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Our Holy Father Andrew, Archbishop. Kritskogo 79 Born in Damascus in the middle of the 7th century; received his initial education at home; in the 14th year he retired to the ascetic life in the Jerusalem monastery of St. Savva the Sanctified. He soon became known for his strict life. Theodore, the ruler of the Patriarchate (which at that time did not have a patriarch due to embarrassment from the Mohammedans), chose Andrei as his secretary. In 679 he went with two trusted Jerusalem. Patriarch at the VΙ Ecumenical Council. Returning to Jerusalem with the decisions of the council, Andrei continued to lead an ascetic life and study the word of God and the writings of St. fathers. Some time later, he was summoned to Constantinople and ordained by the patriarch as a deacon of the St. Sophia Church; Moreover, he received the gratifying appointment of feeding orphans. Under Emperor Justinian II, Andrew was made Archbishop of Crete; He zealously preached the word of God to his flock, wisely governed them and protected them with his prayers. The Cretans attributed to the effect of the prayers of their shepherd the removal of the Saracens, who attacked the island during the priesthood of Andrew. St. died Andrei is on his way from Constantinople, where he was traveling on church business. Having foreseen his death, he told his companions that “he would not see Crete again” and, indeed, having reached the island of Mytilene, he fell ill and died peacefully - in 713. There is an assumption that this was when he was returning from the council in 712 against the Monothelites, who in Christ recognized only one Divine will. How did the priest, distinguished by his deep intelligence and knowledge, relate to this cathedral? Andrew’s writings can be judged by his poems, in which he directly writes that “there are two actions in Christ, two desires in Him.” After the death of Andrei Kritsky, quite a few of his works of spiritual content remained. “He enriched the Church with many creations, in which the experienced see solid knowledge and a wealth of learning, pleasant and harmonious speech” 80. The Church sings about his sacred songs: “blessed Andrew, shining with the light of the Holy Trinity, you sang the sacred songs euphoniously, you appeared to the world as a luminary, the brightest of the sun... You are the true rule of Theology, clearly revealing the glory of the all-glorious Trinity... You sang with honey-melting words the Mother of the Lord, the holy Apostles and the class of blessed martyrs.” Andrew of Crete is especially famous for his great canon, consisting of 250 troparia, which is read in parts in the first four days of Great Lent and in its entirety at the Thursday morning service in the 5th week. This canon, says the archbishop. Chernigov Filaret 81 is great not only in the number of poems, but also in inner dignity, in the height of thoughts, in the depth of feelings and in the power of expressions. In it, the spiritual gaze contemplates the events of both Testaments in spiritual light. The figures of sacred history either present him with lofty examples of holy life, or with examples of fall arouse him to strict sobriety: in both cases they depict the secrets of inner life. The mind contemplates the lofty spiritual truths realized in the lives of the patriarchs, judges, kings, and prophets of the Old Testament; teaches them in the Gospel parables; and the heart, with a complete thirst for salvation, seeks excitement in sacred events and is either struck by deep sorrow for sins, or delighted with sweet hope in God, always ready to receive sinners. “Where should I begin to mourn the deeds of my ill-fated life? What beginning shall I make, O Christ, for my lamentation? But You, Merciful One, grant me forgiveness of sins.” So the ascetic begins his contrite cry and turns to the first sin of man, which deprived all of humanity of God-created adornments. “Sin deprived me of a richly woven garment and, like the leaves of a fig tree, clothed me with an act of shame in reproof of my passionate aspirations” ... After depicting the devastation that passions caused in the lives of even great men, the singer calls on the sinful soul to seek, together with Abraham, the heavenly fatherland; in Isaac he shows the sacrifice of obedience and in Ishmael an example of the insolence generated by caressed flesh; The disastrous actions of lust are to be seen in the action of the fire of Sodom. By the images of Jacob’s two wives, he says, understand a double life, active and contemplative. The rod of Moses, cutting the sea - the cross of Christ, with which the Christian soul does wonderful things. Thus, in order of times, the kings and prophets of Israel talk with the repentant soul. Finally, in the ninth song, the singer recalls the Divine words and deeds of the Savior; By fasting Him he convinces himself to fast and humbly cries out with the tax collector: “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!” – With the Canaanite wife and the blind men he prays: “Have mercy on me, Son of David!” Like a harlot, she washes the Savior’s feet with tears and cries out with the prudent thief: “Remember me, O Lord, in Thy Kingdom!” Such content of the great canon indisputably testifies to the expediency of the Church’s instructions to read it especially on days of repentance - in Lent, and will serve in all ages as a great aid in this great matter. The spiritual benefit received from him is a grateful praise from generation to generation to the inspired compiler of the wondrous canon, by which many people return to God: having realized their sinfulness and His mercy, they again see His Face... † St. Martha, mother of Simeon Divnogorets Mother of St. Simeon the Stylite, who labored on the Wondrous Mountain, was pious from a young age 82. She didn't want to get married. But her parents promised her hand to her well-known groom. Not daring to resist the will of her parents, but convinced of the sanctity of virginity, Martha prayed for a long time and from the depths of her soul in the church of St. Forerunners so that the will of God about her would be revealed. The Holy Forerunner commanded her to fulfill the will of her parents and give consent to marriage. Then she prayed to the Forerunner to send a blessing for the birth of a child, and promised to dedicate her fruit to the Lord. The Forerunner announced to her in a dream that a wondrous son would be born to her, whom she should name Simeon. Martha was resolved without suffering in 521 and, two years later, the child was baptized in the Church of the Forerunner. During the earthquake of 526, the husband was buried under the ruins of a house, like many other Antiochians; and Martha and her son prayed at that time in the Church of the Forerunner and were saved. When her son, in the seventh year, retired into the desert to perform his exploits, Martha spent her life as a true widow of God. She fasted often and especially observed the Wednesday and Heel fasts. She diligently visited the church of God and brought candles, incense and oil for him. She was the first to enter the church and the last to leave it. If there was a church holiday anywhere, Martha appeared at the all-night service and prayed reverently. In the house every midnight I stood in prayer, shedding tears. Her reverent stay in the church served as an edification for others. She never got tired during the church service, like others who, however, do not get tired spending the night dancing. I never sat in church, busy in awe of the greatness of God. One kind person, noticing that Martha always comes to the church before others and stands in prayer without rest, said to her: “Sit down, venerable mother, you need rest.” Martha answered: “Servants constantly stand before their masters, who are the same people as they are: how dare I sit in the church of God, where the terrible mysteries of the Most High King are performed.” She deeply respected priests and served them with love. Her love for others extended to the point of selflessness. Visiting hospitals, she herself ministered to the sick in one place or another; for the dying she gave everything needed for burial, just as she brought clean linen to those being baptized, prepared with her own hands. Going to her son on the Marvelous Mountain, she saw the sick and beaten on the road (robberies of the willful and raids of savages were not uncommon at that time): having torn her clothes, she bandaged their wounds, washing them first with wine and oil. She had a special gift, sent by God for her virtues: she tamed the most ferocious demoniacs with her mere presence. That’s why they often invited her to these unfortunate people, and she was always ready for services. No one saw her angry or quarreling; on the contrary, she loved to reconcile those who quarreled, and reconciled successfully. Using methods of meekness and love, reminders of the guilt of each and every one before God, and reasonable advice, she extinguished family discord and restored peace to the houses of anger and hatred. The glory of her son, a great ascetic, surrounded her with respect, but did not weaken her humility. On the contrary, she was afraid for her son and often suggested that he watch himself vigilantly, and together prayed for him. A year before her death, she was informed from above how long she had left to live. She came to tell her son about this, but he had already been notified of the same thing and announced the imminent death to the hermits. When the appointed time for Martha’s death approached, she again came to her son and in a long conversation, like a mother passionately caring for his spiritual perfection, begged him to be faithful to the Lord and his vows until death. “My son,” she told him, “I entrust you to the Lord Jesus; I prayed and pray to Him that He will protect you from the temptations of sin. I beg you too to be firm in your love for the Lord. For the Lord, be compassionate towards the poor of every kind; be hospitable to strangers, continue to bow down to the smallest and most innocent; pray for everyone, especially for the fatherland; do not disdain the lost. Do not forget in your prayers your father John and me, a sinner.” She then told her son what heavenly mercies she had been awarded in her life. This was on Monday, the day before which she received Holy Communion. Tain. At night she saw in a dream that she was walking in a magnificent house, amazed at its unprecedented beauty, and she was told that this house was prepared for her eternal rest. Saying goodbye to the monks, she said that she would never see them again. And sure enough, on the way back she fell ill and was taken by others to her house, which was in the Daphnian suburb of Antioch; the next day she thanked the Lord for His mercy to her; those present thought that the Lord loved her through the prayers of her son; but she said that she herself loved the Lord and had spent her life in diligent labor for Him. Then she died peacefully on July 5, 551. Before her death, she bequeathed to bury her among the poor; but, at the request of her son, her body was transferred to his monastery and placed in a tomb built by the monks. The brethren of the monastery, after her burial, placed a lamp over her coffin so that it would burn day and night. And the lamp was burning. Then, after quite some time, they stopped lighting it. The saint, appearing to the sick steward, said: “I have no need for your lamp, enlightened by the light of heaven; but for you it is necessary that the lamp burn; when you light it, you encourage me to pray for you.” Then she healed the sick man. St. Martyr Theodore, Bishop of Cyrene, on the island of Cyprus St. Theodore suffered in 310 for failure to hand over the sacred books, which the persecutors were looking for everywhere for destruction. Many others suffered along with him. He should not be confused with Andrei Kritsky, whose memory is on October 17th. About his life and about the conversations “Teaching of the Fathers.” § 254. See “Historical. Review of the singers” §36. Her Life in Act. Sanet, maii V, 403–431. Four-Min. Jul. 4. The biographer, describing the commemoration of Martha, which took place a year after her death, says: “all those who were at the same time exclaimed with us: we bow to Your cross.” So, the biographer was a contemporary of St. Marfa and a student of St. Simeon Divnogorets.