanna in the Highest, blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord, Hosanna in the Highest. It is usually thought that the omnipotence of God is glorified by this angelic praise. This is undoubtedly true. But doxology always contains a feeling of gratitude, and gratitude, as appreciation for good done, gives birth to love. Therefore, this angelic song is also a hymn of love “to the Lamb of God, the Lord Jesus Christ, who conquered the ancient serpent by the Cross and His death” (326, p. 22). “With these blessed powers, O Master of Humanity,” the priest secretly prays, “we cry out and say: Holy art Thou, and Most Holy Thou, and Thy Only Begotten Son, and Thy Holy Spirit...” What do we “cry and speak” about, what do we give thanks for? – Because “God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16). He gave His only begotten Son for the world, He gave it to suffer! What boundless love, what perfection! There are many benefits for which we must gratefully praise God, but the greatest is the sacrifice of the Son. For the Son, “... came, and fulfilled all his care for us, in the night, giving himself up in need, and even more so giving himself up for this worldly life, - “more than all for me, a sinner, that I may be delivered from deadly sin and may I live forever” (337, p. 170), - added Father John to strengthen the grateful feeling, - receiving His holy bread and Most pure and immaculate hands, thanking and blessing, sanctifying, breaking, given to His saints by His disciple and apostle, the rivers: “Take, eat, this is My Body, which was broken for you for the remission of sins”... Likewise the cup at supper, saying: “Drink of it, all of you; this is My Blood of the New Testament, which is shed for you and for many for the remission of sins.” “Who will comprehend the greatness of the good deed,” says the holy shepherd, “given to us by our Lord Jesus Christ in the sacrament of the Eucharist...? Completely - no one, not even the mind of an angel, for this good deed is limitless and immense, like God Himself, His goodness, wisdom and omnipotence” (337, p. 147). When “through eating the forbidden fruit, at the desire of false deification, a person accepted the serpent that had moved into him - the murderer, and was completely clothed in him, ... then the Lord, as the Wise Physician, healing like with like, Himself deigned to become like a person and instead of the forbidden fruit ... gave him and commanded ... to eat His Most Pure Body, which suffered for us, and His Most Pure Blood, for us, in our redemption from sins, curses and death shed on the Cross for our reconciliation with God; and just as through eating the forbidden fruit the devil entered into a person, so through eating the Most Pure Body and Blood of Christ, Christ God with the Father and the Holy Spirit enters into a person, cleansing human sins, sanctifying him and granting him the most blessed deification and immortality” (399, p. 257). After the exclamations “Take, eat, this is My Body...” and “Drink of it, all of you, this is My Blood...” Father John secretly uttered “to exalt the feeling of gratitude and amazement” the following words: “O divine, oh dear, oh sweetest of Your voice!... At the same time, I imagine, if possible,” he says, “immeasurable goodness and free the exhaustion of the Lord, who by the will of all Himself exhausted for the sake of our salvation, to the Cross and death, and His extreme desire for us all to be fellow members of His Divinity and humanity, having crucified our flesh with the passions and lusts (Gal. 5:24).” Saying “the words “Thine from Thine, that which is offered to Thee for all and for all,” I imagine the solemnity of this moment, when a bishop or priest, standing face to face with the eternal, perfect, unchangeable truth of the Heavenly Father, who punishes sin, offers on behalf of all and for all the one, immeasurable, all-righteous, propitiatory Sacrifice of Christ the Son of God, the only one that can... intercede for all For those who believe, forgiveness of sins and blessing, and for those who have fallen asleep in faith and hope of resurrection and eternal life - forgiveness of sins and peace with the saints; The sacrifice by which all the saints, who have pleased God since the ages, were justified, and in thanksgiving for whom it is also offered” (337, p. 171). “How great and high in spirit... there must be a priest or bishop who offers this Sacrifice of reconciliation to the Heavenly Father! “Offering to You,” that is, to You, the Righteous Father, the Beginningless, the Ever-Substantial, the Most Simple, the Unparticipated, Inaccessible to any sin, hating sin, so contrary to the nature of God; “Your offerings from Your” servants are Your gifts, wheat bread and wine; “for everyone and for everything” - as a sacrifice for all people, for the Church in heaven, on earth and in the underworld” (410, pp. 104–105). “While singing these words, the whole Church, all those present in the church,” says Father John, “should pray together with the celebrants, so that the Heavenly Father would send down His Holy Spirit on us and on the Gifts that are presented, and read silently the prayer: “Lord, Who sent down Thy Most Holy Spirit at the third hour by Thy Apostle, do not take Him away from us, O Good One, but renew us who pray Ti xia. Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a right spirit in my womb. Do not cast me away from Your presence and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.” At this time, not a single soul should remain cold, but ... must be inflamed with love for God, ... for ... a terrible life-giving Sacrament is being performed - the transformation by the spirit of God of bread and wine into the Most Pure Body and Blood of Christ, and God in the flesh appears on the throne” (337, pp. 149-150). “After pronouncing the affirmative “Amen, amen, amen,” everyone bows to the ground, and I,” continues Father John, “say to myself or in a low voice: “God has appeared in the flesh” (1 Tim. 3:16). The Word became flesh and dwelt in us” (John 1:14)” (337, p.172). What faith is required from the performer of the Sacrament! In fact: bread and wine are offered, and he prays that they will be transformed into Body and Blood... And whose? - God incarnate. It's scary to think about! What kind of sacrificial renunciation of the carnal mind is required for this, to which all this is completely incomprehensible! “When you pronounce the powerful, commanding, creative words of the Lord Himself,” says the Kronstadt shepherd, “then consider fulfilling them as an ordinary and convenient thing, as it is convenient and ordinary for you to breathe, to take, as it is convenient and ordinary for a baby to form in the womb, and even incomparably more convenient” (333, p. 135). After all, “if disembodied angels can take on a body that is not illusory, but true, having received the ability to do so from God, then with what convenience can the Lord Himself create a Body for Himself? One can even say that every animate being is characterized by creativity, according to the gift of God the Spirit of the All-Creator. Will not the Lord God Himself, who gave such laws to nature with instant ease, transform any substance into a Body with a single wave?” (332, pp. 195–196). And one more piece of advice from Father John: “When the devil confuses you with unbelief in the Mysteries, saying: “It is impossible for bread and wine to be the Body and Blood of Christ,” tell him: “Yes, for you and for me this is impossible, you are telling the truth, but not for God, “for all things are possible with God” (Mark 10:27). With God thought itself is action; God's word is deed. “He commanded, and it appeared” (Ps.33:9)” (333, p.147). Remember, shepherd, “that the celebration of the Life-giving Mysteries is the unchangeable consent of the Life-giving Trinity, predetermined from the foundation of the world; it cannot not be. When you perform the Mysteries, then God the Father Himself, by His Holy Spirit, transforms bread and wine into the Body and Blood of our Lord and God and Savior Jesus Christ - you are only an instrument. The Father, Son and Holy Spirit Himself through you performs the Liturgy and consecrates the Gifts. “Thou art the offerer and the one offered,” it is said, “Christ our God” (333, p. 131). Translation “takes place immediately upon the utterance of the words: “Create this bread, therefore, the Honest Body of Thy Christ; and in this cup - the Honest Blood of Thy Christ; having transformed it by Your Holy Spirit,” ... but not before, for Divine omnipotence awaits the word of the priest assisting Him, for God is an assistant (1 Cor. 3:9). In this case, the blessing of the cross in the name of the Lord means that the Mystery is performed by the Holy Spirit in the name of Jesus Christ and for the sake of Jesus Christ, for the sake of His intercession, with the favor of God the Father” (332, pp. 293–294). “Oh, how great and strong in spirit a priest must be, bringing such a great, supernatural, miraculous, righteous Sacrifice of God’s love and goodness to the human race!” (410, p.105). After the administration of the Holy Gifts, the clergyman secretly pronounces the words: “As if one were to receive communion in the sobriety of the soul...”. They are a continuation of the previous prayer: “...and we ask, and we pray, and we pray, send down Thy Holy Spirit upon us and upon these gifts that are set before us.” The meaning here is: “Sent down upon us Your Holy Spirit at this hour,” says Father John, so that... The Holy Gifts may serve for the participants in sobering the soul from worldly passions, in the remission of sins, in the communion of the Holy Spirit, in the feeling of the Kingdom of Heaven within ourselves, in boldness before God, but not in judgment or condemnation.” Then, “The Church militant on earth, as it were, presents to the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world and has redeemed the sins of the world with His Blood, everyone: both those who lived in the Old Law and in the New - the forefathers, fathers, patriarchs, prophets, apostles, preachers, abstinents and every righteous soul who died in the faith; thanks for them the Lamb of God, ...who deigned to be incarnate from the Most Pure Virgin, to accept our complete nature, to enlighten us, to suffer and die for us and to make them intercessors for us, and especially brings a grateful verbal service about the Most Holy, Most Pure, Most Blessed, Glorious Lady of our Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary; then he remembers the saint or saints of the day and prays to the Lord to visit us with their prayers” (337, pp. 150–151). Pay attention, minister of the Liturgy, to the main meaning of the above words of the Kronstadt shepherd. The earthly church “gives thanks to the Lamb of God for the saints” and “offers a verbal service of thanksgiving...”. This is important in order to understand the basic character of the Eucharist. The redemptive moment is not at all the main one in the Liturgy of the Faithful. Although Father John in the central part of the Eucharistic canon spoke more about the Sacrifice of reconciliation and propitiation, and not about the sacrifice of praise and gratitude, but, according to the confession of the holy righteous man himself, he read his “secret prayers in addition to the prayers secretly read by the celebrant according to the Missal at the Liturgy of the Faithful” “to awaken enhanced feelings of thanksgiving and glorification of the Lord, who has immeasurably benefited us in the celebration of the Eucharist” (337, p. 168). Therefore, when you perform the great Sacrament, in the central part of the Eucharistic canon, you should neither grieve, “nor be horrified even by the greatness of our crime, which caused such an incredibly terrible Sacrifice by the Son” (33, p. 50), but glorify, triumph and try to maintain a mood of grateful love in your soul. But you ask: “Why did Father John cry?” – Yes, the holy shepherd could not resist tears. But he cried tears of tenderness and gratitude for the pardon. The Eucharistic Sacrifice is offered “for everyone and for everything,” and especially “for the Most Holy, Most Pure, Most Blessed, Glorious Lady of our Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary,” in gratitude for the supernatural, highest, most saving sacrament of the Incarnation of the Son of God from Her and the salvation of the human race” (410, p. 105). “Who and what is more honorable, more holy, more glorious, more beneficial after God, the Creator of all creation? - asks Father John. – Isn’t it the name of the Most Holy Virgin Mother of God, Most Honest of the Cherubim and Most Glorious without Comparison of the Seraphim, who gave birth without incorruptibility to God the Word, who created everyone and everything and contains the word, and who enlightened the human race, who saved and is saving by His incarnation, life on earth, the word, miracles, suffering, death and resurrection...! There is no one more honest and more glorious than Her in all creation, Heavenly and earthly” (399, pp. 278–279). “The Most Holy Virgin Theotokos was given from God the fullness of Divine gifts. She is a miracle of God's perfections; She is like the universal sun, the fragrance of a holy thing... goodness that overflows to all the faithful, unimaginable power, ineffable wisdom, love that is pure, fiery, all-encompassing, quick to obey” (337, p. 211). Here, at the Liturgy, we praise the Mother of God “in order, at least in part, to give glory to Her greatness, holiness, truth, amazing purity, humility, love for God and for us, the unworthy, to Her unceasing intercession for us; in order to know and remember those infinitely great benefits that the Lord poured out through Her on the human race” (315, pp. 85–86). “To glorify the Most Pure Mother of God means to glorify Her Only Begotten Son Himself, our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God,” with whom “His Mother is eternally united, and in Her He created His throne. Glory to Thee, Mary, Most Pure Bride of God!” (337, p.214). After the exclamation “Exactly about the Most Holy...”, the clergyman remembers “the greatest of all those born of women, the honest, glorious prophet the Baptist and Baptist John, the holy apostles and saints” (337, p. 172), whose memory is celebrated on this day. “The prayer of the Church to the Lamb of God for all the departed and for the living is touching and touching: it intercedes before God for the repose of the departed where the light of God’s face is present, and asks the Lord to remember every bishopric of the Orthodox, the right ruling word of truth, every presbytery, the deaconry in Christ, every priestly rank” (337, p. 151). Having mentioned the episcopacy of the Orthodox, “I,” says Father John, “add secretly on my own: “Remember, Lord, all the Orthodox bishops, bearers of Thy Spirit, Thy title and dignity, Thy immortality, Thy new creation, Thy blessing, Thy favor, Thy sanctification and Thy deification, bearers of Thy mind and Thy heart... Lordship and Your splendor." After “all presbytery” - “to him you entrusted the ministry of reconciliation of people with God of repentance, restoration, renewal, enlightenment, blessing, multiplication of the race through the sacrament of Marriage, sanctification and deification and all the heavenly Sacraments, except for ordination - may it be worthy of its title and may it rightly live and perform sacred acts and bring prayers to You, the Master, in a manner pleasing to God, about everyone and for everything; remember also in Christ the deaconry, which assists the priesthood and serves the heavenly Mysteries, and every priestly order” (337, pp. 172–173). Next, the celebrant, on behalf of all those present in the church, “brings a verbal service about the universe, about the Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church, about everyone who lives in purity and honest living, that is, especially monks who have taken a vow of purity and chastity... Then he remembers aloud the local highest government spiritual authority, ... the bishop of the city and region and prays to the All-Blessed One to grant them to the holy churches in the whole world, that is, upright, honest, sound, long-lasting, rightly ruling the word of truth, not philosophizing in evil and corruption; then he prays to the Lord to remember the city... we live in it... every city and country and those who live in them by faith; floating, traveling, the sick, the suffering, the captives and their salvation, bearing fruit and doing good in the Holy Church, remembering the poor in deed and not in word, according to the commandment of the Apostle “let us remember the poor” (Gal. 2:10), and may He send down His mercy on everyone for the sake of the great and terrible Sacrifice” (337, pp. 151–152). “And grant us with one mouth and one heart to glorify and glorify Your most honorable and magnificent name, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages,” the priest further proclaims. Unable to hide his admiration, the holy Kronstadt shepherd exclaims at these words: “Oh, the most honorable and magnificent name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit! Oh, all-loving, venerable, all-vivifying, all-sanctifying, all-intercessing, all-saving, terrible name for fallen evil spirits! I praise, sing, magnify and worship You, Your Originless, Eternal, All-Holy, All-Good and Omniscient, All-Wise, Almighty Divine Being” (399, p. 193). This priestly exclamation is inextricably linked with the prayer that precedes it for the living and the dead. “It is a great thing that those who pray have one mouth and one heart; such unanimous prayer can obtain from God all kinds of good things, therefore, advises Father John, “as much and often as possible, we must exhort everyone to unanimous prayer and ask God for such prayer” (337, p. 152). According to the holy righteous man, it is especially useful and necessary to pray for the living and the dead during the Liturgy, when the great touching Sacrifice is offered, and “mainly after the transubstantiation of the Holy Gifts” (337, p. 294). “And what, what will we not ask for for Her sake... what heavenly and earthly blessings! If the Heavenly Father did not spare His Only Begotten Son for our salvation, how will He not give with Him everything that was not asked?” (326, p.99). Therefore, shepherd, “remember with love in your prayers your people still living in the flesh... and those who have died... your prayer will bring them... benefit” (326, p. 100). “Pray for the forgiveness of the sins of others in the same way as you pray for the forgiveness of your own sins, when they, striking your soul with sorrow and oppression, prompt you with pain, contrition of heart and with tears to beg God for mercy;... and pray for the salvation of others as for your own. If you achieve this and turn it into a skill, then you will receive from the Lord an abundance of spiritual gifts, the gifts of the Holy Spirit, Who loves the soul that sympathizes with the salvation of others” (332, p. 45). The intercessory prayer ends with the cry: “And may the mercies of the Great God and our Savior Jesus Christ be with you all.” “Having earlier mentioned in particular the different powers and classes of men,” now the clergyman in general “wishes mercy from God to everyone” (337, p. 152). In one of his conversations, Father John called the Liturgy a gloomy feast of the royal Son, at which “the Lamb of God Himself is offered to the faithful, slain as a sacrifice for the salvation of us sinners” (367, p. 480). So, the Divine Lamb lies on the throne and there are a few minutes left before the Royal Meal. With what feelings should a faithful soul begin? What to do to become worthy of this celebration? How can you testify your loyalty and love to the Heavenly King? And again the Holy Church calls for prayer of repentance, without which one cannot remain before communion. “But at this moment of the Liturgy one no longer feels contrition as strongly as, for example, during the Cherubim...” (33, p. 172). After all, the faithful have already been invited to the Wedding Feast. And the Heavenly King Himself is already among them, and not as a Judge, but as a Father among children. “Having remembered all the saints, let us pray again and again in peace to the Lord...” During this petitionary litany, the clergyman, with the words of a secret prayer, asks God to deign us all to receive communion without condemnation and to be cleansed from carnal defilements: “We offer you our entire belly and hope, O Lord, Lover of Mankind, and we ask, and we pray, and we pray: grant us to partake of your heavenly and terrible Mysteries, sowing sacred and spiritual Meals, with a clear conscience, for the remission of sins, for the forgiveness of trespasses, for the communion of the Holy Spirit, for the inheritance of the Kingdom of Heaven, for boldness towards You, not for judgment or condemnation.” And you, minister of the Liturgy, if at this time you wish to offer a special prayer for yourself, you can use the prayer of the Kronstadt shepherd: “For boldness before all Your people, for the eradication of corruptive, flattering, annoying, violating, darkening, shaming passions that separate and mortify the soul from You, for the planting, restoration, establishment in the souls of the true, life-giving virtues, in fulfillment of wisdom, to teach all people your faith and commandment, to enlighten my light before your people, for they may see my good deeds and glorify you, our Father in Heaven, so that I do not wear in vain the great heavenly, angelic, idolizing, sovereign dignity of the priesthood, not in court or in condemnation" (337, pp. 173–174). But one repentant feeling is not enough for worthy participation in the Divine Meal. The last petition of the litany invites the faithful to surrender themselves completely to God. “Having asked for the union of faith and the communion of the Holy Spirit, we will give ourselves and each other and our whole life to Christ our God.” But what does it mean to surrender your life to God? Doesn't this mean that we need to become beloved, obedient, trusting children of the Heavenly Father? Therefore, the faithful, confirming their spiritual disposition, testify to it with the words of the Lord’s Prayer. “What a lofty, touching, spiritual spectacle,” says Father John, “when these words in a large church meeting... are pronounced from the soul, truly with one heart and one mouth! What a sublime spectacle when you see that these words are justified in the very lives of people, when everyone has feelings of brotherly love for each other, they live peacefully, the younger obeying the elders, the less intelligent to the more intelligent, giving each other their due, respecting each other... What, truly, a heavenly spectacle when... everyone with one mouth and one heart... confesses the One Heavenly Father as the All-Holy King, desiring the fulfillment of His will on earth The One, confessing His One as the Nourisher of all!” (332, pp. 180–181). “How much this prayer teaches us,” says the holy righteous man. – The first words – “Our Father, who art in Heaven...” – “raise our thoughts and hearts not to the earth and earthly goods, but to Heaven, to our Heavenly Father, who has prepared for us an eternal homeland in Heaven” (423, No. 22, p. 334). They instill “not to cleave to anything, not even to your parents, brothers, sisters, relatives, not to mention strangers, but only to the One God, who will reward you a hundredfold both in this life and in the future and will grant you eternal life.” (423, No. 41, p. 638). “Hallowed be Thy name!” “This is our first desire and first request, that the name of God may be sanctified in us and through us. Let us remember that we were created in the image and likeness of the Lord God, in the likeness of His holiness - but alas! – We have sinned, lost holiness, and now we are born in sins and iniquities, we live in sins and iniquities, as “bastards and not sons” (Heb. 12:8). What concern should we have now in our fallen state, if not the concern of becoming like the Heavenly Father, our Prototype? The Lord Himself demands this: “Be holy, for I am holy” (1 Peter 1:16). This should be our first desire and the goal of our entire life” (333, pp. 418–419). “Thy kingdom come” - that is, the kingdom of life, for now the kingdom of death continues over humanity, for the most part, the one who has the power of death - the devil. How does the Kingdom of God come to a person in this life? – Through heartfelt repentance. “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand” (Matthew 3:2) (332, p.105). “When God is in all thoughts, desires, intentions, words and deeds of a person, then the Kingdom of God comes to him, he then sees God in everything: in the world of thought, in the world of activity and in the material world; for him then the omnipresence of God is revealed in the clearest way and the purest fear of God takes root in the heart. Every minute he seeks to please the Lord and every minute he fears that he might sin in some way against the Lord who is at his right hand” (332, p. 101). “Thy will be done as it is in Heaven and on earth.” Father John explained this petition as follows: “The fulfillment of the holy will of God, all-good, all-wise, all-blessed, eternal, all-powerful, leads rational creatures to all good and bliss, to light, to peace, to success in all virtue, to the achievement of the ultimate goal - the salvation of the soul” (410, pp. 14-15). “It is never so difficult to say from the heart: “Thy will be done, Father,” as in severe sorrow or serious illness, especially when there are lies from people, during obsessions or the machinations of the enemy. It is difficult to say from the heart: “Thy will be done” even when we ourselves have become the culprits of some misfortune, for, we think, it is not God’s will, but our will that put us in such a position, although nothing happens without the will of God. In general, it is difficult to believe from the heart that the will of God is our suffering, when the heart knows both by faith and experience that God is our bliss, and therefore it is difficult to say in misfortune: “Thy will be done...” But when it is difficult for our corrupted nature to recognize the will of God over itself, without which nothing happens, and to submit to it with humility, ... then let him bring to the Lord his most precious sacrifice - heartfelt devotion to Him not only in peace and happiness, but also in sorrow and misfortune” (332, p. 203). “Countless hosts of angels do the perfect, creative, paternal will of God in everything - will we, like the apostate devil with his minions, constantly resist it and thereby be subjected to countless disasters both here on earth and eternal trouble in the future life? It won’t happen!” (337, p.286). “Give us this day our daily bread,” that is, every day. By daily bread, a Christian should especially understand the true bread that came down from Heaven, and this bread is the Most Pure Body and the Most Honorable Blood of Christ, therefore, a true Christian needs to receive communion often, every week; meanwhile, many receive communion only once a year. Is this how True Bread should be treated? Will the soul die of hunger? Many died completely. True life has been given, but many, many are running away from life. Where is the faith? Where is the true desire for the living, the immortal? Oh, human vanity” (399, p.258). “The Lord, who gives us the Flesh and Blood of His Son for food and drink, will much more give us natural bread; He who clothes our soul in Christ will much more send us material clothing; He who deigns to dwell in us will not deprive us of a perishable dwelling” (333, p. 151). “And forgive us our debts, just as we forgive our debtors.” According to the thought of the holy shepherd, every Christian should think about himself this way: “I myself am a moment-to-moment debtor to the Lord spiritually and physically: spiritually - through sins and physically - through receiving material gifts from Him: food, drink, money, clothes, air, warmth, light, in general, the many different satisfactions of life. How can I not have the pleasure of forgiving my neighbor’s debts, spiritual and material, when the Lord forgives me countless of them?” (332, p.364). “What if the Lord saw our iniquities as we see the iniquities of our neighbors? Who could resist? - says Father John. – But just as the Lord is long-suffering and merciful, so be you... not demanding to the point of severity, compassionate... We are one body, and this is a sinful body. What is more common and easier in us if not sins? We breathe them like air. But the Lord, the Head of the body of the Church, is their purification. Leave everything to the Head, who acts all in all, ... hold on to love alone, for it alone is infallible in our lives” (332, p. 391). “And lead us not into temptation.” To understand these words, “we must remember that this prayer was given to the apostles, who asked to be taught how to pray, ... before the descent of the Holy Spirit on them, when Satan asked them from the Lord in order to sow them like wheat (Luke 22:31). Then the apostles were still weak and could conveniently fall under temptation, like Peter, which is why the Savior puts the words in their mouths: “Lead us not into temptation.” But it is impossible to live without the temptations of our faith, hope and love; tests of the innermosts of the heart are necessary for the person himself, so that he himself can see what he is like and correct himself” (332, p. 204). “But deliver us from the evil one,” for “our evil adversary has terribly perverted our nature through sin, giving man his unclean mind, unclean heart and desires... and an evil evil will, and evil eyes, and evil hearing, and all the feelings, and he has clothed the whole soul with his uncleanness, the stinking garment of sin. How much work a person needs on himself, constant attention to himself, unceasing prayer, the most sincere tears and sobs and sighs from the depths of his soul and fiery cries in order to get rid of such a state of mind! (395, p.44). “For Thine is the Kingdom” - recognize the one King God and work for Him alone; “and strength” - trust in His almighty strength; “and glory” - be zealous for His glory with all your might and throughout your life; “Father and Son and Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages” - He is the eternal King, and the kingdom of Satan will soon pass away, as a predatory, false one. “Amen,” all this is true” (333, p. 40). Christian!... “What high happiness and bliss, what greatness, what dignity to call on the Eternal Father! Treasure constantly and invariably this highest happiness, this bliss that the infinite goodness of your God has provided you with, and do not forget yourself during your prayer. God listens to you, angels and saints listen to you” (332, p. 345). At the end of the Lord’s Prayer, the clergyman teaches “Peace to all” to once again remind you, Christian, “that you must be at peace with God, and with people, and with yourself: with God - through repentance and keeping the commandments; with people - through chastity, truth, mercy, meekness and patience; with yourself - without allowing yourself anything illegal and without violating your conscience” (337, pp. 194–195). “And to your spirit,” answer those present, as if indicating that you, shepherd, at this time must not “allow in your heart any slightest hostility towards anyone, which comes from the devil, not have the slightest partiality for any earthly treasure, for the slightest partiality for it angers God” (337, p. 291). The subsequent words of the priest: “Bow your heads to the Lord,” show “that we stand before the face of the Lord and humbly surrender to Him” (337, p. 197). The priest secretly reads two more prayers to himself, asking God to receive communion without condemnation and to “teach” the Holy Mysteries to the faithful, and proclaims: “Holy to holies.” So, the time has come when we need to start the Divine Meal. “When you receive the Life-giving Mysteries,” says Father John, “firmly imagine Christ Himself in the forms of bread and wine; make a mental signature on them: “Jesus Christ,” and with this mental inscription, and the sensory is already there, send it mentally to the depths of the heart and there mentally place the Life-giving Guest” (333, p. 319). “Imagine that what you receive from the Chalice is “Sy,” that is, the only Existing One. When you have such a disposition of thoughts and heart, then from receiving the Holy Mysteries you will suddenly calm down, rejoice and become enlivened, you will know with your heart that the Lord truly and essentially abides in you and you are in the Lord” (332, p. 175). The holy shepherd himself, taking communion, after reading the prescribed prayers - “I believe, Lord, and confess...”, “Thy secret Supper...” - uttered to himself the following words: “The Lord is in me personally, God and man, hypostatically, essentially, immutably, purifying, sanctifying, victorious, renewing, deifying, miraculous, which I feel in myself” (337, p.174). And you, minister of the Liturgy, when partaking of the Holy Mysteries, “remember constantly Who is in you and in Whom you should be. Having received communion of the Meek Immaculate Lamb, you yourself must be a gentle and blameless lamb; Having partaken of the Fullness of all blessings, one should not hunger for earthly blessings or feel sorry for them for one’s neighbor; Having communed with the mountain of the King, become wise and the Mountain One yourself, leaving behind earthly, carnal wisdom, hasten to the Heavenly and eternal refuge!” (337, pp. 74–75). But sometimes it can happen that you “just enjoy the Lord, and soon after that the enemy, either himself or through people, will inflict extreme sorrow on you. This is the lot of those who work in this life for the Lord. For example,” says Father John, “you calmed down and rejoiced at the Chalice of the Lord, and sometimes immediately after the service you are met with fiery temptation, and with it sorrow; Even at the Chalice itself, the enemy makes intrigues and confuses you... with different thoughts, and you don’t want to, but fight, and you would like to rest with the Lord for a long, long time, but your enemies won’t let you. As long as passions continue to operate in us, as long as the old man in us lives and does not die, until then we will have to grieve a lot from various temptations in life, from the struggle of the old man with the new.” (332, p.160). After the clergy receive communion, the laity receive communion. “Come with the fear of God and faith,” the celebrant invites them. “The joyful news is heard about the appearance of the Lord “in the form of a slave,” that is, in an incarnate image, and here is the eternal incarnation in the secrets of the Body and Blood. ...Towards Him, the Lord God who appeared, a joyful greeting is heard from the earthly: “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord, God the Lord and He has appeared to us. “He did not leave us to perish forever, but came and saved us - not an intercessor, not an angel, but the Lord Himself incarnate” (34, p. 129). Here it is appropriate to quote Father John’s thoughts on how often the laity can receive communion. “The Lord commands daily to partake of His Life-giving Mysteries, calling to everyone: “Take, eat...; drink from it all... (Matthew 26:21). Is it possible for the laity to receive communion daily? – Since this is a direct commandment of the Lord and the being of our soul and body is in dire need of the daily grace of the Holy Mysteries, as we are weak and prone to sin, anyone who is sincerely pious can begin, struggling from invisible enemies and their passions. But not to everyone who loiters, lives without work, or is devoted to worldly passions... for many can approach it frivolously, out of habit. One must always sincerely prepare for Holy Communion through prayer, abstinence, and repentance” (399, p. 260). Elsewhere, the holy shepherd wrote: “The Lord especially approaches us through the sacrament of Communion, in which He gives His whole self as food and drink to the believers. What could be more than this extreme condescension? And yet, not many willingly go to meet the Lord, many rarely receive communion. How reckless and disastrous this is! On the other hand, what can we say about those who often take communion, who are ready to take communion even every day? This is, of course, commendable. But this desire must be tempered, tempered with the consciousness of one’s unworthiness, with self-absorption; you need to look after yourself, have you improved in any way after communion, have you become better, have you killed your passions - condemnation, envy, hatred, pride, malice, deceit, laziness, pride, hard-heartedness, selfishness, unbelief, or are they still nesting in you? If so, it means you received communion unworthily. You need to make efforts to acquire humility, meekness, patience, love of truth, mercy and other virtues. Pay attention to your inner state, so as not to approach the Holy Cup frivolously, without proper preparation. In communion, the Lord shows us the greatest good and mercy, and we must approach it with the fear of God and firm faith” (330, no. 6, p. 92). But now the communion is over. The priest places the Holy Chalice on the throne and, while reading the prescribed prayers, immerses into it the particles remaining on the paten - taken from the prosphoras in honor of the Mother of God, the nine ranks of saints and for the living and the dead. It is at this moment that the words of Father John become most understandable: “In what closeness to each other are the inhabitants of heaven and the inhabitants of earth, and the Mother of God and all the saints, and all of us, Orthodox Christians, when the Divine, universal, heavenly, universal Liturgy is celebrated! My God! What a joyful, life-giving communication!” (337, p.155). And this is fellowship through Christ and in Christ. “Wash away, O Lord, the sins of those who were remembered here by Your Honest Blood, by the prayers of Your saints,” says the celebrant. Whose sins are these? No, not saints! They have already been washed and now they themselves intercede for us: for the dead and the living. “Save, O God, Thy people and bless Thy inheritance,” the priest continues. “What does Your heritage mean, who is God’s heritage? - asks Father John. - Christians. Why? Because they were redeemed by Jesus Christ at the price of His Blood and are His property... “Save... Thy people.” Save me from what? - From sins, from the devil, who constantly slanderes us. "Bless Thy inheritance." What does "bless" mean? - This means: speak all good things to Your people; or, give them everything good: peace, shrine, good glory, constantly show them Your power, Your Providence” (337, p. 272). With a feeling of gratitude, everyone present in the church responds: “We have seen the true light, we have received the Heavenly Spirit, we have found true faith, we worship the Indivisible Trinity, for it has saved us.” “How all-joyful and life-giving is the truth of the Trinity of Persons in God!” (399, p.221). “If it were not for Your salvation, Lord, if it were not for Your goodness, then we would have burned in our own furnace of passions, Satan would have completely corrupted us, tormented us, and we would not have seen any joy in life... But now Your mercy, Your grace, which You acquired for us through Your suffering, Your Blood, and Your death for us, comforts us. Glory to Thee for this, O Love of Mankind” (332, p.230). After this, the transfer of the Holy Gifts from the throne to the altar takes place, which signifies the last appearance of the Risen Savior to His disciples and His Ascension. “Blessed is our God,” the clergyman says quietly, and then, turning to the people and showing the Holy Chalice, he says aloud: “Always, now and ever and unto ages of ages.” How close these words are in meaning to the Savior’s promise: “I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). “Amen,” the people answer. Truly “so, Master, You are with us all the days; we do not live a single day without You, without Your co-presence. You are with us especially in the Sacrament of Your Body and Blood. Oh, how truly and essentially You are in the Mysteries!” (332, p.30). Therefore, “may our lips be filled with Thy praise, O Lord, for we sing Thy glory, for Thou hast made us worthy to partake of Thy Holy, Divine, Immortal and Life-giving Mysteries: keep us in Thy holiness, and learn Thy righteousness all day long. Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah." The deacon also excites those present to give thanks for Holy Communion with the words of the last small litany. The priest ends it with an exclamation, as if with a loud final chord: “For you are our sanctification, and to you we send glory, to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages.” “And after the blessing prayer behind the pulpit, the solemn loud rejoicing of the entire people is immediately heard with a threefold song: “Blessed be the name of the Lord from now to eternity!” - “Glory to Thee, Christ, God, our hope, glory to Thee.” “Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit...” (34, p.131). “This is our tribute to God in the Trinity, whose glory is an inalienable attribute and property, for He is the God of glory, and all His works, all His creations preach His glory; How much more should man, created in the image and likeness of God, glorify Him for his own bliss” (337, p. 187). And now, at the Liturgy, “what an honor God has bestowed upon man, indwelling him through the Holy Mysteries and... making him His animated church!” (337, p.133). Finally, the clergyman pronounces the dismissal, with which he “instills in us good hope” (337, p. 226) that “Christ, our True God,” not for our sinful prayers, but “through the prayers of Thy Most Pure Mother... and all the saints, will have mercy and save us, as He is Good and Lover of Mankind.” We will end the explanation of the Divine Liturgy with the words of the holy Kronstadt pastor addressed to the celebrant: “The Liturgy is a universal, heavenly Sacrifice, performed by Jesus Christ Himself through the mediation of the officiating bishops and priests...” Therefore, you, bishop or priest, must be fully clothed in Christ, in His truth, in His love and mercy, in His holiness, in His meekness, humility, kindness, patience, self-sacrifice, in His mortification, in His devotion to the will of the Heavenly Father... then only... the service will be pleasing to God and will bring true, greatest benefit to all the faithful, will comfort everyone, sanctify, confirm, fill the Holy Spirit" (337, pp. 318-319). Chapter 5. Father John's teaching on prayer and worship “Let not a single word in prayer or in your whole life fly out of your mouth without the knowledge of your heart and without a clear consciousness” (304, p. 14). Prayer occupies the most important and prominent place regarding the spiritual life of the shepherd. The Orthodox understanding of shepherding places the priest in a special position. He is a mediator, an intercessor for his flock before God, a conductor of grace into their souls and a model of angelic life. This is exactly how Father John understood pastoral ministry: “Oh, priest! You must always be great, high and exalted in your soul, because of the greatness of your rank, because of the greatness of your work that you are assigned to do, because of your mediation between the Creator and creation, between God and people, what a terrible and all-saving mediation! Because of the highest and greatest Sacraments that you perform for the salvation and renewal of people, because of the comprehensive, sublime prayers interceding for the whole world, for the entire Church of God existing on earth, and the glorified saints in Heaven. Look with whom you are constantly in communion in prayer: with the Mother of God and with all the saints, with God Himself, with the entire Church on earth. You must be a great man, O priest, and not a small one; sublime, and not low at all! (337, p.292). We have cited only one entry from the diaries of Father John, but wherever he speaks about the priesthood, most often one main idea runs through as a red thread: priestly service is mediation between God and the flock. And it was not preaching, or even spiritual leadership, which are also intended for one goal - the salvation of the flock, that Father John put in first place in the ministry of a shepherd, but namely intercession. To intercede for the flock means to reconcile sinful people with God, who through sin are constantly at enmity with Him. Is reconciliation possible without request and prayer? – That is why a pastor, first of all, must be a man of prayer and an experienced teacher of prayer. Private prayer at home can sometimes seem boring to a priest, not particularly necessary, and sometimes even a matter of personal pastoral conscience. But is such a shepherd right? How can he answer Father John to these words: “...If the light in the shepherd is darkened, then it is necessarily darkened in the flock, due to his close spiritual connection with it - heads with members. You stand strong in your spiritual virtues - and they are firm; you stand in prayer and pray fervently for them - and they feel it; If you become stronger spiritually, they too will become stronger; If you relax, they too will relax” (353, p.6). It is the shepherd’s direct, living relationship with God that is most sensitive to his flock. And it is his prayerful inspiration that moves the flock to salvation. Therefore, we can say that home, private prayer is, as it were, an introduction, preparation for public, church prayer. And the shepherd who is not used to praying at home will not be able to pray fervently in church. Constant prayer is necessary for the performer of the divine service and to kindle the grace of ordination within himself. All virtues are strengthened by prayer. As prayer weakens, faith also weakens, and along with it, zeal for salvation also cools. “For a shepherd to stop burning in soul and lose living communication with God,” says His Eminence Veniamin (Milov), “is equivalent to him losing the appearance of a good and spiritual shepherd” (32, p. 146). Experienced knowledge of the feat of prayer is necessary for the pastor also because among the parishioners there may be people who are deeply interested in issues of the spirit, but, having no spiritual experience, easily fall into various perplexities or even delusion. In this case, pastoral experience is necessary and mandatory. The importance of prayer in the matter of pastoral ministry forces us to more carefully examine the works of the Kronstadt shepherd. For Father John, prayer was the breath of the soul, therefore the entries he left in his diaries are nothing more than a spiritual experience and the fruits of a prayerful feat. “Prayer,” says Father John, “is a great happiness that a Christian should cherish; is the priceless gift of the Lord God to man. Just think heartily about God, just wish for a heartfelt union with God - and He is with you now; and neither the walls of the house, nor the prison walls, nor the mountains, nor the abysses will prevent this union: God is with you now. So are the holy angels: they are all with God - before your eyes, near your heart, like your closest friends, like your relatives. If prayer is such a powerful means of uniting a person with God and the saints, then an earthly person should always consider it a great blessing for himself to talk in prayer with the Lord God, or with the Most Pure Lady Theotokos, or with heavenly angels, or with holy people, and pray to them with joy and awe of reverence, always remembering with whom he is talking, unclean and insignificant worm” (262, p.8). “Prayer is the native, vital element of the soul, in which, like a fish in fresh water, like a bird in the air, the soul truly lives, rests, enjoys, strengthens, plays and has fun” (337, p. 293). “Prayer is living water with which the soul quenches its thirst” (333, p. 361). She is “the food of the soul, air, light, its life-giving warmth” (333, p. 235). And every word of prayer, if pronounced with faith and compassion, is likened to rain or snow. “Each of them,” teaches Father John, “has its own strength and its own fruit. Raindrops or snowflakes, falling in a continuous thread or flakes, water the earth, and it vegetates and bears fruit; so the words of prayer - this spiritual rain, each separately, water the soul, and it vegetates with the fruits of virtues, assisted by the Holy Spirit, especially if there is tearful rain" (333, pp. 163-164). The hymn of love that Father John dedicated to prayer could be continued further, but now we will talk about something else. Father John, being very attentive to himself, to his inner state of soul, paid deep attention to everything that surrounded him and with which he had to come into contact in his pastoral service. His insight sometimes amazes the reader; everywhere and in everything he saw for himself a moral lesson and an incentive to spiritual perfection. Likewise, prayer, understanding it as a gift of God, according to the teachings of the Kronstadt shepherd, can serve as a means for cultivating in oneself a sense of spiritual poverty and weakness, a sense of reverence for the almighty power of God, His wisdom and goodness. “Prayer at home, either private or public,” says Father John, “is a guide to sanctification, renewal, communion with God and to eternal life” (337, p. 309). “Every day, in prayer, praise and thanksgiving at home, in church, and on the street, we communicate with the invisible God and with the spiritual world - with the invisible angels; corruptible in the body with incorruptible beings, temporal in the flesh with the eternal, and thus we learn not to cleave to the temporal, but to ascend to the eternal and expect endless life, ... we learn most of all to value and love and do the truth and every virtue and implement holiness in our lives” (333, p. 236). “Prayer is the correction of life, the mother of heartfelt contrition and tears; strong motivation for works of mercy; life safety; destroying mortal fear; neglect of earthly treasures; desire for heavenly blessings; expectation of the Universal Judge, the general resurrection, the life of the next century...” (333, p. 313). And here is another similar remark from Father John. Christ the Savior reduced the content of the ten commandments of the Sinai legislation to two main ones: the love of God and neighbor. “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind” (Matthew 22:37), says the first of them. Every Christian can check the fulfillment of this commandment through prayer. “Whom we love,” says Father John, “usually we cannot talk enough of. Hence the direct conclusion: whoever loves God loves to talk with Him in prayer; and on the contrary, whoever does not love Him is very lazy in prayer. Apply this to yourself. When you have no desire to pray and you read out well-known prayers only out of habit and, as if out of necessity, then your love for God is very doubtful, you represent yourself only as a mercenary, working for your Master from payment. And when you have a sincere desire to pour out your soul before God in prayer, then we can say that you have love for Him, like a son for the Father” (304, pp. 18–19). The holy shepherd valued prayer so highly. The constant feeling of the presence of God and the unceasing prayerful appeal to Him filled the soul of Father John with grace-filled gifts. That is why he once said: “Until the heart and mind have acquired the taste of prayer, until then a person prays reluctantly, lazily, forcedly and absent-mindedly; but when the soul comes into the taste of prayer and tastes peace, sweetness and consolation... then it will not want to leave the Lord and the conversation with Him. The Lord gives so much consolation to those who are diligent in prayer! This is how He changes the soul! The very face of the person praying becomes bright and pleasant, just as the Lord’s face was illuminated on Tabor” (410, pp. 96–97). But how can you enter into the taste of prayer with your heart and mind? How to feel the sweetness of the feat of prayer? How can a Christian learn true prayer? “This requires constant hard work. Here it is appropriate to recall the words of Christ the Savior: “The kingdom of heaven is taken by force, and those who use force take it away” (Matthew 11:12). Likewise, prayer, although it is a gift from God to man, this gift must be skillfully used, diligence must be made so that prayer becomes the property of a Christian. “How many people value this gift and rush to prayer, praise and thanksgiving?” (337, p.255) - Father John exclaims with regret, - “The sons of men followed vanity and became fussy and moved away from God, became wild, became alien, alienated by damned sin; they have only vanity on their minds and in their hearts; dreams wander in their hearts day and night - they sleep, sleep soundly and do not want to wake up, they have forgotten the mercy and blessings of the One who created and redeemed them...” (326, p. 33). The loving heart of the holy shepherd could not remain indifferent, seeing the immoral life of his contemporaries. That is why he tried to remind people more often of repentance and correction of their sinful life, of sincere sincere prayer. And he called on shepherds, as mediators, intercessors before God for their flock, to fervent prayer for their flock. “Oh, priest! Remember how many people of every age and gender, every rank, every belief, every nation (ethnicity) need God’s help every day and ask earnestly for this help to everyone” (326, p. 322). Father John himself possessed this greatest gift of prayer. He deeply believed in the grace given to him as a priest by God to pray for people. He believed that the Lord is so close to a Christian, like his own body and heart, that in prayer the word, like a shadow following the body, is followed by the deed itself, because with God the deed and the word are inseparable, according to the words of the psalmist: “He spoke and was born, and he commanded and was created” (Ps. 33:9). That’s why we turn to the All-Russian Pastor for instructions on prayer. Once upon a time, the holy apostles asked the Lord to teach them prayer. A similar question was once asked to Father John by his spiritual daughter, the abbess of the St. John the Baptist Leushinsky Monastery, Abbess Taisiya: “Father, teach me to pray!” “The simplest thing is to pray,” answered Father John, “and at the same time the wisest thing.” A small child knows how to pray in his own way, to ask his father or mother for what he wants. We are the children of the Heavenly Father; Do children really manage to ask their father? As you feel, tell Him your needs, and open your heart. “The Lord is near to all who call on Him, to all who call on Him in truth” (Ps. 144:18). While still speaking to you, he says: “Behold, I have come!” Oh, how great is God’s mercy towards us! But at the same time, be wise and careful, protect your mind from distraction and wandering or vanity” (20, pp. 8–9). At first glance, this answer of Father John seems simple, but if you think about it, what moral purity is required of a Christian! It is no coincidence that the Lord warned that “unless someone receives the Kingdom of God as a child, he will not enter it” (Mark 10:15). Is it easy to have childlike simplicity and kindness, complete trust and a pure, unguileful heart, humble obedience and submission in everything to the will of God? But, nevertheless, it is precisely these virtues that a Christian should strive to acquire; Only with such a spiritual dispensation is it possible to become the owner of such a valuable gift - prayer. The Lord said: “If you bring your gift to the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go away, first being reconciled with your brother” (Matthew 5:23). “God does not accept our prayer,” says Father John, “if we are angry, angry with someone” (304, p. 21). According to the Kronstadt shepherd, approaching God in prayer without reconciling with one’s neighbor is not at all characteristic of a shepherd. After all, a priest is a servant of God-Love and His Church, imbued with love. Therefore, he must first “acquire in his heart true, deep love for God and people, redeemed by the Blood of Christ, created in the image and likeness of God. Otherwise, his service will be hypocrisy” (337, p. 209). If a shepherd, as a mediator between God and his flock, stood up in prayer to reconcile his flock with Heaven, then he must first reconcile himself with his conscience and bring repentance for the sins he committed that day. But even during repentance, Father John warns: “In church prayers there is a listing of sins, but not all, and often those very same sins are not mentioned, with which we have bound ourselves. You must certainly list them yourself in prayer with a clear consciousness of their importance, with a feeling of humility and heartfelt contrition” (353, p. 42). Now let's talk about the most important condition of true prayer. “In prayer, the main thing that you need to take care of first of all,” says Father John, “is a living, clairvoyant faith in the Lord: imagine Him vividly before you and in yourself, and then, if you want, ask for Christ Jesus in the Holy Spirit - and it will be done for you. Ask simply, without hesitation, and then your God will be everything for you, performing great and wonderful things in an instant...” (332, p. 240). Father John wrote very often about faith, and this is no coincidence, since “faith is the basis of Christian life” (304, pp. 4–5). After all, when the Lord healed a sick person, he first of all demanded faith from him. Man fell from crafty distrust of God, and now the return, the approach to Him, cannot be otherwise than through faith, through sincere trust in the economy of our salvation. So, faith is fidelity, trust in God and the weapon with which all the slander of the evil force is easily defeated. “It is hard to fight,” says Father John, “when faith, so to speak, is torn out of the heart, then the very support of the struggle is lost, all moral strength is taken away, because faith is our strength and our victory, as the apostle says: “This is the victory that has overcome the world, our faith” (John 5:4)” (304, p. 58). And the holy shepherd had this living, clear, pure, crystalline, infantile faith. She penetrated his entire being, attracted the abundant grace of God to him and made him a great lamp of Orthodoxy. That is why the prayer of the All-Russian righteous man was miraculous. “And how the priest prayed! - exclaims one of his contemporaries. “It seemed that he sees Christ with his own eyes, speaks to Him, beats at His feet, grabs the hem of His garment, asks, begs relentlessly, until the answering word is heard in the soul of the prayer book: “Great is your faith, let it be done for you as you wish” (Matthew 15:28)” (262, p. 159). Father John’s faith in the immutability of the word of God was amazing. He believed that heaven and earth would soon pass away, but not one jot or tittle would pass from the law until it was fulfilled (Matthew 5:18). Oh, how every shepherd needs such fidelity to the word of God! After all, the Holy Scripture for the performer of worship is not just a book that he is obliged to open from time to time and read to the people. The Word of God is the book of Heaven for earth, this is the message of heaven to the sinful wanderer on earth, this is the book by which a person will one day be judged and which every Christian, and especially a shepherd, must study and love. Having pointed to faith as the main condition for true prayer, we present a number of thoughts of the Kronstadt shepherd. “Prayer is based on faith: I believe that there is a God before whom I weave my prayer; there is the Almighty, who holds all creation in His hand...; I hope that my prayer reaches Him, or, more precisely, goes straight from my heart to His ears. Likewise, the correspondence of a son with his father or mother, with brothers and sisters... is based on faith. They are sure when they write letters that the persons to whom they write exist and are alive; they hope that the written conversation will reach them... and they will respond to the letter in a manner similar to its outline. So in life we ​​are guided in many ways by faith and hope: especially in relation to the spiritual world, we must walk, until the time, by faith, and not by sight" (2 Cor 5:7)" (333, pp. 287-288). “When talking with any person, we are sure that he hears us, despite the distance that separates us, sometimes very significant... Thus, when talking in prayer with God or with the saints, we must be sure without the slightest doubt that our speeches, spoken from the heart, can be heard (not talking about God, who knows everything everywhere, and our very heart) not only in the same way as our words are heard by living people, but also much more conveniently, due to the simplicity of the world spiritual, and answers to our prayers are also given with greater convenience and are wiser and more useful than the answers of earthly persons to our requests, due to the same simplicity and divine enlightenment of the celestials” (333, pp. 328–329). “When praying to God, you need to acquire such a firm, unshakable faith that doubting anything is difficult, even impossible, and for this you need to have the words inscribed in your heart: “All things are possible with God” (Matthew 10:27); one must also have living confidence that the Lord fulfills everything - that His Being is Love and Goodness, that His work and, as it were, being: to create, to give, to have mercy, to be generous, to fulfill our requests...” (333, p. 254). “When praying, you need to have such faith in the power of the words of prayer that you do not separate the words themselves from the very deed expressed by them... for “That was the speech; He commanded it, and it was created” (Ps. 149:5). And you also believe that what you said in prayer, what you asked for, will happen... The trouble is that we are of little faith... that is why our prayers are fruitless” (332, pp. 181-182). “If you want to ask God for some good from God through prayer, then before praying, prepare yourself for undeniable strong faith and take remedies in advance against doubt and unbelief. It’s bad, if during the prayer itself your heart becomes weak in faith and does not stand in it, then don’t even think that you will receive what you asked God for, doubting, because you have offended God... Doubt is blasphemy against God, a daring lie of the heart... Remember that God, at the time of your petition, expects an affirmative answer to the question internally offered to you by Him: do you believe that I can do this? Yes, you must answer from the depths of your heart: “I believe, Lord!” And then it will be for you according to your faith...” (332, pp. 14–15). “Concerning the fulfillment of what you ask from God in prayer, believe that just as it is convenient for you to pronounce words, so it is convenient and incomparably more convenient for the Lord to fulfill every word of yours, and if there is a word, then there is also a deed, for the Lord does not have a word without deed, the verb does not return to Him empty, according to His word (Is. 55:11). Remember constantly in prayer that God exists, everything comes from Him: a thought about something, a word about something, a deed, and everything...” (333, p. 118). “If you want the Lord to give heartfelt faith to your prayer, try from the bottom of your heart to say and do everything with people sincerely and do not at all be double-minded with them. When you are straightforward and trusting with people, then the Lord will give you straightforwardness and sincere faith in relation to God. The Lord inconveniently accepts someone who is not sincere with people in prayer, making him feel that he is insincere in his attitude towards people, and therefore cannot be completely sincere in his attitude towards God, without spiritual suffering” (332, p. 74). “Do not forget to sigh more often about your lack of faith and love for God and pray, as often as possible, for the gift of faith and love to be sent down to you from above” (304, p. 74). The peculiarity of the feat of prayer, according to Father John, is also that you need to carefully monitor your heart. It is necessary to look inside more often and observe: what it is doing and what it is striving for. The heart is a true barometer, showing the rise or fall of a Christian’s spiritual life. Saint John Chrysostom says: “Like a maiden staying in some palace, our soul calmly resides in the center of our heart, and like five handmaidens, our five external senses look after it” (289, p. 206). What are these feelings? Vision, hearing, taste, smell and touch. “How carefully you need to look, listen, taste, smell and touch, or better yet, how you need to protect your heart,” says Father John, “so that through external feelings, like through a window, sin and the culprit of sin himself, the devil, do not sneak in” (332, p. 134). Every Christian, and especially a shepherd, needs to make it a rule to constantly monitor the field of his heart, to ensure that the tares of evil, laziness, hatred, luxury do not grow on it, and to try with all his might to plant the seeds of virtues: faith, hope and love for God and neighbor. Everyone knows that a seed can only live on good fertilized soil. Therefore, the seed of any virtue will only grow and bear fruit when the field of the heart is fertilized by reading the word of God or the writings of the holy fathers and watered by tears of repentance and prayerful sighs. “Recognize firmly, once and for all, as the irrevocable truth that your heart is a lie and a pillar of lies” (333, p. 168), says Father John. It is “very fickle, inattentive, lazy, absent-minded, careless, you have to constantly bore it, push it, wake it up, kindle it; it is carnal, rushing towards carnal passions” (326, pp. 95–96). But here is an even more strict warning from the holy shepherd: “Our heart dies a spiritual death every day.” And only “warm tearful prayer is his revival, his beginning breathing. If you do not pray daily with spiritual warmth, then it is easy to quickly die spiritually” (333, p. 419). How can one disagree with these words of the All-Russian righteous man? After all, he personally experienced the power and sweetness of heartfelt prayer. He constantly watched the field of his heart, and considered only mental, superficial prayer an insult to God. “If you work with your mind alone,” says Father John, “your heart grows cold for prayer; one must constantly observe the harmony of mind and heart” (337, p. 300). “Some seem to pray to the Lord, but he himself works for the devil, who nests in the heart, because he prays only with his lips, but his heart is cold, does not feel and does not desire what his lips ask and what they say, and is far from the Lord” (Is. 29:13)” (332, pp. 368–369). Very often, people do not appreciate those services that are done coldly, without heartfelt participation. And the Lord is the Knower of the Heart. All thoughts, feelings and spiritual movements are open to him. It is our heart that He wants. “Give Me, son, your heart” (Proverbs 23:26), says the word of God. And in another place: “The Lord will give you according to your heart” (Ps. 19:6). Therefore, it is clear that “as is the heart, such is the gift, if you pray with faith sincerely, with all your heart, unfeignedly, then in accordance with your faith, the degree of fervor of your heart, a gift is given to you from the Lord, and vice versa, the colder your heart, the less faithful, the more hypocritical it is, the more useless your prayer is, moreover, the more it angers the Lord, Who is the Spirit and seeks those who worship Himself in spirit and truth ( John 4:23–24)" (332, pp. 278–279). And now we will give some advice from Father John for acquiring sincere, sincere prayer. With closed eyes a person does not make a request to anyone. This simple observation forces every Christian, before starting a conversation with God, to “open the apple of his soul’s eye and clearly imagine: Who do you want to pray to?” (304, p.59) - “You pray to the Beginningless and Infinite King of every creature, the All-Holy, the All-Good, the All-Righteous, before Whom millions of angels revere... Whom the armies of martyrs, the classes of prophets and apostles, the councils of saints, saints and righteous ones sing.” (332, p.356). It was stated above that prayer is spiritual food. And “just as bodily food turns out to be almost tasteless when we consume it very hastily, so spiritual food loses its taste for our soul, when we pronounce the words of prayer very hastily, with the intention of finishing quickly, it even tastes bitter in our heart. In ordinary taste, the tongue breaks food down into its constituent elements and in this decomposition finds taste for itself; so in spiritual taste, the soul decomposes prayer into its beginnings, that is, into words or concepts, and finds a taste for itself in this; This taste consists of a living sense of the truth of what you say or read. Thus, without decomposing prayer, without assimilating it into the heart, it is impossible to find sweetness in prayer, so that the most touching prayer, not felt by the heart, has almost no value for us” (304, pp. 105–106). A prayer word or appeal that is not felt by the heart leads a Christian to hypocrisy and duplicity, when he says something else, but has something else in his thoughts and heart. A person does not come to this state immediately, but gradually. At first, perhaps, he strived for true heartfelt prayer, forced himself to do so, but “always praying with the heart,” warns Father John, “is significant work, to which one must always force oneself” (353, p. 42). And therefore, ceasing to work on himself, a person begins to pray more with his lips, superficially, without bringing the words of prayer to the depths of his heart. Christ the Savior very often repeated the following words: “Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear” (Matthew 11:15). “This means,” says Father John, “not everyone has this hearing. A Christian and a Christian woman must try to acquire and develop a hearing of the heart... This hearing is a gift of God, just as faith itself is a gift of God” (326, p. 92). The Kronstadt shepherd himself, if he noticed that his prayer was becoming external, mechanical, he immediately stopped it. This is what he advises everyone to do. “When you notice that your heart is cold and reluctant to pray, stop, warm your heart with some living representation, for example, of your wretchedness, your spiritual poverty, poverty and blindness, or the representation of God’s great, moment-to-moment benefits to you and to the human race, especially to Christians, and then pray slowly, with a warm feeling” (332, p. 165). “Sometimes it’s good to say a few of your own words in prayer, breathing with ardent faith and love for the Lord... the soul, at its words to God, trembles with joy, becomes all excited, enlivened, and blissful. You will say a few words, but you will taste so much bliss that you will not receive it to the same extent from the longest and most touching prayers of others, spoken out of habit and not sincerely” (332, p. 153). A Christian knows from experience that prayers read rarely or for the first time are usually said willingly and with attention. But then, the more often they are repeated, the more and more attention becomes dulled, and a person can hardly overcome himself to read them with the same feeling. This habit of prayer is very dangerous for a pastor, who uses ready-made prayers more often than anyone else. To avoid this, Father John advises doing this: “We need to imagine that for the first time we are reading the beautiful prayers to which we are accustomed and which occupied us so much at first, when we began to read them; ponder every word with your heart and treasure every word” (333, p.413). “When, while reading prayers, you seek the Lord with your mind and heart, do not look far for Him: He is here, in the very words of the prayer. Just listen to them with a contrite and humble heart, and the Lord will move from them and into your heart. The Spirit of God breathes in the words of prayer. You just need to learn the art of translating Him from them into your soul” (304, p. 155). All the diaries of Father John of Kronstadt are imbued with a spirit of prayer, and it should be noted that most of all he wrote about prayer and worship. This was his favorite subject of thought. “My life in Christ” - this is how Father John accurately and fairly assessed his earthly path. Concluding our brief analysis of Father John’s teaching on prayer, we will give some more of his advice that will help every Christian in his feat of prayer. Necessary conditions for true prayer. “When praying, we must have the following confidence about God, the Mother of God, angels and saints: 1) he hears, 2) maybe, 3) he wants to fulfill our righteous desire and 4) he will fulfill it if I earnestly ask, without any doubt; He will do as He pleases” (337, p.259). Humility is necessary in prayer. “As you approach God, the Mother of God, in prayer, remember that just as heaven is separated from the earth, so through your sins you are separated from God and the Mother of God, and what is the difference between light and darkness, such a difference between you and God and His saints, especially His Most Pure Matter, the Holiest of all heavenly and most pure powers; and be humble and reverent always in prayer, not giving room even for a moment to any dreams” (337, p. 259). Prayer requires patience. “God often sends the gracious warmth of faith and love into the heart at the very end of prayer. Therefore, one must have patience, not despair of the power of prayer at the beginning and in the middle, but calmly continue it to the end, pray and not get cold. Speak, and it will be opened to you (Matthew 7:7)” (304, p.28). Long sleep interferes with prayer. “Don’t allow yourself to sleep for a long time: long sleep relaxes the soul and body, cools one’s feelings towards God, produces laziness towards prayer and negligence about it” (326, p. 103). You need to force yourself to pray. “Learn to pray, force yourself to pray; At first it will be difficult, but then the more you force yourself, the easier it will be; but first you always need to force yourself” (333, p.348). How to overcome despondency in prayer. “When you pray alone and your spirit becomes depressed and becomes bored and burdened by loneliness, remember then, as always, that the Trinitarian God, all the holy angels, your guardian angel and the holy people of God look at you with brighter eyes than the sun. Truly! For they are all one in God, and where God is, there they are also. Where the sun is, all its rays are directed there. Understand what is being said. Always pray with a burning heart, and to do this, never overeat or get drunk. Remember who you are talking to. People often forget with whom they talk during prayer, who are the witnesses to their prayer. They forget that they are talking with the Witty and All-Seeing, that all the heavenly Powers and holy men of God are listening to their conversation with God” (332, pp. 342–343). “When you are asked to pray for the salvation of someone from bodily death - for example, from drowning, from death due to illness, from fire or from some other disaster - praise the faith of those asking for this and say to yourself: blessed be your faith, according to your faith, may the Lord grant the fulfillment of my unworthy, little-faith prayer and add faith to me” (332, p. 256). Now let us turn to Father John’s teaching on worship. One of his contemporaries once said that the worship of the All-Russian pastor defies description. Indeed, it is impossible to convey the feelings that the holy righteous man experienced while offering his prayers in the church. Many saw Father John standing at the throne with his spiritual gaze fixed on Gornaya, many experienced a thrill in their souls from his sincere fiery prayer, but no one could experience in those terrible minutes the meeting with God and the saints the way the holy shepherd experienced it. Father John spoke about this meeting, about his spiritual experiences and feelings on the pages of his diaries. “What is worship,” we ask the holy righteous man? “Divine service,” he answers, “is the verbal sacrifice of man, a verbal being, to God his Creator, glorified in the Three Persons of the Divine; a sacrifice most pleasing to God more than all other sacrifices...if only it is offered from a pure heart” (337, p.233). “Divine service is the mutual service of God to men and men to God, or a person’s heartfelt, grateful, reverent response to the love, truth, power and providence of God” (337, p. 233). God serves man “by giving His grace, holiness, strength, salvation, deliverance, purification, peace, consolation, enlightenment, pure love, by giving Himself for food and drink, by giving the Holy Spirit in Baptism, Confirmation and other Sacraments; man - by his constant looking to God, as to his First Principle, Prototype, Primary Source, zeal for the avoidance of all sin and for the fulfillment of all truth and virtue, for constant repentance, glorification and thanksgiving to the Lord Creator, ... for the reverent acceptance of the Sacraments, ... and, thus, for constant walking before the Lord” (337, p. 269). Worship is “a heavenly treasure on earth, given to us by our Merciful Lord and Redeemer; this is a treasury of all blessings, all the gifts of the Holy Spirit, a treasury of all strength for life and piety, all virtues in persons, in examples worthy of imitation” (337, p. 230). This is “a gracious source through which Heavenly Grace abundantly sheds all His gifts upon those who serve Her with a sincere heart, gifts of mercy, peace, consolation, purification, sanctification” (337, p. 184). “Divine service is the triumph of grace in the saints of God over sin, death and the culprit of sin and death - the devil; the triumph of shrines, life and immortality over death and corruption; the triumph of the deification of men through the incarnate Son of God, through the Sacraments bestowed by Him on His Orthodox Church” (337, p. 314). Father John's thought extends even further. “Divine service,” he says, “is a heavenly residence, a stay with God and the saints, a pure, loving conversation with them that is not distracted by anything, all possible thanksgiving and glorification through the mortal lips of the Lord and the beginning of eternal glorification together with the angels through spiritual lips in the transfigured glorious body; the glorification of the holy saints of God, the school of piety and all virtue, the acceptance of the highest grace in prayer and in the Sacraments and the very fusion with God and deification” (337, p. 223). We have quoted only a few thoughts from Father John’s diary entries. But don’t they testify to the author’s deep insight into the liturgical life of the Church? - “Life-giving Christianity”, “earthly heaven”, “physician of souls”, “heavenly residence” - what unusual words! But they are felt by the soul of the holy shepherd. This is the theological spiritual experience of a true minister of the altar of the Lord. Father John's entire life was a constant service to God and people. That is why, speaking about worship as mutual service between God and man, he saw man’s service to God not only in performing certain prayers of petition or gratitude. “Those who attend divine services... must remember,” the holy shepherd taught, “that service here on earth is a preparation for the most joyful service of God in Heaven; that while serving God with the body, one must all the more serve God with the spirit and a pure heart; that, while listening to the divine service, we must learn to serve God as the saints served, about whose lives and deeds we hear during the divine service, about their faith, hope and love, that we must serve God most especially in deed and truth, and not only in words and tongue” (333, pp. 86–87). Next we will present some statements by Father John that reveal the spiritual content of the service. “Our Lord Jesus Christ,” he says, “He Himself showed us by His example our urgent need to serve God, often spending nights in prayer and singing psalms and spiritual songs with His disciples. After the Last Supper in the upper room of Jerusalem, which served as the first New Testament Church, He Himself established the sacrament of Communion, and earlier - the mystery of Baptism, Himself being baptized by John, without need. The Holy Apostle Paul briefly outlined the very image of worship, exhorting newly enlightened Christians to be filled with the Holy Spirit through heartfelt service to God “with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs” (Eph. 5:19) and giving his disciple the newly installed bishop Timothy the commandment “to make prayers, petitions, supplications, thanksgivings for all people, for kings and for all those in authority ( 1 Timothy 2:1–2)” (337, pp. 183–184). But “besides prayers, doxologies, petitions, and thanksgivings, the divine services of our Orthodox Church briefly depict the destinies of the world and man... from the beginning of the world to the coming of Christ into the world, from His coming to the ascension and descent of the Holy Spirit, and from the descent of the Holy Spirit almost to the present day, if we take into account the glorification of the saints of God again and the services compiled by him. In our worship, the entire Bible is briefly depicted and, as it were, personified, the entire Old Testament with the destinies of mankind in it and the entire Gospel, the entire New Testament with its wondrous events that surpass all reason. If you want to know in general terms and in detail the wonderful, wise, all-good economy of our salvation in Christ Jesus, asks the holy shepherd, follow wisely and carefully our daily, weekly and annual divine services, and you, as in a picture, will clearly see the whole abyss of mercy, wisdom, omnipotence revealed in the work of God’s salvation of the human race” (337, p. 309). “So Vespers depicts the goodness, wisdom and omnipotence of God in the creation of the world and man” (262, pp. 189–190). “It points out how at first the first people Adam and Eve were holy and blessed, how then soon, through their inattention, negligence and selfishness, they sinned and extremely offended their Creator by not fulfilling His commandments and persistent ignorance of their sin; how God then expelled them from the paradise of sweetness...; how they, being in trouble and deprived of God’s grace, recognized their sin and began to mourn it and humbly repent to God, and for this God gave them a merciful promise that the Savior of people would one day come to earth and save them from their sins and erase the head of the serpent, the tempter and murderer. We are reminded of the tearful repentance of Adam and Eve after their expulsion from paradise by the frequent exclamations of the short repentant prayer “Lord, have mercy”, the verses of the psalm “Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked” (Ps. 1); This is especially indicated by the psalm “Lord, I have called to You, hear me” (Ps. 140), and the stichera sung with the verses of this psalm indicate that the Lord came into the world and with His suffering and death for us saved Adam and the human race from sin, curse and death” (337, pp. 29–30). The appearance of the Savior into the world is also indicated by the evening entrance. And then we recall “the song of dismissal of Simeon the God-Receiver, who saw the promised Hope of Israel and the aspiration of the tongues, and then the greeting of the Mother of God is sung, bearing in her arms her Son, all God, who gave birth to the Savior of our souls. The morning service also remembers the birth of the Divine Child and the angels’ praise of “Glory to God in the Highest and on earth peace to men,” and the Six Psalms depicts the conversation of believing souls with the Lord, their Shepherd – their Visitor. Then, after the Six Psalms, a joyful song is heard again about the appearance of the Lord “in the form of a slave” and a joyful greeting to Him from the earthly: “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!” After this, the divinely inspired psalms of the forefather of the Lord, the king and prophet David, are heard, with which he, in the depths of the past centuries, begged and praised the Lord and prophesied about Him: about His appearance on earth, about His suffering and death, about the resurrection and ascension - and with which it is so fitting and sweet to implore and sing of Him now, after His appearance on earth, after the completion of our salvation and in ascension to Heaven. What a magnificent spiritual spectacle! Godfather David talks with his great Descendant and his Savior, teaching us through his conversation to pour out our souls before Him. Then the royal doors open, like the gates of the Kingdom of Heaven, opened by the revealed Lord, and again, with the psalm of praise of the divinely inspired singer, the Church inspires everyone to praise the Lord: for from eternity “blessed is the Lord from Zion - His New Testament Church - living in Jerusalem” (truly alive), because He continually revives, corrects, sanctifies everyone. Everyone is encouraged to confess the Lord that He is Good, that His mercy endures forever, for He did not leave us to perish forever, but came and saved us; not an intercessor, not an angel, but the Lord Himself incarnate. Then, after the Sunday stichera, if it is Sunday, or if after the Gospel there is magnification and the prayer “Save, O God, Thy people,” the canon or hymn of the works of the holy fathers is sung, in which the fruits of the Incarnation of Christ or the virtues of the saints are sung, by which the memory is accomplished. After the canon, there are stichera of praise, in which the mercies of God towards the human race or again the valor of the saints are praised, then a doxology, then a litany of intense and petitionary prayers and dismissal, and finally the first hour, in which the eternity of God is depicted in the first psalm” (337, pp. 251–253). We will not talk about the Divine Liturgy, which is “an unceasing and greatest miracle in the grace-filled Kingdom of God... the unceasing slaying of God’s Lamb and the outpouring of His Most Pure Blood, the remembrance of His redemptive suffering, death, resurrection, ascension and His Second Coming” (337, pp. 135-136), since a separate chapter has already been dedicated to it. Now, in the words of Father John, let us present the contents of the weekly and annual divine services. “The entire divine service of the Orthodox Church is arranged in such a way,” says the Kronstadt pastor, “so that a true Christian lives a heavenly, holy life on earth, in unceasing service and pleasing to God, in union with God, in community with God’s heavenly angels and with all the saints. Therefore, for example, on Sunday we glorify the Holy Trinity... the risen Christ and His wonderful economy of our salvation. On Monday, glorifying the Lord and offering Him prayers of repentance, petition, thanksgiving and praise, we glorify the Mother of God and the heavenly Powers, asking for their intercession and intercession. On Tuesday - the Forerunner of the Lord. On Wednesday we glorify the Cross of the Lord and His Most Pure Mother, who suffered more than anyone else. On Thursday - our greatest benefactors, enlighteners, innovators - the apostles and the wonderworker Nicholas, the miracle of selflessness and Christian love, the miracle of mercy towards others, the miracle of purity, meekness and humility. On Friday - the suffering and death of the Lord and again the Most Pure Mother of God. On Saturday, we glorify all the saints and pray for the repose of the souls of our forefathers, fathers and brothers who have previously died” (337, pp. 178–179). “The annual cycle of worship depicts the whole history, the whole past fate, the whole life of our Holy Orthodox Church. All Her teachings and moral teachings, all dogmas, all lives, all exploits, all sufferings, both of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, the Mother of God, and of all the holy apostles, prophets, martyrs, hierarchs, saints, unmercenaries and righteous people” (337, p. 229). So, “The Holy Church,” says the holy righteous man, “has inscribed forever in indelible letters, images and rituals in her worship the entire economy of our salvation” (333, pp. 173–174). It was written so that “so that people, so inclined to forget God and the salvation of their souls and everything that God has done for our salvation, eternal joy and bliss, would constantly have... before their eyes and, as if under their hands, all the great, wise and good deeds of God regarding us, constantly arouse themselves to repentance, correction and salvation, and flee the vanity of the corruptible and fleeting world” (333, p.174). Prayer rewards a Christian with great spiritual consolations: joy, peace, tranquility, inexplicable bliss, which serves as a guarantee of a blissful union with God in the next century. “Care to the Savior and the Mother of God, like a sincere son or daughter; - says Father John, - caress yourself by reading the canons, akathists to the Sweetest Jesus and the Mother of God, caress yourself towards the saints with fervent prayers and the prescribed canons and akathists, and you will not be put to shame, soon you yourself will feel in your heart the heavenly affection from the Holy Spirit" (262, p. 23). According to the holy shepherd, a Christian especially needs the prayerful help of saints. “Just as in worldly life,” he notes, “there are poor and rich, so in the spiritual world in the spiritual order there are poor and rich (262, p. 21). The poor ask the rich for material help; similarly, in spiritual life, the poor must resort to the benefits of the spiritually rich. “We are spiritually poor, beggars, and saints are spiritually rich or in this life shining with faith and piety. It is to them that we, the poor, must resort, we must ask for their prayers, so that they teach us spiritual wisdom, how to overcome sins, how to love God and our neighbor” (262, p. 22). The spiritual experience of God's saints in the fight against sin, the devil and their passions is hidden in the prayers they composed. “These prayers are the wisest, most expedient, the most pleasing to God, the most powerful, capable of inclining the Lord to all mercy. God’s holy people had enlightened eyes of the heart (Eph. 1:18) and with these eyes they clearly saw what to pray for, what to ask for, what to give thanks for, how to glorify the Lord, and they left us the most excellent examples of prayers of all kinds” (262, p. 25). And therefore, Christian, “revere every thought, every word of the Church” (333, p. 43), says Father John, and “know once and for all that in the Church, in all Her services, Sacraments, and prayers, the spirit of sanctity, the spirit of peace, the spirit of life and salvation breathes, and this is characteristic only of the Holy Spirit” (333, p. 243). It is amazing how Father John himself revered every word of the church prayer. He believed with all his heart that it is easy for God to fulfill every human request, every word of prayer, if it is spoken sincerely, with trust and love. During the service, he penetrated so deeply into the content of the prayer that he forgot everything earthly, and talked with the Lord, the Mother of God and the saints as with living people, as with his Heavenly friends, as sincere, simple and accessible as himself. The contents of the diary entries of the holy righteous man reveal the teaching and moral-educational significance of the service. “Look,” exclaims the All-Russian pastor, “how the Lord arranged the worship of our Church. How beautiful, majestic, wise, instructive, touching, edifying it is!” (337, pp. 199–200). “In it, as in the Gospel, the writings of the Old Testament, prophecies and psalms, the history of faith and piety, and sections from teaching books are often cited as proof of the divinity and salvific nature of faith. Thus, divine service constitutes the most diverse, wise, living and most pleasant fabric of the Spirit of God: it teaches, enlightens, corrects, purifies, heals, renews, strengthens, elevates, enlivens, adores, highly comforts and generally miraculously educates Christian souls in all virtues through the grace of the Holy Spirit, guiding them to eternal life and imparting to them the gift of sonship.” (337, p.218). And here is the first lesson: worship teaches self-knowledge. Self-knowledge is the basis of Christian life and the first condition of repentance and correction. Each person hides a special world, which is revealed only when a person takes the path of spiritual life. Self-knowledge is the science of sciences. But whoever studies it stops sinning, begins to humble himself, and learns: Who Christ is and what are the fruits of His redemptive feat. And how gratifying it is that the Church, through divine services, comes to the aid of its faithful children in this difficult feat. “Nowhere do we enter into ourselves so deeply, sincerely, completely,” says Father John, “as in church, for here God, who saves us, is especially present, His grace is especially at work. Here, with the help of the Church, prayers, readings from the Holy Scriptures, especially the Psalter and church songs, stichera and canons, a person comes to know himself in all his nakedness, his deep fall and corruption, his weakness, his poverty, his damnation, his extreme sinfulness and the infinite mercy of God, truth and holiness... His infinite wisdom and omnipotence. ...Holy church prayers easily introduce a person into self-knowledge, shed tears of tenderness, tame passions, pour peace and joy into the soul, instill mutual love, the spirit of unity, meekness and humility, chastity and abstinence, faith, hope and love” (337, pp. 114–115). “Wonderful spirit of worship of our Church! It gives wide and high flight to Christian souls,” exclaims the holy shepherd! It “nourishes and strengthens faith, hope and love in a Christian” (337, p. 235), “excites everyone to prayer and indicates the objects of prayer” (337, p. 190), encourages pastors, clergy and laity to rise “to the ideal of Christian prayer, burning prayer, embracing everyone with love” (337, p. 278). In addition to the books of the New Testament, texts from the books of the Old Testament are very often used in church services. And this has its own deep meaning. The Old Testament books are used for their teaching content and to confirm that the Old and New Testaments are the beginning and the end of one great work - the salvation of fallen humanity. With the coming to earth of the Savior of the world, many prophecies of the Old Testament righteous were fulfilled. This “serves as irrefutable proof of the truth and salvific nature of our Christian faith and at the same time the surest guarantee that all the prophecies of the prophets, Christ Himself and the apostles about the future fate of the Church of Christ, as well as about the second coming of Christ, the resurrection of the dead, the Last Judgment, the eternal torment of sinners and the eternal bliss of the righteous, will certainly be fulfilled” (337, p.228). So, everything predicted has either been fulfilled or will be fulfilled, and this confirms “the wonderful greatness of our God, His truth, faithfulness, truth, wisdom, omnipotence” (337, p. 240). According to Father John, worship reminds a Christian of eternity. “Having entered the church of the Eternal and the endless Creator of creation,” he says, “you seem to step over the threshold of time and constantly hear the praise of the Eternal and those saints of Him who have been granted eternal life and you yourself learn not to become attached to the temporary and disappearing, but to strive for the constant and eternal, unshakable, unchangeable” (337, p. 125). Having crossed the threshold of the church, a Christian finds himself in another world, the world of love. God is present here - the Source of love, or better said, Love Itself. Here are a host of saints - witnesses of the love of the Gospel. Here one can feel the living connection between the earthly and heavenly Churches. The earthly Church daily glorifies and calls upon the saints of the heavenly Church to intercede for itself. And the saints with their prayers benefit their earthly relatives. The idea that all Orthodox Christians on earth and saints of God in Heaven are “one Church, one house of God, one body, whose Head is the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and the soul is the Holy Spirit Himself” (337, p. 6), encourages Christians to live “worthy of such a relationship - holy, incorruptible, eternal, to sincerely love each other, to help each other, to be forgiving, to endure, to encourage each other to good deeds” (337, p. 6). p.247). “A living conviction that I am a member of the Church,” says the holy shepherd, “that in this living body there is a constant interaction of members of one another, committed by the weak, strong by the weak... serves for me as the greatest consolation, encouragement, and reinforcement in the sorrowful hours of life” (337, pp. 6–7). These words of the All-Russian pastor remind us of the first centuries of Christianity. The first Christians “had one heart and one soul” (Acts 4:32), says the word of God. Their unanimity was expressed both in life - in mutual love, in the communication of possessions, in suffering for the faith, and in prayer. According to Father John, the conversational form of worship in the form of dialogue, “expressing the sociability and unanimity of the clergy and laity” (337, p. 221), also reminds us of the imitation of the holy life of the first Christians. The holy righteous man especially commanded to visit the church of God diligently and as often as possible. “How,” he asks, “was the purity of the Blessed Virgin Mary preserved, more than that of an angel? How was the dignity of the Mother of God higher than heavenly restored? – With the help of Her upbringing and stay in the holy church. ...With faith, righteous Simeon came to the church and found the highest good: he accepted Christ into his arms! So, if the grace of the holy church is so beneficial for saints, then it should be even more beneficial for sinners” (262, p. 33). And there are people who rarely attend church services and consider it enough for themselves to pray at home. But what will they say in justification for the words of Father John: “Streams of grace flow abundantly in the church during public worship and water the souls of the faithful. It is better, stronger, more skillful to fight together against invisible enemies and against the sins that consume and destroy us, than to fight alone” (337, p. 232). The holy shepherd clearly showed how public prayer is superior in its grace-filled power to home prayer. By not visiting the church of God, a Christian voluntarily deprives himself of the fruits of the redemptive feat of Christ the Savior; he cannot have a complete understanding of the moral character of the saints, and therefore cannot know about the grace-filled power of the Church Sacraments. But what is even more dangerous is that such a Christian gradually distorts his moral character, forgets about the purpose of existence and lives meaninglessly, “pleasing... passions and lusts” (337, p. 101). People often have a careless attitude towards worship due to a lack of understanding of its content, sometimes because their souls are not ready to feel its sweetness due to worldly addictions. And there are cases when the blame falls on the pastor if he does not try to instill in his parishioners a love for church services; on the contrary, he performs them carelessly, hastily, or even with large absences. Here it is appropriate for such shepherds to give the advice of Father John. “If people work for so long in the vanity of life and often make us wait in vain for them to finish it,” he says, “then shouldn’t we, the servants of God, work slowly, deliberately, with meaning, with feeling, with great reverence and zeal for the Lord God, reading our prayers clearly, separately? Let them wait for us better than we wait for them” (333, p.28). “The time of prayer, for example, the time of the Liturgy, is God’s time, which should entirely belong to God and the soul, and shortening this time for the sake of man-pleasing or because of worldly benefits is a grave sin. During divine services, a priest must be aware of his high, heavenly dignity as a servant of God, and as a performer of the most heavenly Mysteries, and not to servile people for the sake of vain glory or worldly benefits, not to be afraid of the human face, this grass that is green today and withers tomorrow” (337, p. 220). And here is the answer to those who say that “the priestly profession is a boring matter: everything is the same, the same services, the same words, rituals and so on. Firstly, not everything is always the same, says Father John, but every day the divine service diversifies. The divine mysteries are the same and are always performed in the same way, but the sun is the same, appears on the horizon in the same way every year and every day, shines in the same way and animates creatures in the subsolar, and the stars are the same and the moon too. ...And what is the subject of worship? - Infinite God, His infinite goodness, wisdom, omnipotence, truth, holiness... And the spirit of worship? – The all-encompassing love of the Church for everyone, sacredness, truth, hope in the mercy of God, repentance, hope for eternal life. The ideal of worship is the all-perfection of man, perfect likeness to God through various virtues” (337, pp. 187–188). And again the All-Russian pastor calls Christians to church for worship. “Walk... listen with deep attention... songs, canons, readings and you will get used to it... and love it; you will see, be convinced, how many inclinations of life, peace, and consolation there are in it. There is so much light, strength, shrine, truth in it” (337, p. 180). From frequent attendance at divine services, “the power of the devil over us is weakened, passions, inclinations and sinful tendencies are overcome” (337, p. 275). “We... are more and more appropriated to the Lord, the Lady, the holy angels and the holy saints of God, borrowing from God and the saints the spiritual aroma of holiness and truth... of all virtues... cleansing and strengthening the soul with the grace of Christ and the examples of the virtues of the saints” (337, p. 281). The feeling of the sweetness of church prayer depends entirely on the Christian himself. “You go to divine services and want it to bring significant benefit to your soul and be a true feat and a sacrifice pleasing to God,” teaches Father John, “for this you need to heartily listen with your mind and heart to the litanies, prayers and liturgical hymns” (337, p. 181), you need to develop spiritual hearing in yourself, have “a spiritual mind and heart, cleansed by repentance from passions everyday” (337, p. 114). “Every word of the most ordinary, daily prayers is capable of shaking the soul of a Christian and arousing in it a high, saving mood. Often sung in church, “Lord, have mercy,” strikes at our sinfulness and evokes the consciousness of our constant guilt before God, strikes at our pride and evokes in the meditator a feeling of humility, which is the basis of Christian virtues. This short prayer is the most necessary for every sinner, like food and drink, like clean air to breathe, as a sure medicine for the sick, as an antidote to pride and a lesson in humility” (262, pp. 25–26). In order for church prayer to be beneficial and to be a pleasant sacrifice to God, a Christian must also constantly have the conviction that “God, the Mother of God, the angels and saints see and hear us, they are obedient and quick to obey, benevolent and beneficial more than any person” (337, p. 225). The holy shepherd advises abstaining from food before the service. “Those who go to the divine service having eaten,” he says, “voluntarily impose unnecessary and harmful burdens on themselves and drown their hearts for prayer in advance, blocking access to holy thoughts and holy sensations. ...We must remember that “the Kingdom of God is not food and drink” (Rom. 14:17), that is, God cannot reign in a heart that is burdened with overeating and drinking” (333, p. 320). The meaning of worship for a pastor is great and multifaceted. This is the heart and soul of pastoral work. In worship, everything is aimed at showing, revealing, revealing the enduring essence of church teaching and leading people to salvation. Think, shepherd, what responsibility lies on you! You are a prayer book on behalf of everyone and for everyone. You are “the mouth... the mind and heart of all the people standing and praying in the church” (337, p. 246). During worship, you must be completely united with God and direct your spiritual gaze only to Him. To save others, you must first follow the saving path yourself. You must teach not only in word, but also in deed - by the example of your life, a holy and righteous life, such as that led by Father John of Kronstadt. When life, having engulfed people in its iron grip, crushed them with an unbearable weight, deprived them of human dignity, surrounded them with universal contempt, then they went to Father John, and he received the unfortunate with affection, instilled in them the hope that they too were people, that the path to the Heavenly Father was open for them too. When someone stood at a crossroads in life, not knowing which direction to take their next steps, and everything had already been tried, and there was no one to consult with, then they went to Father John, and he guided them on the right and true path. When someone was struck by a serious illness and all means were tried in a fruitless search for healing, then they remembered the holy shepherd, they turned their prayers to him, and he always, by the strength of the faith of those asking, responded to their prayers and appeared before God as a zealous intercessor. When melancholy, severe inner suffering settled in someone’s heart, and the world with its blessings was powerless to soothe and pacify this suffering, then they went to Father John, cried out their grief on his chest and left comforted, reassured, with new strength and firm hope for God’s help. But where did the holy righteous man himself draw spiritual strength for pastoral service? – In prayer, worship and especially in the Holy Eucharist. The holy righteous father John of Kronstadt was the most complete and perfect embodiment of the ideal of a shepherd who laid down his life for the sheep (John 10:11). His whole life was a continuous sermon. His actions were his mouth. With these lips he theologized, taught, and instructed. With these lips he spoke about the greatness of the Orthodox faith and showed everyone the path to salvation. Therefore, December 20 - the day of the blessed death of Father John - can rightly be considered the feast of the shepherd. And if you, shepherd, want to be “the salt of the earth and the light of the world” (Matthew 5:13–14), lead people to perfection and be the spiritual leader of the people, you must certainly follow the path of Father John. And in order to stand with dignity at the throne, you can also use the personal prayer of the holy righteous man before performing the service: “Give me, Lord, for this service a pure, courageous and vigorous heart, a good-voiced organ of the tongue, a splendid, calm, firm appearance. Grant that we may stand before Thy throne with extreme fear, love and thanksgiving, with a burning spirit. May you pray for yourself and for all people sincerely; praise and thank You on behalf of everyone with a fiery heart and lips; Perform, use and teach the Holy Mysteries with fear and great love. So grant me, Lord, to serve You by the strength of my turn all the days of my life. Amen” (337, p.79). I. Unpublished sources 1. 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The Land of the Russian Sorrow.//Moscow Church Bulletin. June 1990. No. 14 (32), p.4. 58. Golovanov S. A. Ioann Ilyich Sergiev. St. Petersburg, 1903. 59. Grekov A. Brief stories about the Verkolsky monastery with the application of sermons by Father John Sergiev. St. Petersburg, 1897. 60. Grinyakin N. About some “Johnnites”.//Additions to the “Church Gazette”. 1910. No. 8, pp. 364–365. 61. Gumerov A. A. If we want to be the salt of the world.//Literary Irkutsk. April 1990, pp.6–7. 62. Gury, Bishop of Samara. Church in commemoration of the visit and prayer stay in the city of Samara of Father John Sergius of Kronstadt.//Russian Pilgrim. 1894. No. 38, p. 607. 63. Long-standing judgments about John of Kronstadt about the current war.//Russian Pilgrim. 1914. No. 48. pp.762–763. 64. Two instructive cases.//Russian Pilgrim. 1887. No. 1, p. 14. 65. Two cases of grace-filled healing.//Russian Pilgrim. 1886. No. 29, p. 293. 66. Actions and orders of the government in connection with the death of Father John Ilyich Sergiev. // Wanderer. 1909. No. 1, pp. 74–78. 67. A day in Kronstadt.//Perm Diocesan Gazette. 1893. No. 9. 68. Derzhavin N. The Great Shepherd.//ZhMP. 1989. No. 8, pp. 22–25. 69. Dobrovolsky V., archpriest. Word on the 40th day of the death of Archpriest John Sergiev (January 28).//Faith and Reason. 1909. No. 3, pp. 277–283. 70. Dobronravov John, priest. Healing of a sick woman through the prayers of Father John Ilyich Sergiev and the consequences of failure to fulfill a vow.//Sunday reading. 1902. No. 47. 71. Doganovich A. N. From my memories of Father John of Kronstadt. // Diary of a writer. 1908. No. 2. 72. Dudarev P.I. Archpriest John Ilyich Sergiev. Novocherkassk, 1910. 73. The spiritual inheritance of the father of Archpriest John Sergiev. // Wanderer. 1909. No. 11, pp. 642–644. 74. Spiritual flowers for the grave of the good priest Father John Ilyich Sergiev. St. Petersburg, 1909. 75. Dukhonina E.V. From my memories of Father John of Kronstadt. St. Petersburg, 1907. 76. Dukhonina E.V. How Father John Ilyich Sergiev put me on the path of salvation. Diary of Father John's spiritual daughter. St. Petersburg, 1911. 77. D. A. B. The newly created cathedral Assumption Church in the Sursky Convent.//Russian Pilgrim. 1915. No. 33, pp. 525–528. 78. D. O. Day in Kronstadt.//Russian Pilgrim. 1893. No. 9–10. 79. Evdokim, bishop. Father John of Kronstadt. Responses from the press regarding his death. Sergiev Posad, 1910. 80. Evlogy (Georgievsky), metropolitan. The path of my life. Paris, 1947. 81. Elchaninov A.V., priest. Records. Paris, 1978. 82. Epifanov P. L. Speech addressed to Father John.//Russian Pilgrim. 1897. No. 44, pp. 706–707. 83. More about deification. (About the sect of the Johannites).//Russian Pilgrim. 1903. No. 15, p. 266. 84. E. N. Explanation of the Liturgy. M., 1904. 85. A welcome meeting.//Russian Pilgrim. 1894. No. 34, pp. 531–532. 86. Zherebtsova M. F. Mitred Archpriest Father John Ilyich Sergiev, his life, work and death. St. Petersburg, 1909. 87. Zherebtsova M. F. At the source of living water. A day in Kronstadt and the confession of Father John Ilyich Sergiev. St. Petersburg, 1895. 88. Zhivotov N. N. Biography of Father John Ilyich Sergiev, Archpriest of St. Andrew's Cathedral. M., 1892. 89. Zhivotov N. N. Father John Ilyich Sergiev of Kronstadt, Archpriest of St. Andrew's Cathedral. M., 1894. 90. Zhivotov N. N. Pastoration of Father John Ilyich Sergiev, Archpriest of St. Andrew's Cathedral. M., 1892. 91. Zhivotov N. N. The exploits of Father John Ilyich Sergiev. M., 1892. 92. Zhivotovsky S. From memories of Fr. John.//Russian Pilgrim. 1909. No. 4, pp. 63–66. 93. Zhivotovsky S. On a ship from the island. John of Kronstadt.//Russian Pilgrim. 1904. No. 18, pp. 304–306. 94. Zhivotovsky S. Thirty-four days from Fr. John.//Russian Pilgrim. 1903. No. 42, 44, 46. 95. The life and works of Archpriest Ioann Ilyich Sergiev. M., 1894. 96. The life of Father Ioann Ilyich Sergiev. With an autobiography and detailed stories about deeds of mercy (1829–1890). Compiled from printed sources over 30 years. St. Petersburg, 1890. 97. The life of Father John of Kronstadt. Ed. 2. M., 1903. 98. The Life of Saint Righteous John the Presbyter and Wonderworker of Kronstadt. B. m., 1990. Photocopy. 99. Life of Elder Seraphim. Murom, 1893. 100. Journal of the Moscow Patriarchate. No. 9, 1990. 101. Zaitsev B. John of Kronstadt. (From the writer’s diary).//Moscow Church Bulletin. June. 1990. No. 14(32), p.8. 102. Zverev V.N. In memory of Father John Ilyich Sergiev.//Orthodox life. 1950. No. 2. 103. Zdanevich M.V. Review of the anonymous brochure “New and traditional spiritual speakers Father Grigory Petrov and John of Kronstadt.” St. Petersburg, 1903. 104. Abuse of the name of Fr. John.//Russian Pilgrim. 1903. No. 35, p. 606. 105. Signs of God's mercy revealed through Father John of Kronstadt.//Russian Pilgrim. 1915. No. 9, 11. 106. Znamensky Ya. I. Father John Ilyich Sergiev on the Volga in the summer of 1894. St. Petersburg, 1895. 107. Znamensky Ya. I. The journey of Father John of Kronstadt along Sheksna and the Volga in the summer of 1893. // Russian Pilgrim. 1894. No. 18, 20–23, 25. 108. Zubarev L., archpriest. Ministry of the word. B. m., 1950. Typescript. 109. Zybin A. L. Ioann Ilyich Sergiev. Archpriest, sacristan of the Kronstadt St. Andrew's Cathedral. Pg., 1891. 110. Ivanov A., professor. On the need for broad education for pastors.//ZhMP, 1957. No. 1, pp. 54–56. 111. Ivanov D. A. To the most gracious of mortals, Father John of Kronstadt on the day of the anniversary. Poems. St. Petersburg, 1902. 112. Ivanov M. Memories of Archpriest Father John Ilyich Sergiev of Kronstadt.//Notice on the Kazan diocese. 1909. No. 8. 113. Ivanovsky Vladimir, priest. Conversations between Father John Ilyich Sergiev and the Nizhny Novgorod clergy.//Nizhny Novgorod Diocesan Gazette. 1901. No. 20. 114. Ignatov F. Memories of Father John of Kronstadt.//Volyn Diocesan Gazette. 1914. No. 6. 115. From the life of Fr. John.//Russian Pilgrim. 1909. No. 4, pp. 53–56. 116. From Sergiev Posad.//Additions to the Church Gazette. 1895. No. 7, p. 272. 117. Ilyinsky V., priest. Near Father Ioann Ilyich Sergiev. (According to personal memories).//Wanderer. 1909. No. 2, pp. 145–163. 118. Ilmensky Sergei Petrovich, archpriest. Father John Ilyich Sergiev is the guiding star of Russian pastors. (New Year's wishes to pastors). Saratov, 1914. 119. Ilmensky S., priest. In memory of the unforgettable prayer book of the Russian Church, dear Father Fr. John of Kronstadt. Saratov, 1911. 120. Joannitka on Valaam.//Russian Pilgrim. 1905. No. 37, p. 586. 121. Ioannites.//Russian Pilgrim. 1905. No. 32, p. 506. 122. Ioannovsky Convent in St. Petersburg.//Russian Pilgrim. 1909. No. 4, p. 60. 123. Confessors of Father John of Kronstadt. General and private confession of the Orthodox by the Archpriest of St. Andrew's Cathedral in Kronstadt, Father John Ilyich Sergiev. St. Petersburg, 1891. 124. Source of living water. Description of the life and work of Father John of Kronstadt. St. Petersburg, 1910. 125. Healing of a demon-possessed woman through the prayers of Father John Sergiev.//Helmsman. 1901. No. 41. 126. Healings through the prayers of Father John of Kronstadt.//Russian Pilgrim. 1894. No. 15, p. 239. 127. Kalishevich A., deacon. The life and work of Archpriest John Ilyich Sergiev. Pochaev, 1913. 128. Kartashov A.V. Historical frame to the life of St. Seraphim of Sarov.//Church Bulletin. (Testimony of Father John Sergiev). Paris, 1953. No. 4 (43). 129. Kasatkin A. In eternal memory there will be a righteous man. St. Petersburg, 1909. 130. Katansky L.E. Spiritual Father of Holy Rus'. St. Petersburg, 1907. 131. A Catholic about an Orthodox priest.//Wanderer. 1909. No. 11. pp.644–646. 132. Catholic church seal about Father John Sergiev.//Additions to the “Church Gazette”. 1909. No. 7, pp. 353–354. 133. Kyiv S. In blessed memory of Father John of Kronstadt.//Russian Pilgrim. 1909. No. 25. 134. Kiselev N.P. Father John Sergiev in Crimea. St. Petersburg, 1895. 135. Knyagnitsky I. Trip to Kronstadt. (Impressions of a provincial).//Historical Bulletin. 1900. T.80. No. 5. 136. Kolachev V. A noteworthy book by Father Ioann Ilyich Sergiev “Thoughts of a Christian.” St. Petersburg, 1903. 137. Kolokolnikov M., priest. Father John of Kronstadt. Essay on his life and work. Reading offered at the Vladimir Reading Room in Kazan on January 18, 1909. Kazan, 1909. 138. Death and burial of Father John. St. Petersburg, b.g. 139. Korolkov A. Friendly conversation from memories of good people. St. Petersburg, 1903. 140. Korolkov K., priest. Archpriest Fr. John Ilyich Sergiev of Kronstadt. Kiev, 1909. 141. Kostin Sergey. Experience of pastoral counseling in the practice of Archpriest Ioann Ilyich Sergiev. Course essay. Zagorsk, 1987. Typescript. 142. Krasnogorsky Dimitri, priest. Speech delivered on the 40th day since the death of Ivan Ilyich Sergiev. B. m., b. g. 143. Godchildren of the popularly revered Father John Ilyich Sergiev. St. Petersburg, 1909. 144. Kronstadt lamp. Saratov, 1910. 145. Kruglov A.V. Kronstadt Shepherd. M., 1902. 146. Kuznetsov Nikolai, deacon. Father John in Sura.//Russian Pilgrim. 1905. No. 31, pp. 482–483. 147. K.R. The Journey of Father John.//Russian Pilgrim. 1892. No. 29, p. 463. 148. Lakhostsky Pavel, archpriest. Father John of Kronstadt as the celebrant of the Divine Liturgy.//Additions to the “Church Gazette”. 1911. No. 1, pp. 34–38. 149. Lakhostsky Pavel, archpriest. Father John Ilyich Sergiev, as a bright exponent of the ideals of the Russian people. Speech on the 40th day after his death.//Additions to the Church Gazette. 1909. No. 6, pp. 263–266. 150. Lebedev V. my memory of the trip to Father John in Kronstadt.//Pskov Diocesan Gazette. 1896. Nos. 21–24. 151. Levashev P. N. Archpriest John Ilyich Sergiev, as a shepherd according to the covenant of Christ. // Ed. magazine "Good Word", St. Petersburg, 1908. 152. Levitsky P. P. Archpriest John Ilyich Sergiev. Some features from his life. Pg., 1916. 153. Loginov P. G. Father John Ilyich Sergiev Kronstadt Archpriest of St. Andrew's Cathedral. Odessa, 1891. 154. Lvova E. In blessed memory of Father John. Poem.//Russian Pilgrim. 1909. No. 4, p. 66. 155. L-A. O. John of Kronstadt in the characteristics of the English magazine.//Church Bulletin. 1899. No. 42, pp. 1478–1480. 156. Macarius (Bulgakov), Metropolitan. Orthodox-Dogmatic Theology. T.4. St. Petersburg, 1852. 157. Maksimov V. The moral influence of Father John Ilyich Sergiev on spiritual children. St. Petersburg, 1902. 158. Maksimov V. Collection of poems dedicated to Father John Ilyich Sergiev. St. Petersburg, 1901. 159. Makushev V.V. To all Orthodox Christians the spiritual heritage of Father John Ilyich Sergiev. St. Petersburg, 1911. 160. Menshikov M. M. Obituary of Father John Ilyich Sergiev.//Church Bulletin. 1909. No. 1. 161. Merzly K. A. Memories of a soldier about Father John of Kronstadt.//Soulful reading. 1916. No. 2. 162. Methodius, hieromonk. Father John Ilyich Sergiev. (1829–1908). Sliven, 1938. 163. Methodius, archimandrite. Father John Ilyich Sergiev (1829–1908). Part 1. Translation from Bulgarian. Sofia, 1957. Typescript. 164. Methodius, archimandrite. Father John Ilyich Sergiev (1829–1908). Part 2. Translation from Bulgarian. Sofia, 1957. Typescript. 165. Meshcherskaya Maria, princess. Great Shepherd.//Russian Pilgrim. 1909. No. 50, pp. 808–809. 166. Meshchersky V. Two days in Kronstadt. From the diary of a student (later Bishop Evdokim of Meshchersky). Ed. 2. Holy Trinity Lavra of Sergius, 1902. 167. Migulin A. A. In blessed memory of the unforgettable shepherd. Astrakhan, 1914. 168. God's mercy and gracious help through the prayers of Father John. St. Petersburg, 1917. 169. Mitrofan, archimandrite. In a series of prayer and service to the word. About the 1st anniversary of the commemoration of Father John Ilyich Sergiev. St. Petersburg, 1910. 170. Michael, hieromonk. Nineteenth of October, Fr. John.//Russian Pilgrim. 1903. No. 42, pp. 707–708. 171. Mikhail (Semyonov), hieromonk. Father John Ilyich Sergiev. (Full biography with illustrations). St. Petersburg, 1903. 172. Mikhailovsky V. Word on the name day of Father Ioann Ilyich Sergiev, Archpriest of the Kronstadt St. Andrew's Cathedral. St. Petersburg, 1894. 173. Mishin P. Father John Sergiev, as a living apologist of Orthodoxy.//Educational, theological and church-preaching experiences of KDA students. 1915. Issue. 13, pp.269–376. 174. Muravyov A. Russian Thebaid in the north. St. Petersburg, 1855. 175. M. S. Archpriest John Ilyich Sergiev.//Additions to the “Church Gazette”, 1909. No. 1, pp. 30–33. 176. M-sky. At the name day in Kronstadt.//Russian Pilgrim. 1903. No. 43, p. 730. 177. In memory of Fr. John of Kronstadt on the day of his Angel, October 19.//Russian Pilgrim. 1911. No. 42, pp. 668–669. 178. Nartsizova A. Letters about travels with father Ioann Ilyich Sergiev to his homeland and other places. St. Petersburg, 1894. 179. Nartsizova A. Trip to Goritsky Kinovia and meeting with Fr. John of Kronstadt.//Russian Pilgrim. 1892. No. 42, 43. 180. Nartsizova A. Travel from the island. John of Kronstadt to his homeland.//Russian Pilgrim. 1893. No. 42, 44, 45, 48. 181. A clergyman's handbook. T.4. Ed. Moscow Patriarchate. M., 1983. 182. Our soldiers at the tomb of Father John of Kronstadt.//Russian Pilgrim. 1914. No. 48, p. 766, 768. 183. Nestor (Anisimov), Metropolitan of Kirovograd and Nikolaev. My memories. B. m., 1961. Typescript. 184. Nikanor (Kamensky), Archbishop of Kazan. Father John Ilyich Sergiev, as a comforter to the grieving and embittered. Kazan, 1909. 185. Nikanor (Kamensky), Archbishop of Kazan. A word about Father John of Kronstadt, spoken ... December 22, 1908, Kazan, 1909. 186. Nikitin D.V. On the shore and at sea. (Detailed... memories of Father John Sergiev). B. m., b. g. 187. Nikon, hieromonk. The life and exploits of our venerable and God-bearing father Sergius, abbot of Radonezh and wonderworker of all Russia. Holy Trinity Sergius Lavra. 1904. 188. Nikon (Rozhdestvensky), bishop. About Father John Sergiev. Attitude to church public schools of the State Duma of the third convocation.//Church Gazette. 1912. No. 4, p. 1783. 189. The beggars of Father John of Kronstadt. St. Petersburg, 1891. 190. Novikov-Priboy, captain 1st rank. Description of the general confession performed by Father John Ilyich Sergiev. B. m., b. g. 191. New healing through the prayer of Father John of Kronstadt.//Russian Pilgrim. 1892. No. 34, pp. 543–544. 192. New journey of Father John of Kronstadt.//Russian Pilgrim. 1894. No. 26, p. 414. 193. The newly created church in “New Orenburg”.//Russian Pilgrim. 1915. No. 50, pp. 790–792. 194. New healings through the prayers of Fr. John of Kronstadt. St. Petersburg, 1909. 195. A new case of healing of a priest’s blind daughter, with an appendix of an essay on the life of Father John Ilyich Sergiev of Kronstadt. St. Petersburg, 1903. 196. N.N. Visit by Father John of Kronstadt to the village of Alekseevka, Khvalynsky district.//Russian Pilgrim. 1894. No. 36, pp. 570–571. 197. N.P. Healings through the prayer of Father John of Kronstadt before the court of science.//Russian Pilgrim. 1894. No. 11, 12. 198. About the illness of Fr. John.//Russian Pilgrim. 1905. No. 2, pp. 28–30. 199. About the good shepherd.//Church Bulletin. Warsaw, 1959. No. 12, p. 39. 200. Ozerov D. Father John Ilyich Sergiev. Zaraysk, 1909. 201. Description of the celebration of the 35th anniversary of the Archpriest of St. Andrew's Cathedral in Kronstadt, Father John Ilyich Sergiev. Kronstadt, 1891. 202. Ornatsky Ioann Nikolaevich, archpriest. The life and works of the ever-memorable archpriest Father John Ilyich Sergiev. M., 1916. 203. Ornatsky Ioann Nikolaevich, archpriest. A few memories of Father John Sergiev (how he imitated his heavenly patron, St. John of Rila). St. Petersburg, 1911. 204. Ornatsky Philosopher, archpriest. Homily on the 40th day after the death of Father John Sergiev.//Additions to the Church Gazette, 1909. No. 5, p. 217. 205. About the power of faith according to the leadership of Father John Ilyich Sergiev. M., 1894. 206. From the grains of the Gospel. St. Petersburg, b.g. 207. Father John and Count Tolstoy.//Russian Pilgrim. 1903. No. 37, pp. 626–627. 208. Father John Ilyich Sergiev. (Responses from the press regarding his death). Sergiev Posad, 1910. 209. Father John Ilyich Sergiev in his letters to his relatives. St. Petersburg, 1909. 210. Father John Ilyich Sergiev, his life, exploits, miracles. (To the 100th anniversary of his birth).//Ed. magazine "For Orthodoxy". Paris, 1929. 211. Father John Ilyich Sergiev as a charitable pastor. St. Petersburg, 1913. 212. Father John Ilyich Sergiev among the people. M., 1896. 213. Father John of Kronstadt. St. Petersburg, Svet, 1909. 214. Father John of Kronstadt.//Russian Pilgrim. 1886. No. 44, pp. 475–476. 215. Father John of Kronstadt. Healing of a woman in the village of Konchanskoye, Novgorod province. Ed. T. F. Kurt. St. Petersburg, 1901. 216. Father John of Kronstadt in foreign press.//Russian Pilgrim. 1893. No. 4, pp. 63–64. 217. Father John of Kronstadt in Kiev.//Russian Pilgrim. 1893. No. 20, pp. 315–318. 218. Father John of Kronstadt in Kostroma. Ed. V. Maksimova. St. Petersburg, 1903. 219. Father John of Kronstadt is a friend of sobriety. // “Sober Life”. Book 4, St. Petersburg, 1904, pp. 1–31. 220. Father John of Kronstadt, healing drunkards. Ed. 2. St. Petersburg, 1896. 221. Father John of Kronstadt heals Jews and Tatars. (The miraculous power of the prayers of Father John of Kronstadt). St. Petersburg, 1902. 222. Review of the book: “My life in Christ, or moments of spiritual sobriety and contemplation, reverent feelings, spiritual correction and peace in God.”//Russian Pilgrim. 1892. No. 4, pp. 54–55. 223. Reviews of diocesan bishops on the issue of church reform. Paisius, Bishop of Turkestan, about Father John Sergiev. T.1. St. Petersburg, 1906, p. 49. 224. Essay on the life of Father John Ilyich Sergiev, Archpriest of St. Andrew's Cathedral in Kronstadt. Ed. A. A. Kholmushina. St. Petersburg, 1903. 225. Pavlovich P. Russian St. John the Theological Convent.//Russian Pilgrim. 1915. No. 33, pp. 522–524. 226. Pavlovich Feodor, archpriest. Patient sufferer. Funeral word. B. m., b. g. 227. In memory of Father John Ilyich Sergiev.//Additions to the “Church Gazette”. 1910. No. 25, p. 1049. 228. In memory of Father John of Kronstadt.//Church Bulletin. 1909. No. 6, pp. 161–163. 229. In memory of Father John Sergiev.//Additions to the Church Gazette, 1909. No. 8, p. 364. 230. Memo for the 30th anniversary of the death of the shepherd of the Russian Land, Father John Ilyich Sergiev, 1908–1938. Paris, 1938. 231. Panteleimon, archimandrite. Father John Ilyich Sergiev. Life and creations. B. m., b. g. Typescript. 232. Paozersky M. F. Impressions of the first concelebration of Father John Sergius of Kronstadt at the Divine Liturgy. // Spiritual Bulletin, 1897. No. 32. 233. Pariysky L. In memory of Grigory Fedorovich Lvovsky (composer) ZHMP. 1948. No. 11, p. 68. 234. Pastoral wreath to dear priest Father John Ilyich Sergiev. St. Petersburg, 1911. 235. The good shepherd. Mitred Archpriest John of Kronstadt. M., 1905. 236. Pestryakov F., priest. To the death of the good shepherd. Poem.//Russian Pilgrim. 1909. No. 4, p. 52. 237. Petrov L.P., archpriest. Memories... St. Petersburg, 1909. 238. Petrov P. Prophecies of the holy righteous John of Kronstadt about the fate of Russia, the Russian people and his gift of foresight. From the book: “Ray of Light”, Part 1. Jordanville, Holy Trinity Monastery, 1970, pp. 61–69. 239. Petrovich V. Celebration in the Spaso-Yakovlevsky Rostov Monastery. Poem.//Russian Pilgrim, 1914. No. 48, p. 767. 240. Letter from His Beatitude Patriarch Meletios of Antioch to Archpriest Father John Sergiev.//Russian Pilgrim. 1904. No. 1, p. 8. 241. Platonova A. Shepherd prayer book. (Essay on the life of Father John Ilyich Sergiev). St. Petersburg, 1912. 242. Plotitsa A. N. Father John Ilyich Sergiev. M., 1915. 243. Imitate Father John Ilyich Sergiev in the faith of God. St. Petersburg, 1911. 244. Trip o. Archpriest John Sergiev in Sura and the opening of the Sura parochial school.//Russian Pilgrim. 1893. No. 32, pp. 505–508. 245. Through the prayer of Father John.//Russian Pilgrim. 1893. No. 19, p. 303. 246. Ponomarev A., professor. In the old years of our Academy. (Memories of Father John Ilyich Sergiev).//Church Bulletin. 1909. No. 49. 247. Popov G. O. John at the Kyiv Theological Academy.//Russian Pilgrim. 1903. No. 41, p. 702. 248. Popov I., archpriest. To the unforgettable memory of dear father Father John Ilyich Sergiev. St. Petersburg, 1909. 249. Popov Ioann, priest. Trip to Kronstadt to visit Father John. M., 1901. 250. Regarding the diary of Fr. John of Kronstadt.//Russian Pilgrim. 1892. No. 10, pp. 157–158. 251. Villager E. Spiritual image of Fr. John.//Russian Pilgrim. 1909. No. 4, pp. 51–52. 252. Villager E. Father John.//Russian Pilgrim. 1905. No. 7, p. 92. 253. Villager E. Flighted Angel.//Russian Pilgrim. 1908. No. 52, p. 856b. 254. Villager E. In memory of Father John of Kronstadt.//Russian Pilgrim. 1909. No. 50, pp. 807–808. 255. Villager E. In memory of Father John Sergiev.//Additions to the “Church Gazette”, 1909. No. 2, pp. 82–83. 256. Visit about. John of Yekaterinburg.//Russian Pilgrim. 1905. No. 30, p. 474. 257. The last days and blessed death of Father John of Kronstadt, the Highest Rescript and miracles at the tomb. St. Petersburg, 1911. 258. The last days and minutes of Father John.//Russian Pilgrim. 1909. No. 4, p. 57. 259. The last sermons of Father John Ilyich Sergiev, delivered in the Ioannovsky Monastery. (Bibliographic note about the book).//Additions to the “Church Gazette”. 1911. No. 15, p. 711. 260. Resolutions of the Deputy Patriarchal Locum Tenens and the Temporary Patriarchal Holy Synod. On the general confession of October 30, 1929 // ZhMP. 1931. No. 2, p. 1. 261. Truth is more valuable than gold. Testament from the sacred tomb of the ever-memorable father John Ilyich Sergiev on the day of the fifth anniversary of his blessed death on December 20, 1908. St. Petersburg, 1914. 262. Truth is more valuable than gold. What Orthodox hierarchs and foreigners say about Fr. John of Kronstadt. Pg., 1915. 263. Celebrating the name day of Archpriest Ioann Ilyich Sergiev. St. Petersburg, 1888. 264. Celebrating the 50th anniversary of Fr. John.//Russian Pilgrim. 1905. No. 52, p. 840. 265. Preobrazhensky A.F. Shepherd-ascetic. Kazan. 1909. 266. Preobrazhensky I. The Great Priest of the Russian Land in reviews of him in the periodical press on the occasion of his death.//Missionary Review. 1909. No. 3, pp. 434–454. 267. Additions to the Church Gazette. 1891. No. 18, pp. 575–580. 268. Additions to the Church Gazette. 1897. No. 21, p. 722. 269. Additions to the Church Gazette. 1901. No. 2, p. 63. 270. Protestant exploitation of the name of Fr. John of Kronstadt.//Church Bulletin. 1899. No. 9, pp. 321–325. 271. Archpriest John Ilyich Sergiev.//Russian Pilgrim. 1886. No. 18. 272. Archpriest John Ilyich Sergiev, as a shepherd according to the covenant of Christ.//Ed. editors of the magazine "Good Word". St. Petersburg, 1908. 273. Archpriest John Ilyich Sergiev (Kronstadt).//“Church life of the north-west”. 1990. No. 3, pp. 1–3. 274. Archpriest John Sergiev.//ZhMP. 1988. No. 10, pp. 49–50. 275. Archpriest Father John Ilyich Sergiev as a pastor-preacher. Kiev, 1902. 276. Archpriest John Ilyich Sergiev as a pastor-preacher. Kharkov, 1902. 277. Pustoshkin V.F. The voice of true freedom. St. Petersburg, 1909. 278. P-sky N. The personality of Father John of Kronstadt according to a psychiatrist. // Russian Pilgrim. 1894. No. 42, pp. 658–659. 279. A rare shepherd. Archpriest John Ilyich Sergiev, rector of St. Andrew's Cathedral. St. Petersburg, 1910. 280. Rozanov V.V. Reviews about Father John Ilyich Sergiev.//Additions to the “Church Gazette”. 1909. No. 1, pp. 25–29. 281. Rostovsky A. Father John Ilyich Sergiev, as a missionary.//Additions to the “Church Gazette”. 1909. No. 51, pp. 2412–2417; 1910. No. 10, pp. 451–454. 282. Runkevich S.G. Modern preachers. St. Petersburg, 1896. 283. Russian Pilgrim. 1915, No. 33, p. 528. 284. Savelyev A. Through the prayer of Father John of Kronstadt.//Russian Pilgrim. 1894. No. 2, p. 31. 285. A collection of poems dedicated to the memory of Father John Ilyich Sergiev. Pg., 1914. 286. In blessed memory of the great prayer book of the Russian land. The last days of the life of Father John.//Russian Pilgrim. 1908. No. 52. p.856a–856b. 287. Svetozarov A. Visit to Fr. John of Kronstadt Oryol Theological Seminary.//Russian Pilgrim. 1893. No. 51, p. 811. 288. Saint Basil the Great. Creations. Part 4. Conversation 9. Sergiev Posad, 1892. 289. Saint John Chrysostom. Creations. T.6. Conversation about Susanna. B. m., b. g. 290. Saint John Chrysostom. Creations. T.8. Book 1. St. Petersburg, 1902. 291. Saint Theophan, Bishop of Tambov. Letter... about Father John Ilyich Sergiev. // Wanderer. 1895. No. 8, pp. 534–535. 292. Our Holy Righteous Father John, the Wonderworker of Kronstadt. From the book: “Ray of Light.” Part 1. Jordanville, Holy Trinity Monastery, 1970, pp. 29–44. 293. Semyonov Mikhail, priest. Kronstadt lighthouse. (October 19, 1903) For the name day of Father John Sergiev. St. Petersburg, 1903. 294. Semenov-Tyan-Shansky Alexander, priest. Father John Ilyich Sergiev. New York, 1955. 295. Seraphim, abbot. In memory of Father Ioann Ilyich Sergiev. Tomsk, 1913. 296. Seraphim (Chichagov), archbishop. A word before the memorial service on the 40th day after the death of Father John Ilyich Sergiev. Chisinau, 1909. 297. Seraphim (Chichagov), archbishop. A word... before the memorial service on the 40th day of the death of Father John Ilyich Sergiev.//Faith and Reason. 1909. No. 4, pp. 417–428. 298. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Autobiography... North. St. Petersburg, 1888. 299. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Conversations about the beatitudes of the Gospel. Vol. 2. Kronstadt, 1890. 300. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Conversations about God - the Holy Trinity. St. Petersburg, 1888. 301. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Conversations about God the Creator and Provider of the world, delivered in the Kronstadt St. Andrew's Cathedral. St. Petersburg, 1903. 302. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Conversations delivered in Kronstadt St. Andrew's Cathedral in 1869. Ed. 1. Kronstadt, 1887. 303. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Blessed thoughts about heavenly and earthly things. (From a diary of 1895). St. Petersburg, 1901. 304. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Knowledge of God and self-knowledge acquired from experience. St. Petersburg, 1900. 305. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Fraternal appeal... to the troops of the Manchurian army.//Russian Pilgrim. 1905. No. 8, pp. 106–107. 306. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. A believer can always meet the Lord in the church. St. Petersburg, 1903. 307. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. In Your light we will see light. St. Petersburg, 1908. 308. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. For the glory of God. (New words and teachings). St. Petersburg, 1908. 309. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. The voice of a shepherd. Tver, 1901. 310. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Grief of the Heart (Extracts from a diary...) St. Petersburg, 1908. 311. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. The bitter truth about modern women and girls. St. Petersburg, 1903. 312. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. From the word “Sin”.//Russian pilgrim. 1905. No. 11, p. 154. 313. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. The terrible word of Father John about the Last Judgment. M., 1906. 314. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Terrible words about the Last Judgment of God. M., 1914. 315. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Diary. St. Petersburg, 1897. 316. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. A kind word to the children... St. Petersburg, 1904. 317. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. A kind word to husband and wife. St. Petersburg, 1903. 318. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Gospels of Holy Week with teachings and explanations. Ed. 2. St. Petersburg, 1913. 319. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. A living word of spiritual wisdom. (From the diary of 1905–1906). St. Petersburg, 1911. 320. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. A living ear of grain from a spiritual field. (Extracts from the diary... for 1907–1908). Ed. 2nd. St. Petersburg, 1914. 321. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Life in the depths of the Church. (From a diary for 1902). St. Petersburg, 1903. 322. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Testaments... about the holy faith and the Orthodox Church. St. Petersburg, 1909. 323. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Golden words... about the meaning of the Orthodox faith. St. Petersburg, 1914. 324. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. From the diary.//Russian Pilgrim. 1892. Nos. 1–13, 15–37, 41–45, 47–52; 1893. Nos. 1–12, 14–29, 33–52; 1894. Nos. 1–15, 18–24, 26–37, 39–52. 325. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. From the teachings... St. Petersburg, 1896. 326. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Selected passages from “Contemplative Asceticism.” (Extracts from the diary for 1906–1907). Ed. M.U. St. Petersburg, 1914. 327. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Confession from the diary...//Helmsman. 1914. No. 10, pp. 101–102. 328. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. The Truth of Orthodoxy. St. Petersburg, 1905. 329. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Catechetical conversations. Kronstadt, 1859. 330. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. From the words “God’s love and our negligence.//Russian Pilgrim. 1903. No. 6, p. 92. 331. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. My answer to the editors of some newspapers.//Russian Pilgrim. 1903. No. 37, p. 627. 332. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. My life in Christ or moments of spiritual sobriety and contemplation, reverent feelings, spiritual correction and peace in God. T.1. Ed. 4. M., 1894. 333. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. My life in Christ or moments of spiritual sobriety and contemplation, reverent feelings, spiritual correction and peace in God. T.2. Ed. 4. M., 1894. 334. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. My life in Christ. (Selected places systematically located by priest Alexander Elchaninov). Paris, 1984. 335. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Thoughts on worship. From the diary of Fr. John of Kronstadt. Jordanville, Holy Trinity Monastery, 1954. 336. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Thoughts on various subjects of Christian faith and morality. St. Petersburg, 1897. 337. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Thoughts about the Church and Orthodox worship. T.3. St. Petersburg, 1905. 338. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Thoughts... regarding the Jewish pogrom in Chisinau.//Russian Pilgrim. 1903. No. 20, p. 334. 339. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Thoughts of a Christian. (Extracts from the book “My Life in Christ”). St. Petersburg, 1903. 340. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Instructions... when performing the Sacrament of Penance. SPb.: Type. A. Katansky, 1894. 341. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Instructions... when performing the Sacrament of Penance. Ed. S.I. Okhotsky. St. Petersburg, 1894. 342. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Instructions for studying children... St. Petersburg, 1902. 343. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Heaven is open to the penitent. (Word for the Week of Orthodoxy). St. Petersburg, 1905. 344. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. A few words to denounce the false teaching of Count L.N. Tolstoy. M., 1898. 345. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. A new continuation of the book “My Life in Christ.” (Extracts from the diary for 1906-1907). St. Petersburg, 1910. 346. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Now is the favorable time, now is the day of salvation. St. Petersburg, 1902. 347. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. About the grace of the Holy Spirit. Lessons of a grace-filled life. M., 1898. 348. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Accusatory words. A tale of vodka, tobacco and foul language. St. Petersburg, 1911. 349. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. About soul-destroying drunkenness and the Last Judgment of God. St. Petersburg, 1911. 350. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. About soul-destroying drunkenness, swearing and smoking. Pg., 1915. 351. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. About the end of the world. Extracts from his works. M., 1913. 352. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. About the Cross of Christ. In denunciation of the imaginary Old Believers. Course essay. M., 1898. 353. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. About shepherding. St. Petersburg, 1894. 354. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. About the Orthodox priesthood. In Your light we will see light. St. Petersburg, b.g. 355. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. About social life. M., 1894. 356. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. About the holy church. M., 1894. 357. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. About holy days. (Christmas time). M., 1894. 358. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. About the Last Judgment and the Antichrist. St. Petersburg, b.g. 359. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Some thoughts about the Church or the community of believers. (From the diary of Archpriest John Sergiev). B. m., b. g. 360. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. From death to life. St. Petersburg, b.g. 361. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. About the Christian enduring of sorrows. M., 1894. 362. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. From the word: “On royal anointing.”//Russian Pilgrim. 1903. No. 22, p. 370. 363. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Before confession about confession. What is sin and how to get rid of it? St. Petersburg, 1902. 364. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Letters... to the abbess of the St. John the Baptist Leushinsky first-class monastery, Abbess Taisia. (149 letters). St. Petersburg, 1909. 365. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Letter to His Beatitude the Patriarch of Antioch.//Russian Pilgrim. 1904. No. 12, p. 201. 366. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Complete set of works. T.1. 1) Conversations about God the Most Holy Trinity. 2) Conversations about the beatitudes of the Gospel. 3) Words and teachings for the feasts of the Lord. 4) Words and teachings for the feasts of the Mother of God. Ed. 1. Kronstadt, 1890. 367. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Complete set of works. T.2. A full circle of words, teachings and conversations on Weekly (Sunday) days and St. Pentecost. St. Petersburg, 1891. 368. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Complete set of works. T.3. 1) Teachings, words and speeches on the church holidays of the Kronstadt St. Andrew’s Cathedral and various occasions. 2) Words for highly solemn days. 3) Various speeches, words and teachings. 4) Life, suffering and miracles of St. All-praised Great Martyr Euphemia. Ed. 2. St. Petersburg, 1896. 369. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Complete set of works. T.4. “My life in Christ” or moments of spiritual sobriety and contemplation, reverent feelings, spiritual correction and peace in God. (Extracts from the diary. Part 1). Ed. 2., St. Petersburg, 1893. 370. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Complete set of works. T.5. “My life in Christ” or moments of spiritual sobriety and contemplation, reverent feelings, spiritual correction and peace in God. (Extracts from the diary. Part 2). Ed. 2., St. Petersburg, 1894. 371. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Complete set of works. T.6. Thoughts about the worship of the Orthodox Church or the community of believers, about the church, about the Liturgy and about Orthodox worship in general. (Extracts from the diary. Part 3). Ed. 1. St. Petersburg, 1894. 372. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Complete set of works. T.6. Thoughts about the Church and Orthodox worship. Part 3 (continued). St. Petersburg, 1894. 373. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Complete set of works. T.6. Thoughts about the Church and Orthodox worship. Part 3 (continuation of the second). St. Petersburg, 1896. 374. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Complete set of works. Words and teachings spoken in 1896, with the addition of articles from 1897. St. Petersburg, 1897. 375. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Complete set of works. Words and teachings spoken in 1897, with appendices. St. Petersburg, 1898. 376. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Complete set of works. Words and teachings spoken in 1898, with appendices. St. Petersburg, 1899. 377. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Complete set of works. Words and teachings spoken in 1899, with four words added for 1900. St. Petersburg, 1900. 378. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Complete set of works. New words spoken in 1902. Kronstadt, 1903. 379. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Complete set of works. New words spoken in 1904. Kronstadt, 1905. 380. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Complete set of works. New words in 1905. Kronstadt, 1906. 381. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Complete set of works. Words and teachings delivered in the Kronstadt St. Andrew's Cathedral in 1907–1908, St. Petersburg, 1908. 382. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Regarding the seduction and departure of some people of the Orthodox Church to Catholicism and other religions: A response to the stubbornness of the Old Believers. M., 1906. 383. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. The last hours of life in Bose of the late Emperor Alexander III.//Russian Pilgrim. 1894. No. 48, p. 755. 384. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Teaching for the 8th Sunday through the 50th.//Russian Pilgrim. 1893. No. 31, pp. 483–484. 385. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Teaching on the leadership of the church. St. Petersburg, 1895. 386. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Teachings and words for the feasts of our Lord Jesus Christ. Vol. VI. Kronstadt, 1888. 387. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Teachings and words spoken at various times in the Kronstadt St. Andrew's Cathedral. Vol. 4. Kronstadt, 1888. 388. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Teachings, words and conversations for Sundays (from 14 to 32 Weeks to 50). Ed. 3. St. Petersburg, 1894. 389. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Teachings, words and conversations for weekly days (from 1 to 5 Weeks to 50). Ed. 1. Issue. VIII. Kronstadt, 1889. 390. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Teachings, words and conversations for weekly days (from 16 to 25 Weeks to 50). Ed. 1. Issue. X. Kronstadt, 1889. 391. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Teachings and words for weekly days (from 26 to 36 Weeks to 50). Ed. 1. Issue. XI. Kronstadt, 1889. 392. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Teachings, words and speeches for church holidays and various occasions. Ed. 1. Issue. XII. Kronstadt, 1889. 393. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. An instructive word for the bride and groom. St. Petersburg, 1903. 394. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. The truth about God, the world and man, recorded in a diary for 1894–1899 (Part 4 - “My life in Christ”). 395. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. The truth about God, about the Church, about the world and about the human soul. (From a new diary). M., 1900. 396. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. From the words to “The Transfiguration of the Lord.”//Russian Pilgrim. 1905. No. 32, pp. 494–495. 397. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. A simple gospel word to the Russian people. St. Petersburg, 1902. 398. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Against Count L.N. Tolstoy, other heretics and sectarians of our time and schismatics. St. Petersburg, 1902. 399. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. The path to God. T.4. St. Petersburg, 1905. 400. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. The path is saving. St. Petersburg, 1903. 401. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Reflections and instructions... on repentance and communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ. St. Petersburg, b.g. 402. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Various speeches, words and teachings. Vol. XIII. Kronstadt, 1889. 403. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Speech at the opening of a homeopathic hospital in St. Petersburg, October 17, 1892 // Russian Pilgrim. 1892. No. 46, p. 731. 404. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Speech...at the opening of the Kronstadt department of the Pyatigorsk Society, which presented him with the Ostromir Gospel. St. Petersburg, 1886. 405. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. The Holy Orthodox Church is a treasury of spiritual blessings. Saratov, 1909. 406. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Holy Annunciation. (A word with the appendix of poems of a moral nature). St. Petersburg, 1903. 407. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Words for highly solemn days. Vol. V. Kronstadt, 1888. 408. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Words for highly solemn days. Ed. 1. Issue. VII. Kronstadt, 1888. 409. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. A Word for the Week about the paralytic. St. Petersburg, 1890. 410. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Word of spiritual wisdom. (From the diaries and words of Father John for 1905–1906). St. Petersburg, 1908. 411. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. A word about wheat grain and on the day of celebration of the 75th anniversary of St. Andrew's Cathedral. Kronstadt, 1892. 412. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. A word... about Communion. St. Petersburg, 1905. 413. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. A word about the power of faith, what should be the qualities of godly faith and why unbelief and wickedness are disgusting to God.//Russian Pilgrim. 1893. No. 30, pp. 468–470. 414. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. A word on the seduction and departure of some of the persons of the Orthodox Church to Catholicism or other heterodox religion... M., 1897. 415. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Word spoken in Kronstadt St. Andrew's Cathedral on the name day, October 19, 1892 // Russian Pilgrim. 1892. No. 46, p. 731. 416. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Death and Resurrection.//Russian Pilgrim. 1904. No. 16, p. 266. 417. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Contemplation and feelings of the Christian soul. Answers to secret or open requests of pious souls and moral lessons, first of all, to yourself. St. Petersburg, 1905. 418. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Contemplative asceticism. St. Petersburg, 1907. 419. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Sun of Truth. Selected sermons on the life and teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ. St. Petersburg, 1909. 420. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Lessons of a grace-filled life. M., 1894. 421. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. At the Cup of Life. St. Petersburg, 1902. 422. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Christian philosophy. St. Petersburg, 1902. 423. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Christian identity.//Russian Pilgrim. 1903. Nos. 16, 18, 23–25, 29, 30, 39, 40–43, 48; 1904. No. 1, 4, 6, 15; 1905. Nos. 1–4, 7, 9, 14, 15, 22, 26, 29, 41. 424. Sergiev Ioann Ilyich, archpriest. Christ is Risen.//Russian Pilgrim. 1903. No. 14, pp. 234–235. 425. Sikorsky I. L. Father John Ilyich Sergiev of Kronstadt and his stay in Kyiv. Ed. 2. Kiev, 1899. 426. The power of faith.//Russian Pilgrim. 1894. No. 7, pp. 109–110. 427. The power of prayer.//Russian Pilgrim. 1892. No. 2, p. 31. 428. The power of the miraculous prayer of Father John of Kronstadt. St. Petersburg, 1907. 429. Sylvester, Archbishop. Eight days with the soldiers in a heated vehicle. Omsk. 1919. 430. Sinaisky A., archpriest. Something about the Russian clergy.//Strannik. 1909. No. 11, p. 460. 431. Slyusarev D., priest. In memory of the great shepherd Father John of Kronstadt. Kiev, 1909. 432. Sobolevskaya S.P. At the grave of Father John. Poem/Russian Pilgrim. 1909. No. 41, p. 648. 433. Unction of Father John.//Russian Pilgrim. 1905. No. 3–4, pp. 51–52. 434. Sokolov V.P. Father John Ilyich Sergiev (1829–1908). (Obituary). St. Petersburg, 1909. 435. Sokolov V. Visit to the Moscow Theological Academy by Father John Ilyich Sergiev. M., 1895. 436. Solovyov Alexander, archpriest. As a keepsake for fans of Fr. John.//Russian Pilgrim. 1903. No. 42, pp. 710–711. 437. Sologub A. A. Father John Ilyich Sergiev. (Report). Kiev, 1905. 438. Sperantsev P. Consecration of the church (in the Zadne-Nikiforovskaya hermitage, Olonets province) Fr. John of Kronstadt.//Russian Pilgrim. 1892. Nos. 50–51. 439. A pillar of the Orthodox Church, a publicly revered shepherd and righteous man. Ed. V. P. Pg., 1915. 440. Judgment abroad about Father John Ilyich Sergiev. St. Petersburg, 1902. 441. Sursky I.K. Father John of Kronstadt. T.1. Svyato-Ilyinsky publishing house, 1979. 442. Sursky I.K. Father John of Kronstadt. T.2. St. Elias publishing house, 1980. 443. Stanislavsky John, priest. From the trip of Father John of Kronstadt to the south of Russia.//Russian Pilgrim. 1894. No. 42, pp. 661–663. 444. S.A.S. Father John of Kronstadt in Kazan.//Russian Pilgrim. 1894. No. 35, p. 559. 445. S.I.O. John in Yuryev.//Russian Pilgrim. 1903. No. 32, p. 557. 446. S. A. The Word of Life in Selected Sayings of Father John Ilyich Sergiev from his diary “My Life in Christ.” St. Petersburg, 1911. 447. Taisiya (Solopova), abbess. Notes... B. m., b. g. Typescript. 448. Taisiya (Solopova), abbess. Father Archpriest John Ilyich Sergiev as a shepherd. St. Petersburg, 1893. 449. Taisiya (Solopova), abbess. Father John. Poem.//Russian Pilgrim. 1897. No. 42, p. 661. 450. Tarasov V. The Great Prayer Book of the Russian Land.//Russian Pilgrim. 1909. No. 41, p. 648. 451. Tarasov V. Good Shepherd.//Russian Pilgrim. 1909. No. 4, p. 66. 452. Tarasov I. About Father John Ilyich Sergiev according to personal memories on the 2nd anniversary of his death. Kursk, 1911. 453. Tarasov I.F. About Father Archpriest John Ilyich Sergiev of Kronstadt according to personal memories.//Kursk Diocesan Gazette. 1910. No. 49–52. 454. The text of the addressee presented by Fr. John of Kronstadt October 19.//Russian Pilgrim. 1903. No. 43, p. 733. 455. Terpigorev A. Lighthouse of the Perishing.//Russian Pilgrim. 1909. No. 25, p. 390. 456. Tolstoy N. Kronstadt Shepherd.//From the memories of Father John Ilyich Sergiev. Moscow Gazette. 1916. No. 204, September 3. 457. Tolshemsky X. All-Russian Shepherd.//Russian Pilgrim. 1915. No. 3, pp. 37–40. 458. Tolshemsky X. Forgiven.//Russian Pilgrim. 1915. No. 14, pp. 216–219. 459. The celebration of the consecration of the church in “New Orenburg”.//Russian Pilgrim. 1915. No. 50, pp. 794–799. 460. Trifonov A. On the day of the angel. Poem.//Russian Pilgrim. 1903. No. 43, p. 731. 461. Trifonov A. On the day of the angel to Father John of Kronstadt. Poem.//Russian Pilgrim. 1894. No. 42, p. 660. 462. Lessons in Christian life. A collection of sermons and teachings for the whole year under the leadership of Fr. John of Kronstadt. M., 1900. 463. At the sacred grave.//Russian Pilgrim. 1909. No. 4, p. 50. 464. Ukhtomsky A. From the teachings of Father John Ilyich Sergiev on the priesthood. Based on his book “My Life in Christ” Kazan, 1909. 465. The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles. M., 1906. 466. Fedotov V.F. My trip to Kronstadt.//Volyn Diocesan Gazette. 1893. No. 19. 467. Filevsky John, priest. A word about Father John Sergius of Kronstadt.//Church Bulletin. 1909. No. 10, pp. 312–314. 468. Florovsky G., archpriest. Paths of Russian theology. Paris, 1937. 469. Christian forgiveness of offenses. (Blessed lessons from the works of Father John of Kronstadt).//Russian Pilgrim. 1915. No. 4, pp. 50–51. 470. Tsvetkov S.I. Father John Ilyich Sergiev (Kronstadt) and the miraculous power of his prayer. With the attachment of prayer and praise to Fr. John. M., 1897. 471. Church Gazette. 1894. No. 8, p. 81. 472. Church Gazette. 1902. No. 51–52, p. 274 473. Features from the life of Father John of Kronstadt. Ed. 2nd. St. Petersburg, 1902. 474. Honoring Father John of Kronstadt.//Russian Pilgrim. 1897. No. 43, pp. 686–687. 475. Honoring Father John Sergiev.//Russian Pilgrim. 1886. No. 36, pp. 374–376. 476. Chetverikov Sergius, archpriest. The spiritual appearance of Father John Ilyich Sergiev and his pastoral covenants. B. m., 1939. 477. Chizhov P.M. Father John of Kronstadt: Life, activity and death of a good shepherd, a great man of prayer and a spiritual lamp of the Russian land. New York, 1958. 478. Miracles of God today. St. Petersburg, 1913. 479. Miraculous healing.//Russian Pilgrim. 1887. No. 24, p. 302; No. 37, p. 458. 480. Miraculous healings at the tomb of the great righteous man and wonderworker Father John of Kronstadt. St. Petersburg, 1912. 481. Miracle through the prayers of Father John of Kronstadt.//Russian Pilgrim. 1911. No. 20, p. 320. 482. Chunikhin V.I. The life and pastoral activity of Father John Ilyich Sergiev. St. Petersburg, 1909. 483. Chunikhin V.I. A boy’s journey to his father Ioann Ilyich Sergiev. St. Petersburg, 1909. 484. Shemyakina R. G. In loving memory of the late wife of Father John Ilyich Sergiev, Elizaveta Konstantinovna Sergieva. (From memories). Kronstadt, 1909. 485. Shubin G. Father Archpriest John Sergiev, St. Andrew's Cathedral in Kronstadt.//Russian Pilgrim. 1892. No. 42, 43. 486. Shavelsky G.I., protopresbyter. Orthodox shepherding. Sofia, 1930. 487. Shcheglov I. L. With father Ioann Ilyich Sergiev. (Eyewitness account). St. Petersburg, 1905. 488. Elsky A. October 19. Poem.//Russian Pilgrim. 1903. No. 42, p. 711. 489. Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron. St. Petersburg, 1900, T.29-a (58), p.647. List of abbreviations and symbols. TsGAOR – Central State Archive of the October Revolution. TsGIA USSR - Central State Historical Archive of the USSR. TsGIA LO - Central State Historical Archive of the Leningrad Region. GPB – State Public Library named after M. E. Saltykov-Shchedrin.