REVELATION about God says: “God is love”, “God is light, and there is no darkness in Him” (1 John 4, 8; 1, 5).
How difficult it is for us humans to agree with this. It is difficult because both our personal life and the life around us of the whole world testify, rather, to the opposite.
In fact, where is this LIGHT OF LOVE OF THE FATDERS, if all of us, coming to the end of our life, together with Job in the bitterness of our hearts, realize: “My best thoughts, the property of my heart, are broken. My days are over; the underworld will become my home ... where then is my hope? " (Job 17: 11-15).
Christ Himself testifies that God attentively provides for all his creation, that not one small bird It is not forgotten by Him that He even cares about the decoration of the grass, and that His concern for people is incomparably great, that “even the hairs on our heads are numbered” (Matthew 10, 30).
But where is this craft, attentive to the last detail? We are all overwhelmed by the spectacle of uncontrollable evil in the world. Millions of lives, often barely begun, before the very consciousness of life is attained, are escaped with incredible cruelty. So why is this absurd life given? And so, the soul eagerly seeks a meeting with God in order to say to him: Why did you give me life? ... I am satiated with suffering: darkness is around me; Why are You hiding from me? ... I know that You are good, but why are You so indifferent to my suffering?
Why are You so ... cruel and merciless to me?
I can not understand you!
There lived a man on earth, a husband of gigantic fortitude, his name was Simeon. He prayed for a long time with uncontrollable crying: "have mercy on me"; but God did not listen to him.
Many months of such prayer passed, and the strength of his soul was exhausted; he came to despair and exclaimed: "You are implacable!" And when, with these words, something else broke in his soul, exhausted from despair, he suddenly saw the living Christ for a moment: fire filled his heart and whole body with such force that if the vision had lasted another moment, he would have died. After that, he could never forget the inexpressibly meek, infinitely loving, joyful, incomprehensible world filled with the glance of Christ, and subsequent long years his life he tirelessly testified that God is love, love immeasurable, incomprehensible.
We have a word about him, this witness of Divine love.
Since the time of John the Theologian, over the past nineteen centuries, whole host of such witnesses have passed, but this last one is especially dear to us because he was our contemporary. A frequent occurrence among Christians is a desire, a completely natural desire for visible signs of our faith, otherwise they will faint in their hope, and the stories of the miracles of bygone days in their minds become a myth. That is why the repetition of such testimonies is so important, that is why this new witness is so dear to us, in whose person it was possible to see the most precious manifestations of our faith. We know that only a few will believe him, just as few believed in the testimony of the former Fathers: and this is not because the testimony is false, but because faith obliges one to deed.
We say that in the nineteen centuries of Christian history, whole host of witnesses to the love of Christ have passed, and yet in the vast ocean of mankind there are so few of them, they are so rare.
Such witnesses are rare because there is no deed more difficult, more painful than the deed and the struggle for love: because there is no testimony more terrible than the testimony of love: and there is no sermon more uplifting than the sermon of love.
Take a look at the life of Christ. He came into the world to convey to people the gospel of eternal Divine life, which He preached to us in simple human words, in His two commandments of love for God and neighbor, and from the Gospel narration we see what temptations He was subjected to by the devil, who made all that he could to compel Christ to at least violate these commandments in some way, and thereby deprive Him of the "right" to give them to man. See what was in the wilderness (Matt. 4; Luke 4). From the answers of Christ, we see that there was a struggle for the first commandment, that is, about love for God. The devil surrounds the victor in this struggle, Christ, who went out to preach, with an atmosphere of irreconcilable murderous enmity, persecuting Him on all paths, but even here he does not achieve his goal. The last blows inflicted on Christ: the betrayal of the disciple-apostle, the general apostasy and the frantic cries of the blessed crowd: "Crucify, crucify Him"; but even here the love of Christ wins, of which He Himself categorically testifies: "Dare, I have conquered the world" and also: "The prince of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me."
So, the devil could not take away from Him the right to give the world a new commandment. The Lord won, and His victory eternally abides, and never again, and no one, and nothing will diminish this victory.
Jesus Christ immeasurably loved the world: and this love was given to be effectively experienced by Elder Siluan, who, in return, fell in love with Christ and spent many years in an extraordinary feat so that no one and nothing would take this gift from him, and at the end of his life he could would, like the great Paul, say: “Who will separate us from the love of God: sorrow, or crampedness, or persecution, or hunger, or nakedness, or danger, or a sword? ... I was convinced that neither death, nor life, nor Angels, neither the Beginning, nor the Force, nor the present, nor the future, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord ”(Rom. 8: 35–39).
Dwelling on the words of the Apostle Paul, we will understand that he could speak so only after going through all these trials. And everyone who follows Christ, as the experience of centuries has shown, goes through many trials. Elder Siluan also passed through them.
The blessed Elder Schema-monk Siluan for forty-six years asceticised on Mount Athos in the Russian Monastery of the Holy Great Martyr Panteleimon. We had to live in this monastery for about fourteen years. V last years the Elder's life, from 1931 to the day of his death - September 11/24, 1938, requests forced us to write him life. The task for a person who has neither the gift nor the experience of “writing” is not an easy one: but we still decide, because we are deeply and sincerely convinced that it is our duty to tell people about this truly great man.
The content of this book is intended for a narrow circle of people whose interests are focused on Christian asceticism, and therefore our main concern is not literary art, but perhaps a more accurate “spiritual portrait” of the Elder.
All our attention when communicating with him was absorbed by his spiritual appearance for the sole purpose of personal "benefit." We never had an idea to write his biography, and therefore much that, naturally, should have been of interest to a biographer, remained unknown to us. We are obliged to keep silent about many things because it is connected with people who are still alive. We cite here only a small number of facts from the life of the Elder, told by him on various random occasions during our frequent conversations or heard by us from other ascetics of the Holy Mountain, friends of the Elder. We believe that the accumulation of information about his external life will not constitute a significant drawback of our work. We would be quite satisfied if we were able to at least partially accomplish a more important task, namely, to draw the spiritual image of the Elder to those who did not have the happiness of direct live communication with him. As far as we have the ability to judge and since we had to come into contact with people, this was the only dispassionate person whom we were given to meet on our life path... Now that he is not with us, he seems to us to be some kind of exceptional giant of the spirit.
There lived a man named Silouan the Athonite. He prayed daily and desperately, asking God to have mercy on him. But his prayers remained unanswered. Several months passed, and his strength was exhausted. Silouan despaired and shouted to the heavens: "You are unforgiving." With these words something broke in his soul. For a moment he saw the living Christ before him. Fire filled his heart and body - with such force that if the vision had lasted a couple more seconds, the monk would have simply died. Throughout his life, Silouan remembered the inexpressibly meek, joyful, infinitely loving look Jesus and told others that God is an incomprehensible and immeasurable love. We will talk about this saint in this article.
Childhood
Siluan Afonsky (real name - Semyon Antonov) was born in the Tambov province in 1866. For the first time, the boy heard about God at the age of four. Once his father, who liked to receive guests and ask them about something interesting, invited a bookseller to his house. During the meal, a "hot" conversation about the existence of God ensued, and little Semyon sat next to him and listened attentively. The scribe persuaded his father that the Lord did not exist. The boy especially remembered his words: "Where is he, God?" Semyon then said to his father: "You teach me prayers, and this man denies the existence of the Lord." To which he replied: “Don't listen to him. I thought he was smart, but it turned out to be the other way around. " But his father's answer sowed doubts in the boy's soul.
Youth
Fifteen years have passed. Semyon grew up and got a job as a carpenter on the estate of Prince Trubetskoy. There also worked a cook, who regularly went to pray at the grave of John Sezenevsky. She always talked about the life of the hermit and about the miracles that happened at his grave. Some of the workers present confirmed these stories and also considered John a saint. After hearing what he heard, the future Monk Silouan the Athonite clearly felt the presence of the Most High, and his heart was aflame with love for the Lord.
From that day on, Semyon began to pray a lot. His soul and character changed, awakening in the young man a desire for monasticism. The prince had very beautiful daughters, but he looked at them as sisters, and not as women. At that time, Semyon even asked his father to send him to the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra. He allowed, but only after the young man finished his military service.
Extraordinary strength
Elder Silouan the Athonite possessed immense physical strength in his youth. Once one of the prince's guests got together.But in the night, severe frosts hit, and all her hooves were in ice, and she did not allow him to repulse it. Semyon tightly grabbed the horse's neck with his hand and said to the peasant: "Fight back." The animal could not even move. The lodger knocked the ice off the hooves, harnessed the horse and drove off.
Semyon could also take a vat of boiling cabbage soup with his bare hands and transfer it to the table. With a blow of his fist, the young man interrupted the thick board. In the heat and cold, he lifted and carried weights for several hours without rest. By the way, he ate and drank as he worked. Once, after a hearty meat dinner on Easter, when everyone went home, his mother offered Semyon eggs. He did not refuse and gladly ate the fried eggs, in which, as they say, there were at least fifty eggs. It's the same with booze. On holidays in the tavern, Semyon could easily drink two and a half liters of vodka and not even get drunk.
The first big sin
The strength of the young man, which was useful to him in the future for accomplishing feats, became the reason for the first great sin, which Silouan the Athonite for a long time prayed for.
On one of the holidays, when all the villagers were on the street, Semyon walked with his comrades and played the harmonica. Two brothers, working as shoemakers in the village, were walking towards them. The eldest was of great height and strength, and besides, he loved to scandal. He began to take the accordion away from Semyon. He handed it over to his friend, and asked the shoemaker to calm down and go his own way. It did not help. A pood fist flew towards Semyon.
This is how Saint Silouan the Athonite himself recalled this incident: “At first I wanted to give in, but then I felt ashamed that the inhabitants would laugh at me. So I stabbed him hard in the chest. The shoemaker was thrown several meters away, and blood and foam gushed out of his mouth. I thought I killed him. Thank God everything worked out. For about half an hour, they pumped it out, watering cold water... Then with difficulty they lifted me up and took me home. He finally recovered only after two months. After that, I had to be very careful, because two brothers constantly watched the street with knives and clubs. But the Lord saved me. "
First vision
Semyon's young life was in full swing. He had already forgotten about the desire to serve God and simply wasted his time unchastely. After another binge with friends, he dozed off and in a dream saw how a snake crawled inside through his mouth. Feeling the strongest disgust, Semyon woke up and heard the words: “Don't you feel disgusted by what you saw? I also hate to watch what you do with your life. "
There was no one near, but the voice that uttered these words was unusually pleasant and amazing. Silouan the Athonite was convinced that the Mother of God herself spoke to him. Until the end of his days, he thanked her for guidance on the true path. Semyon felt ashamed of his past life, and he strengthened his desire to serve God after finishing military service... A sense of sin awoke in him, which completely changed his attitude towards everything around him.
Military service
Semyon was sent to serve in St. Petersburg, to the Life Guards. The army loved him because he was a good, calm and efficient soldier. Once he, along with three companions, went to the city to celebrate a holiday in a tavern. Everyone drank and talked, and Semyon sat and was silent. One of the soldiers asked him: “Why are you silent? What are you thinking about?" He replied: "Here we are sitting, having fun, but now they are praying on Athos!"
Throughout his service in the army, Semyon constantly thought about this Holy Mountain and even sent the salary he received there. Once he went to the nearest village to transfer money. On the way back, he met someone who wanted to pounce on him. Bound by fear, Semyon just said: "Lord, have mercy!" The dog seemed to run into an invisible obstacle and ran to the village, where it harmed livestock and people. After this incident, he became even more strengthened in his desire to serve the Lord. When the service was over, Semyon came home, packed his things and went to the monastery.
Arrival to the Holy Mountain
Silouan the Athonite, whose teaching is relevant to this day, came to the Holy Mountain in 1892. He began his new ascetic life in a Russian monastery
According to Athonite customs, the new novice had to be in complete peace for several days, remembering his own sins. Then present them in writing and repent to the confessor. Silouan's sins were forgiven, and his ministry to the Lord began: prayers in a cell, lengthy church services, vigils, fasts, communion, confessions, labor, reading, obedience ... Over time, he learned the Jesus Prayer from a rosary. Everyone in the monastery loved him and regularly praised him for good character and good work.
Monastic exploits
During the years of serving God on the Holy Mountain, the monk accomplished many ascetic deeds that would seem impossible to most. The monk's sleep was intermittent - he slept several times a day for 15-20 minutes, and he did it on a stool. He had no bed at all. The prayer of Silouan the Athonite lasted all night. During the day, the monk worked like a laborer. He adhered to inner obedience, cutting off his own will. Was abstinent in movement, conversation and food. In general, he was a role model.
Conclusion
Silouan the Athonite, whose life was described in this article, literally slept for a few minutes until the end of his life. And this in spite of illness and fading forces. This freed him up a lot of time for prayer. He did it especially vigorously at night, until matins. In September 1938, the monk died peacefully. Through his life the Monk Silouan the Athonite set an example of humility, meekness and love for one's neighbors. Fifty years after his death, the elder was canonized.
The life and teachings of the Venerable Blessed Elder Silouan the Athonite in the video inspire many who do not even belong Christian tradition... This amazing saint lived in God and remains our lamp in the darkness that illuminates the path.
Siluan the Athonite is an amazing Saint. This is a Russian person, in the world Semyon Ivanovich Antonov, was born in 1866 in the Tambov province. From his youth, Semyon Antonov dreamed of going to the Kiev Lavra and becoming a monk, but did not receive the blessing of his parents for this and left as a soldier in the Army.
He serves in St. Petersburg, where he writes a letter to St. John of Kronstadt asking for prayer so that he can become a monk. God saw the desire of Semyon Antonov, who became a monk on Mount Athos at the age of 26, and later a holy elder.
On Mount Athos, he died at the age of 72 in 1938. Even before the konanization, people coming to Athos venerated the elder Silouan as a saint. He was canonized in 1988 by the Patriarchate of Constantinople, and in 1991 his holiness was recognized by the Moscow Patriarchate.
Today, prayerfully they turn to Elder Siluan in case of severe headaches, in order to cope with insurance, in a variety of life circumstances and needs. The book about him is a storehouse of soulful reading. The icon of St. Silouan the Athonite with a particle of relics is located in Moscow, in the Athonite Compound, st. Pottery, 6. Taganskaya metro station (ring).
They also pray to him:
* At a loss as to how to proceed
* About the enlightenment of the peoples of the earth
* With divisions between believers
* In insolence and disobedience
* With vain thoughts
* When unforgiving insults and remembering evil
* In sorrow for the lack of humility and the gift of humility
* About getting rid of pride and humility of the heart
* In sorrow for God
* In desperation
* When cooling love for neighbors
* On the correction of the weaknesses of neighbors:
o About proud and obstinate
o About the envious
* About the world of the whole world
* On the reconciliation of warring parties
Elder Silouan the Athonite life and teachings video
Siluan Athos life and teaching videos
The Monk Silouan the Athonite has become at present one of the most revered Russian saints in the Orthodox Church, as evidenced in particular by the inclusion in various Orthodox calendars Day of Remembrance of the Monk Silouan ( 24 september) among the most important Orthodox holidays... Many Russian believers turn their prayers to the Monk Silouan and receive support and help in their needs.
In particular, there are numerous testimonies that the Lord, through the prayers of the Monk Silouan the Athonite, provides believers with special help in increasing love, reconciling and pacifying hostile ones, quelling hostility, freeing from unbelief, converting the lost and unbelievers.
And during his life in this world, St. Silouan prayed deeply for humble love (especially for enemies), considering such love "the last and most reliable criterion of truth in the Church."
Through prayers for the softening of evil hearts and for the pacification of warring venerators. Siluan helps, first of all, in softening his own evil heart, which is very often very helpful in the actual pacification of the warring.
Rev. Silouan also has a special grace to lend help in deliverance from the unbelief that bothers the soul. Even during his life in this world, he devoted a lot of time to prayer for the whole world, for the salvation of the world. In particular, he said:
The life and instructions of the Monk Silouan the Athonite
The life and instructions of the Monk Silouan the Athonite
“The Lord wants to save everyone, and in His goodness He calls the whole world. The Lord does not take will from the soul, but by His grace pushes it towards good and attracts to His love. And when the Lord wants to have mercy on someone, he inspires others to pray for him, and helps in this prayer. Therefore, you should know that when the desire to pray for someone comes, it means that the Lord Himself wants to have mercy on that soul and graciously listens to your prayers ”
"The Lord wants everyone to be saved and to be with Him forever, and therefore he listens to the prayers of a sinful person, for the benefit of others, or the one who prays."
Book " Elder Siluan»Helped many people to come to faith as in Soviet time, and in our days, about which there are also numerous testimonies.
Staying with the Lord in heaven, the Monk Silouan effectively helps everyone who turns to him in prayers in various needs and weaknesses.
We all suffer on earth and are looking for freedom, but few people know what freedom is, where it is.
And I also want freedom, and day and night looking for it. I knew that it is with God, and it is given from God to a humble heart, who repented and cut off their will before Him. To the repentant, the Lord gives His peace and freedom to love Him. And there is nothing better in the world than to love God and your neighbor. In this the soul finds peace and joy.
O peoples of all the earth, I kneel before you and implore you with tears: come to Christ. I know His love for you. I know and therefore I shout to the whole earth. If you don’t know what, how will you talk about it?
You ask: "But how can you know God?" And I say that we saw the Lord by the Holy Spirit. And you, if you humble yourself, then the Holy Spirit will show you our Lord too; and you, too, will want to shout about Him to the whole earth.
Venerable Silouan the Athonite Life, Teachings and Scriptures
Many people do not know the way of salvation, have entered the darkness and do not see the Light of Truth. And He was, is and will be, and mercifully calls everyone to Him: "Come to Me, all who are toiling and burdened, get to know Me, and I will give you peace and freedom."
This is true freedom - when we are in God. And I didn't know that before. Until the age of 27, I only believed that God exists, but did not know Him; and when my soul came to know Him by the Holy Spirit, it began to eagerly strive to Him, and now, grief, I seek Him day and night.
The Lord wants us to love one another; this is freedom - in love for God and for one's neighbor. This is both freedom and equality. And in earthly ranks there can be no equality, but this is not important for the soul. Not everyone can be a king or a prince; not everyone can be a patriarch or abbot or chief; but in any rank one can love God and please Him, and this is the only thing that matters.
And whoever loves God more on earth will be in the Kingdom with greater glory. He who loves more, strives more for God, he will be closer to Him. Each will be glorified according to the measure of his love. And I learned that love is different in strength.
Whoever fears God so as not to offend Him in any way is the first love. Whoever has a mind clean of thoughts is the second love, greater than the first. The one who tangibly has grace in his soul is the third love, even greater.
The fourth, perfect love for God is when one has the grace of the Holy Spirit both in the soul and in the body. His body is sanctified, and there will be relics. This is what happens with the great holy martyrs, with the prophets, with the saints. He who is in this measure is immune to carnal love. He can sleep freely with the girl, not feeling any desire for her.
The love of God is stronger than the love of a girl, to whom the whole world is drawn, except for those who have the grace of God in fullness, for the sweetness of the Holy Spirit regenerates the whole person and teaches him to love God in fullness. With the fullness of God's love, the soul does not touch the world; although man lives on earth among others, he forgets everything in the world out of the love of God. And our sorrow is that, by the pride of our minds, we do not stand in this grace, and it leaves the soul, and the soul looks for it, weeping and weeping, and says:
"My soul is bored with the Lord."
THE WISE TEACHINGS OF THE SILUAN OF ATHENS.
Obedience is necessary not only for monks, but for every person. Even the Lord was obedient. The proud and self-proclaimed DO NOT GIVE - the grace of God to live in themselves, and therefore, they never - have spiritual peace, but the grace of the Holy Spirit easily enters into the soul of the obedient and gives him joy and peace.
Whoever carries in himself - even a small amount of Grace - is joyfully SUBMITTED to all the authorities. He knows that God - RULES the heavens, the earth, and the underworld, and himself, and his deeds, and everything that is in the world, and therefore, always - there is Peace and tranquility. Because in everything - TRUST the Lord!
Our life is simple but wise. Our Lady said To the Monk Seraphim: "Give them (the nuns) obedience, and who OBSERVE - obedience and wisdom, they WILL BE - with you and near Me."
You see how easy salvation is. But wisdom must be learned through long experience. It is given from God - for Obedience. The Lord loves an obedient soul, and if he loves, then whatever the soul asks for from God, it will give it to it. As before, so now is the Lord - he listens to our prayers and fulfills our petitions.
All who followed our Lord Jesus Christ are waging Spiritual warfare. The Saints learned this war through long experience from the grace of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit guided them and admonished them, and gave them strength to defeat enemies, and without the Holy Spirit, the soul cannot even start this war, because it does not know and does not understand who and where its enemies are.
Our battle is going on for every day and hour.
If he reproached a brother, or condemned, or grieved, then he lost his World.
If you are vaulted or exalted over your brother, then - LOST Grace.
If a prodigal thought came, and you did not immediately drive it away, then your soul WILL LOSE
love of God and boldness in prayer.
If you love power or money, then you will never - You will not know the love of God.
If you have fulfilled your will, then you are CONQUERED by the Enemy, and Despondency will come - into your soul.
If you HATE your neighbor, it means that you have fallen away from God, and evil spirit –
OWNED you.
If you do good to your brother, you will find peace of conscience. If you cut off your will, then you will drive away your enemies and you will receive peace in your soul.
If you forgive your brother offenses and love your enemies, you will receive - the forgiveness of your sins and the Lord will let you know the love of the Holy Spirit. And when you completely humble yourself, then you will find perfect peace in God.
Why did the Holy Fathers BELIEVE obedience above Fasting and prayer? Because from exploits without obedience - Vanity is BORN, and the novice does everything as he is told, and has no reason to be proud. In addition, an obedient section - his will in everything and listens to his spiritual father, and therefore his mind is free from all care and prays purely. An obedient mind has one God and the word of an old man, but an obedient one has a mind busy with different deeds and condemnation of an old man, and therefore he cannot contemplate God.
I saw one novice who was carrying heavy obedience. He had a heartfelt prayer, and the Lord gave him tears to cry for the whole world; and Abbot Andrew said to him: "This was given to you for obedience."
Obedience keeps a person from Pride; for Obedience - prayer is GIVEN; for obedience - Grace of the Holy Spirit is given. Therefore, obedience is higher - fasting and prayer.
If the angels (fallen) had kept their obedience, they would have stayed in Heaven and sang the glory of the Lord. And if Adam had remained obedient, then he and his family would have remained in Paradise.
There is only one obedience to the laity - one SHOULD strive to live - according to the Commandments of God and the Commandments of Beatitude and obey - the Holy Orthodox Church.
The Lord said to His disciples: "My peace I give you" (John 14:27). This Peace of Christ must be asked - from God, and the Lord will give to the one who asks; and when we receive it, then we must sacredly - TAKE CARE of it and multiply;
If trouble befalls you, do not be discouraged, but remember that the Lord is graciously looking at you, and do not allow the thought: “Will the Lord look at me when I offend Him?” Because the Lord by nature is Grace, but turn by faith to God and like the gospel prodigal son, say: “I am not worthy to be called your son,” and you will see how you will be nice to the Father, and then there will be indescribable joy in your soul.
The Merciful Lord GAVE all of us - Repentance, and by Repentance everything is CORRECTED. By repentance we RECEIVE - Forgiveness of sins; for good Repentance COMES - the Grace of the Holy Spirit, and so we cognize God.
If anyone has lost - Peace and suffer, then let him repent, and the Lord will give him - His peace.
I will not hide from you why the Lord gives His grace. I will not write much, but I ask you - love one another, and then you will see - the mercy of the Lord. Let us love our brother, and the Lord will love us. Do not think the soul that the Lord loves you, if you look at someone KOSO. Oh no. Rather, the demons love you, for you have become their servant; but do not hesitate, Repent, and ask the Lord - the POWER to love your brother, and then you will see - Peace in your soul.
With all your might, ask the Lord for humility and brotherly love, for the Lord gives His Grace for love to your brother Tuna. Try yourself: One day ask God for love for your brother, and the other day - live without love, and then you will see the difference. The spiritual fruits of love are clear: Peace and joy in your soul, and everyone will be dear and dear to you, and you will shed abundant tears for your neighbor and for every breath and creation.
The Holy Apostle John the Theologian says that God's commandments are not heavy, but light (1 John 5, 3). But they are easy only from love, and if there is no love, then everything is Difficult. Therefore, keep love, do not lose it, because although it is possible to return it, it is given by many tears and prayers, and without love it is difficult to live in the world. And who is in Malice, then it is DEATH - souls, from which may the Lord protect us.
When the soul, to whom the Lord gave His Grace, for some reason - LOSES it, then strongly - grieves for it, and again desires - to Find it. Oh, how she begs the Vladyka, day and night, to have mercy on her and again pour out His mercy on her. And who can describe her sighing, or her tears. And for many, many years - the soul WORKS, seeking that Grace that it has tasted and with which it has delighted. And, it happens, for a long time - the Lord TESTIES the soul, whether it is TRUE to Him; and the soul, not seeing in itself the sweetness that it has known, again - THANKS for it, and humbly waits, and is drawn to the Lord with the ardor of love.
With Grace it is EASY to love God and pray day and night; but a wise soul endures dryness, and trusts strongly in the Lord, and knows that He will not shame hope and will give in due time. The grace of God sometimes comes quickly, and sometimes LONG - It is not given, but a wise soul humbles and loves its neighbor, and meekly carries its Cross, and thereby conquers enemies who are trying to tear it away from God.
Why does a person suffer on earth, bring sorrows and suffer troubles?
For that we suffer, that we DO NOT HAVE - Humility. The Holy Spirit lives in a humble soul, and He gives the soul - freedom, peace, love, bliss.
For that we suffer, that we DO NOT LOVE our neighbor. The Lord says: "Love one another and you will be My disciples." For love for a brother - the love of God COMES. The love of God is sweet; it is - the gift of the Holy Spirit and is fully cognized only by the Holy Spirit. But there is an average love that a person has when he tries to keep the commandments of Christ and is AFRAID, as it were, with something - NOT TO OFFENSE God; and this is good. We must every day - to compel oneself to Good and by all means learn - the humility of Christ.
For a long time I suffered, not knowing the way of the Lord, but now, for many years and many sorrows, and by the Holy Spirit - I finally KNOW - the will of God. And now I know that Everything that the Lord COMMANDED (Matthew 28, 20) must be EXACTLY - FULFILLED, for this Is - the WAY to the Kingdom of Heaven, where we will - to see God.
But do not think that you see God, but humble yourself and think that after death you will be thrown into prison and there you will languish. When we cry and humble our souls, then the Grace of God - KEEPS us, and if, WE LEAVE - crying and humility, then WE CAN get carried away - by Thoughts or Visions. A humble soul - DOESN'T HAVE visions and does not want them, but with a pure mind prays to God, and a Vain mind is not pure of thoughts and imagination, and even, it can reach what will happen - to SEE demons and talk to them. I am writing about this because I myself was in this terrible Trouble.
Twice I have been to the Prelest. The first time, at the very beginning, out of inexperience, when I was a young novice, and then the Lord soon pardoned me.
The second time I was in Prelest already - from Pride, and then I suffered for a long time before the Lord - healed me for the prayers of my confessor. It happened after I received a certain vision. I opened this vision to four spiritual men, and none of them told me that it was from the enemy, however, the beauty of vanity fought me.
But then I myself realized my mistake, because again devils HAPPENED to me - not only at night, but also during the day. The soul sees them, but is not afraid, because I felt the mercy of God with me. And so, for many years I suffered - from them; and if the Lord had not allowed me to know Himself by the Holy Spirit, and if it had not been for the help of the Most Holy and Good Lady, then I would have despaired of my salvation, but now STRONGLY - my soul hopes in the mercy of God, although by my deeds I am worthy of torment and earth and in Hell.
For a long time I could not figure out what was wrong with me. I think: I do not judge people; bad thoughts - I do not accept; I do obedience regularly; in food - I abstain; I pray incessantly; Why did the demons - Get into the habit of me? I see I'm in a Bug, but I can't figure out why? I pray they - will leave for a while, and then again - Come. And for a long time my soul was - in this Struggle. I spoke about this to several elders; they were silent; and I was at a loss.
And so, one day I was sitting in a cell at night, and the demons - SEND to me a full cell. I pray earnestly - the Lord will drive them away, but they again - Come. Then I got up to bow to the icons, and the demons are around me, and one in front, so I - I cannot bow to the icons, otherwise it would have turned out that I bowed to him. Then I sat down again and said:
“Lord, you see that I want to pray to you with a pure mind, but the demons do not give me. Tell me, what should I do to get them away from me? "
And there was an answer from the Lord in my soul: "The proud are always like this - they suffer from demons."
I say: “Lord, you are the Merciful, my soul knows you; tell me, what must I do to make my soul humble? "
And the Lord answers me in my soul: "Keep your mind in hell, and do not despair."
Oh, the mercy of God. I am an abomination to God and people, and the Lord so loves me, and admonishes me, and heals me, and He Himself teaches my soul humility and love, patience and obedience, and has poured out all His mercies on me.
Since then I have kept my mind - in Hell, and I burn in a dark fire, and I miss the Lord, and I tearfully seek Him and say: “Soon I will die and dwell in the dark dungeon of Hell, and alone I will burn there, and long for Lord, and cry: "Where is my Lord, whom my soul knows."
And I received great benefit from this thought: my mind was purified and my soul found Peace.
It's a wonderful thing: the Lord told me to keep my mind in hell, and not to despair. He is so close to us: “Se Az is with you until the end of the age”, and also “Call on Me on the day of your sorrow, and torture you, and glorify Me” (Matthew 28, 20; Psalm 49,15).
When the Lord - TOUCHES the soul, then it all becomes - New, but this is understandable only to those who have learned from experience, for without the Holy Spirit - it is NOT possible to know the Heavenly, and this Spirit was given to earth - from the Lord.
Who can describe the joy of knowing the Lord and hungry for Him day and night? Oh, how blessed and happy we are Christians. There is nothing more dear - how to know God; and there is nothing worse than not knowing Him. But he is also blessed who, although he does not know, still believes.
I began to do as the Lord taught me, and my soul was delighted - Peace in God, and now day and night I ask God - Christ's humility. Oh, this is Christ's humility. I know it, although I cannot acquire it. I know him from the Grace of God, but I cannot describe it. I am looking for it like a precious, light bead. It is pleasant to the soul and sweeter than the whole world. I got to know him by experience.
The Holy Spirit on earth LIVES in us, and He enlightens us.
He gives us - Reason and Wisdom.
He gives us - to Know God.
He gives us - to love the Lord.
He gives us - Thinking about God.
He gives us - the Gift of the word.
He gives us - Praise the Lord.
He gives us - Joy and joy.
The Holy Spirit - gives us the strength to wage war - with the enemies and overcome them.
I pray to all people - let us resort to Repentance, and then we will see the mercy of the Lord. And those who SEE - all sorts of Visions and BELIEVE them, I pray to understand that from this they have - Pride and with it the sweetness of Vanity, in which there is NO humble spirit of Repentance, and this is the trouble, for without Humility - IT IS IMPOSSIBLE to defeat the Enemies - demons.
I was wrong myself twice. Once the Enemy showed me - Light, and thought told me: accept, this is grace. Another time I accepted - one Vision, and suffered a lot for it. One day at the end of the vigil, when they sang "Let every breath praise the Lord," I heard King David singing praise to God in Heaven. I stood in the choir, and it seemed to me that there was no roof, no dome, and that I could see an open sky. I talked about this to four spiritual men, but no one told me that it was the Enemy - he laughed at me, and I myself thought that demons cannot praise God, and that means this vision is not from the enemy.
But the Beauty of Vanity - fought me, and I again - began to see demons. Then I knew that I had been deceived, and I opened everything to my confessor, and asked his prayers; and for his prayers I am now saved, and I always pray the Lord - to grant me the spirit of Humility. And if you asked me what you want from God, what gifts? Then I would say: the spirit of Humility, which the Lord rejoices most of all. For Her humility, the Virgin Mary became - Mother of God and glorified in heaven and on earth above all. She devoted herself entirely to the will of God: “Behold the servant of the Lord,” She said; and we must all - Imitate the Holy Virgin.
For humility, the soul GETS - Peace in God, but in order to - KEEP this Peace, the soul learns for a long time. We are losing this peace, because - WE HAVE NOT APPROVED in Humility. And I am a lot - Enemies deceived. I thought: my soul knows the Lord, knows how good He is and how much He loves us, how come bad thoughts come to me? And for a long time I could not figure it out, until the Lord made me understand, and then I knew that - from Pride there are BAD thoughts.
One inexperienced monk SUFFERED - from demons, and when they attacked him, he ran away from them, and those - Chased after him.
If something like this happens to you, then do not be afraid and do not run, but become courageous, humble yourself and say: "Lord, have mercy on me, a great sinner," and the demons will disappear; and if you run cowardly, they will drive you into the abyss. Remember that in the hour when demons attack you, the Lord looks at you: how do you trust in Him?
If you see Satan, and he will scorch you with fire, and wants to captivate your mind, then again - do not be afraid, but rely on God and say: "I am the worst of all," and the enemy will leave you.
If you feel that the evil spirit is acting inside you, and then do not be shy, but Confess purely and earnestly ask the Lord - the Humble spirit, and the Lord will certainly give, and then, as you humble yourself, you will feel Grace in yourself, and when your soul will be completely humbled, then you will find perfect Peace.
And such a war is waged by a person - all his life. The soul that has come to know the Lord by the Holy Spirit, if after that falls into Preciousness, it is not afraid, but remembering the love of God and knowing that fighting with enemies is allowed for Vanity and Pride, it humbles itself and asks the Lord for healing, and the Lord heals the soul , sometimes soon, and sometimes slowly, little by little. An obedient one who believes his confessor and does not believe himself will soon be healed of any harm inflicted on him by his enemies, and the disobedient will not be corrected.
War of the soul with the enemy - to the grave. And if in an ordinary war only the body is killed, then our war is more difficult and more dangerous, because the soul can also perish.
For my pride, the Lord allowed the Enemy to twice wrestle with my soul so that my soul stood in Hell, and I can say that if the soul is courageous, then it will stand, and if not, it can perish forever.
To everyone who will be in such trouble, I write: stand courageously and hope in God, and the enemies will not resist, for the Lord has conquered them. By the grace of God, I learned that the Lord mercifully - CARES about us, and not a single prayer, not a single good thought - DOES NOT miss before God.
The Lord often does not seem to listen to us; but this is only because we are Proud and it is not useful for us. It is difficult to recognize pride in oneself, but the proud Lord - LEAVES to suffer - with His Powerlessness, while - DOESN'T LITTLE. And when the soul is humbled, then the enemies are Defeated, and the soul finds - great peace in God.
Believe me, I am writing before the face of God, whom my soul knows. In order to preserve Grace, you MUST always - Humble yourself. So God also humbles those who work for Him. Anthony the Great thought that he was in the wilderness - older than everyone and more perfect than everyone, but the Lord directed him to Paul of Thebes, and Antony saw him who was older and more perfect and humbled.
The Monk Zosima thought that he had been a monk since childhood, and no one could talk to him, but he was humbled by Mary of Egypt; and he saw that he was very far from her - he did not come to her measure. Saint Tikhon (Zadonsky -) The holy fool was humbled; hit him on the cheek and said: "Do not be arrogant."
So mercifully God humbles the saints so that they may remain humble. And we, all the more need to humble ourselves. And I ask God day and night - Christ's humility. My spirit longs to acquire it. This is the supreme gift of the Holy Spirit. In the humility of Christ, there is love, and peace, and meekness, and temperance, and obedience, and longsuffering, all the virtues are in him.
Prayer is given to the one praying, as the Scripture says; but prayer only according to Habit, without contrition of the heart for sins, is not pleasing to the Lord.
Who - LOVES the Lord, he always REMEMBER Him, and the memory of God - BIRTHS prayer. If you do not remember the Lord, then you WILL NOT PRAY, and without prayer the soul will not abide in the love of God, for through prayer COMES the Grace of the Holy Spirit. By prayer, a person is KEEPED from Sin, for the praying mind is busy with God and in humility of spirit stands before the face of the Lord, whom the soul of the praying one knows.
For prayer we are GIVEN temples; in temples the service is performed according to the books; but you can't take the temple with you, and you don't always have books, and the inner Jesus prayer is always and EVERYWHERE with you. Services are performed in churches, and the Spirit of God lives, but the soul is the BEST temple of God, and whoever prays - in his soul, for that the whole world - has become a temple.
The one who prays out of habit does NOT and will not have a change in prayer, and whoever prays earnestly has many changes in prayer: there is a struggle - with the enemy, a struggle with oneself, with passions, a struggle - with people, and in everyone needs to be courageous.
If prayer pleases God, then the Spirit of God bears witness in the soul; He is Nice and Quiet; but before I did not know whether the Lord accepted the prayer or not, and how to find out about it.
Grief and danger have taught many to pray.
One military man came to my store; he was heading to Solun. My soul loved him, and I tell him: "Pray to the Lord that there will be less sorrow."
And he says: “I can pray. I learned from war when I was in battles. I strongly asked God to - LEFT me alive. Bullets rained down, shells exploded, and very few people remained alive, and many times I was in battles, and God SAVED me. " He showed how he prayed, and the movement of his body showed how he was completely immersed in God.
In this world, everyone HAS his own - OBEDIENCE: someone is a king, someone is a patriarch, someone is a cook, or a blacksmith, a teacher, but the Lord loves everyone, and the reward will be to the one who loves God more.
God - GIVEN the Commandment - to love Him with all your heart, with all your mind and soul. And without prayer, how can you love God? Therefore, the mind and heart of a person should always always be Free - for Prayer. Do it in good faith - your deeds and in your soul - pray to the Lord.
Unceasing prayer - comes from Love, and LOST - for Condemnation, for idle talk and Intemperance. He who loves God can - think about Him day and night, because no works interfere with loving God.
If you want to pray PURE, then be humble, abstinent, confess purely, and Prayer will LOVE you. Be obedient, be pleased with everything, and then your mind WILL BE CLEANED FROM Vain thoughts. Remember that the Lord always SEES you, and be in the Fear of God, as it were, not to offend your brother with anything; DO NOT JUDGE him and do not grieve him - at least by sight, and the Holy Spirit will love you, and He Himself will help you in everything.
The Holy Spirit is very similar to a dear, dear mother. A mother loves her child and pity him, and the Holy Spirit also SPORTS us, forgives, heals, and SANCES, and pleases, and the Holy Spirit is cognized - in humble prayer.
If your mind wants to pray in your heart and cannot, then read the prayer with your lips and keep your mind in the words of the prayer, as the Ladder says. Over time, the Lord will give you a heartfelt prayer without thoughts, and you will easily pray.
Some of them HURTED their hearts, because they strengthened with their minds - to make a prayer in their heart, and reached the point that then and with their lips - they COULD NOT utter it.
But know the order of spiritual life: GIFTS are given - to a simple, humble obedient soul. To those who are obedient and abstinent in everything: in food, in speech, in movement, the Lord Himself gives prayer, and it is easily performed in the heart.
Love for God is different. He who fights against Bad thoughts, in his measure loves God. Whoever fights - with Sin, asks God to give him the strength not to sin, but because of weakness he falls into sin, and grieves for that and repents, he has Grace in the depths of his soul and mind, but the Passion has not yet been conquered.
And whoever has defeated Passions, he no longer has a struggle, but only in every possible way CARE - himself, as if not to fall - into sin; this Grace is great and tangible. But whoever feels the Grace both in the soul and in the body is a perfect husband, and if he preserves this Grace, then his body is sanctified and WILL BE - relics.
REMEMBER two thoughts and fear them. One says: you are a saint, the other: and the other thought says you will not be saved. Both of these thoughts are from the enemy, and there is no truth in them. But you think: I am a great sinner, but the Merciful Lord, He loves people, and will forgive me my sins.
With a bad thought, the Enemy's power enters into us, and then the soul is darkened, and evil thoughts torment it, then the person feels his own destruction, and sees that without the Grace of God he is a sinful and weak earth.
Evil thoughts torment the proud soul, and until she humbles herself, she will not know peace from them. When bad thoughts besiege you, then cry out to God like Adam: “Lord, my Creator and Creator. You see - my soul is tormented by bad thoughts ... Have mercy on me. " And when you stand before the face of the Lord, then firmly remember that all your petitions, if they are useful, He will fulfill.
A cloud came, covered the sun, and darkness fell. So for one proud thought the soul loses Grace, and finds darkness on it. But also for one humble thought again comes - Grace.
Observe yourself, and you will see: as soon as the soul is EXCELLENT - before the brother, so after this COMES - A bad thought, which is displeasing to God, and through this the soul is humbled. And if he does not accept it, then WILL COME - A small temptation. If again - DOESN'T resign, then it will begin - violent abuse. If, again, he does not accept it, then he WILL FALL - into a certain Lesser Sin. If even then he does not humble himself, then it WILL BE - a great Sin.
And so until then he will sin, until - he is not resigned. But as soon as - REPORTS, the Merciful Lord WILL GIVE peace to the soul, and then - everything bad WILL PASS, and thoughts will go away. But afterwards, keep humility with all your might, otherwise again - You will fall into sin.
Seeing that the soul is not strengthened in humility, the Lord takes away Grace, but you do not lose heart from this: Grace is in you, but is hidden.
You accustom yourself to CUT OFF bad thoughts at once. And if, when you forget and do not drive away at once, then bring - Repentance. Work hard on it in order to BUY - A HABIT. The soul has a habit, as you get used to it, you will do so later - all your life.
Enemies have fallen with pride, and they draw us there, and bring us thoughts of praise. And if the soul ACCEPTS - Praise, then Grace - WILL RETREAT until the soul is humbled.
When the soul learns love from the Lord, then it pity - the whole universe, every creation of God, and it prays that all people - repent and ACCEPT - the grace of the Holy Spirit.
But if the soul LOSES - Grace, then love departs from it, for without the Grace of God it is impossible to love enemies, and then evil thoughts COME OUT from the heart, as the Lord says (Matthew 15, 19, Mark 7, 21-22) ...
Know well that if you are tormented by bad thoughts, then you are not humble. The Lord said: "Learn from Me: for I am meek and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls" (Matt. II, 29).
We fall into delight when we think that we are SMARTER and more experienced than others, and even a confessor. So I thought out of inexperience, and for this I suffered, and I am very grateful to God that He humbled and enlightened me with this. Without confession to the confessor it is IMPOSSIBLE - To get rid of the Prelest, because the confessors have been given from the Lord - the power to decide and knit
If you see any vision, or an image, or a dream, then do not trust him, because if it is from God, then the Lord will enlighten. A soul that does not know the taste of the Holy Spirit cannot understand the vision, where it comes from. The enemy gives the soul a certain sweetness mixed with vanity, and therefore delight is recognized.
The fathers say that with an enemy vision, the soul will feel embarrassment. But this is only a humble soul that does not consider itself worthy of a vision, with an enemy action will feel either embarrassment or fear, and a vain person may not experience either fear or even embarrassment, because he wants visions and considers himself worthy of it, and therefore the enemy easily deceives him.
If it happens, you will see demons, then do not be afraid, but humble yourself, and the demons will disappear, and if fear takes possession of you, you will not escape harm. Be courageous. Remember that the Lord is looking at you, whether you hope in Him.
Recognizing pride in yourself is very difficult. But here are the signs for you: if enemies (demons) attack you or torment you - BAD thoughts, then this means that there is NO humility in you, and therefore, even if you do not understand your pride, humble yourself.
I spent my life in goodness and in sins, and I learned in sixty years what power habit has. Both soul and mind CAN - Acquire a habit. And what a person gets used to, then he does. If he gets used to it - to Sin, then it will be so constantly - to be drawn to sin, and demons help in this; and if he gets used to good, then God helps him in that - by His grace.
So, if you get used to constantly praying, loving your neighbor and crying in prayer for the whole world, then the soul will be drawn to prayer, tears and love. And if, you get used to giving alms, to BE - obedient, frank in confession to the spiritual father, then you will - always do, and in this you will find peace in God.
A soul that loves - Condemning people, or Disobedient, or Intemperate, or abandoned Repentance - CANNOT get rid of demonic wiles and free itself from Bad thoughts; but if she cries about her sins and loves her brother, then the Lord gives her tears for the whole world.
Once, unnecessarily, I killed a fly, and it poorly crawled on the ground, sick with its entrails falling out, and for three days I cried - for my cruelty to the creature, and I still remember this incident. Once in my store on the balcony bats started up, and I poured boiling water over them, and again shed a lot of tears because of this, and since then I NEVER - I do not offend the creature.
The Spirit of God TEACHES the soul - to LOVE all living things, so it does not want to damage the green leaf on the tree, and it does not want to trample the flower of the field.
So the Spirit of God TEACHES - love for all, and the soul - compassion for every being, loves even enemies and pity - even demons that they have fallen away - from good.
Accustom yourself to SILENCE in words, Restraint in deeds, and Restraint in attitude - Laughter and gait. Avoid any - Excessiveness. Because in this way the mind - not allowing itself to go beyond the limits of restraint - will KEEP strong and will not weaken or yield to - Gluttony. (St. Macarius of Egypt.)
The mind will weaken as a result of burning Passion; it will also weaken because of other passions, giving himself up to them - to be plundered. So, it befits that the MIND - OWNERS the Passions, exaltedly sitting on the throne - silence and looking to God.
Beware - PREVIOUSNESS: Proud-looking and raised head and proud gait; let everything you have - WELCOME words and Affectionate appeal.
Beware of talking about anything - that you DIDN'T STUDY - and did not Think, and DO NOT LISTEN - everything that is NOT USEFUL for you. (St. Macarius of Egypt.)
With pleasure LEARN to the Good - from others and willingly teach yourself, SHARE with people - knowledge and experience; never out of a feeling of ill will (or envy) - do not hide wisdom from others; hold fast to the wise elders, honoring them as the saints of God; do not argue with friends, and do not mock or mock them; resolutely reject lies, deceit and rudeness; but bear it yourself generously - both arrogance and rudeness towards you, enduring it calmly and patiently; let all your deeds and words have God in mind, and all that is yours, take to Christ; and every minute turn your soul to God and devote your thought entirely to the power of Christ, let the thought of Heaven lead you to Heaven. Be in fellowship with God more often during the day, and especially at night, so that a long sleep does not take over your prayers to God; because prolonged sleep is like death.
Spend every day DOING or TALKING to people - something Kind;
Cast aside numerous worries about the body, strengthened by hope in God, believing that He will GIVE you everything you need: food for life, clothing for the body, and a roof over your head from the winter cold; because the whole earth - All this belongs to your God, and it is His business to take care of His saints, as of His shrines and temples.
Therefore, do not be too afraid of illnesses, nor - the expected approach of the time of Old Age; because if it WILL BE - pleasing to your Lord, and also, if - for a GOOD for your soul - your illness WILL STOP; and He will cover your old age, like with wings, with His Divine power.
Being in a painful situation; Compassion - to the suffering and in the face of people - ASK God for help; because He will show mercy - to His praying friend and GIVE help to those in need, wanting to do known to people- Their POWER, so that on the basis of knowledge they - turned to God. (St. Macarius of Egypt.)
It is good to be always afraid and not to trust yourself in anything; because it may seem to a person that he is doing well, but in reality he is Wrong; it is better to always let a person - call on God to Himself - become his Guide, and the Way, and the Mind, until the person has found Christ in himself, let him not trust himself in any way. As the one who risked drowning, the one, out of fear of the sea or of nothing else, had no concern but to be saved, so a Christian should, meaning God, always be afraid and not be frivolous.
Whoever wants to be saved, let him strive, DOING what God wants, because what God wants is His will; He who loves God, let him compel himself to love his neighbor; let him be humble before God and people, and resist - BAD thoughts;
He must have concern to PLEASE - the Lord and overcome in himself - the Old Man; the frivolous and having a slack heart dwells in "Decay" and does not even begin to struggle and does not know how to fight. So, it is good to always be - in the Fear of God and look for Enlightenment and help from the Lord, so that someone can be saved with the help of the Lord, to whom be glory forever. Amen. (St. Macarius of Egypt.)
St. Basil the Great: "You must not CHIMNY yourself - into Temptations before the time, until God's permission, you must - pray so that you DO NOT fall into Temptation."
Also Holy. Theophan the Recluse said: “Persecution has arisen, be silent and remain in your rank, surrendering to the Lord who will make everything comfortable, pray for the power of help. You feel weakness and fear, and if YOU HAVE the opportunity to Hide, - SHELF. Many have done so. With the whole Church they retired - to the forests and mountains.
And the Lord said: when they are being persecuted - in one city, run to another (Matthew 10:23). The wrath of the Lord is passing by, says the prophet (Isa. 26, 20).
They were taken by force and presented for judgment: do not be afraid, show the power of love for the Lord you confess, stand for Him until blood and death. Open confession cannot be superfluous when it is done out of love, which attracts God, with a "sound decision" and not violent fanaticism. Go not fearfully, saying the Confession: The Lord is your helper. Every confessor is a strong warrior from the army of Christ.
Weak? Run, when there is an opportunity, and when you are caught, bear witness - without fear.
You SHOULD NOT allow yourself, at least for the sake of appearance, only to do what is demanded as a sign of Renunciation, for this is the same as real Renunciation - of the Lord. This is the spirit of the Confession. He must always warm up in himself, so that the time of adversity does not find unprepared, one must constantly be ready to suffer and die for the name of Christ and the holy faith. This is spiritual confession or secret martyrdom, when a Christian is crucified by his heart, although he is alive in his body. "
From the book - How to gain strong faith in God.
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One godly man prayed to the Lord for many months to obtain mercy, but did not receive an answer. But then one day Christ Himself appeared to him, and since then man has spent his whole life remembering the inexpressible love of God. The name of this ascetic is the Monk Silouan the Athonite. Today he is known as the author of many spiritual teachings, a person who possessed the gift of "mental prayer" - this is a great rarity even among monks.
Earthly way
Few foreshadowed the future holiness of a simple village guy from the Tambov province. The life of Silouan the Athonite began quite normally. The young man was hard-working and possessed great strength. There are still legends about her. Semyon Antonov (a worldly name) heard the call of God at the age of 19, but his father did not allow him to immediately go into a monk. First, he had to serve in the army. Semyon did not dare to disobey his father, because he greatly respected him.
- 1892 - came to the Holy Mountain in Greece, after 4 years he was ordained a monk.
- 1911 - becomes a schema-monk ( highest degree monasticism) and receives the name Silouan. He is entrusted with the post of economist (manager).
- He writes a book of his teachings, which was published already in the 20th century.
- 1987 - Orthodox Church Constantinople canonize the elder.
Although the monk was originally from Russia, his relics arrived in our country only in 2016. Long time his head was hidden from visitors to Athos, several times they tried to destroy it, but there were always people who saved the remains.
The path of holiness
The life of the Monk Silouan is fairly well known. Everyone especially notes his meek disposition. The elder sincerely wished well to absolutely all people. He prayed for everyone, not wishing to destroy a single soul. He tried to advance as far as possible in spiritual exploits.
- I left very little time for sleep, literally a couple of hours a day.
- He himself ate a limited amount of food and advised others to do the same. After eating, there should have been a desire to read prayers.
- He considered Christian Love and a humble soul to be the greatest virtue. Only to such people can the Holy Spirit come unhindered, which is able to bring peace and joy in the Lord to a soul tormented by sins.
Veneration
After the teachings of the wise monk were published in Russia, he began to gain wide popularity in his homeland. Pilgrims began to express a desire to worship his relics. But only after he was recognized by the official church, a prayer was compiled for him, the icon of St. Silouan the Athonite was written according to all the rules.
The image depicts a deep old man with a long beard, he is already gray-haired. The monk is wearing the vestments of the schema-monk. The monk is to the one looking in profile, he is turned with his whole body to heaven, where the praying one sees Christ. He is depicted not on gold (like the entire icon), but on a blue background, this is a symbolic designation of paradise abodes, spiritual purity. The Lord sends His blessing, which is expressed in a gesture of the right hand.
The elder in his left hand holds an unfolded scroll with the words from Holy Scripture... On other icons, the monk Silouan is depicted frontally and his features bear a large portrait resemblance to his lifetime photographs. All other details remain essentially the same.
How to pray
You can pray for the acquisition of the necessary Christian virtues, the healing of your soul, from bodily ailments (which are most often the result of sins). Many Russian believers could bow to the relics of the monk when they were first brought to Moscow from Mount Athos. Today in Russia many churches have been built in the name of St. Silouan the Athonite.
The tomb of the saint is in Greece, in the Panteleimon monastery. But even if there is no way to go, prayer is available to anyone, anywhere. They ask for help from the saints, as from the wiser, meek and enlightened by Christ's light.
Instructions
Although the saint did not know how to write and speak “beautifully”, because he was not well educated, this does not say anything about how deep his soul was. He taught many people he met. He corresponded with his spiritual children. He said that the lack of humility drives away the grace of God. Therefore, the soul begins to grieve, because it no longer feels God, but continues to strive for him.
Everything good qualities people are sent exclusively for Christ's sake, therefore we must cry about our own and other people's sins. He did not seek fame at all, the monks who lived next door to him did not consider him special. In this environment, it is customary to think only about sins, and not measure your achievements in prayer or other areas.
Fame was brought by the notes, which were published after the death of the monk, they were accompanied by a theological commentary. Archimandrite Sophrony also published a book about the ascetic, since he considered him one of the brightest spiritual luminaries of his time. Yes, his works did not bring anything new to theology. But in them simple people find a God who loves them with all his soul.
Prayer of the Monk Silouan the Athonite in Sorrow for God
My heart has loved You, Lord, and therefore I miss You and tearfully seek You.
You have decorated the sky with stars, the air with clouds, and the earth with seas, rivers and green gardens where birds sing, but my soul has loved You and does not want to look at this world, although it is beautiful.My soul desires only You, Lord. Come and dwell, and cleanse me from my sins. You see from the height of Your holy glory how my soul misses You. Do not leave me, Thy servant; hear me crying like the prophet David: "Have mercy on me, O God, according to your great mercy."
Monk Silouan the Athonite - life, teachings, prayer was last modified: July 7th, 2017 by Bogolub
Excellent article 0