Nika Kravchuk

Saints, saints, martyrs - what are different saints called?

It is not difficult to notice that different saints in the church are called differently: there are apostles, martyrs, saints, saints, confessors, passion-bearers... How to distinguish them? And is it necessary, if they have already been granted the Kingdom of Heaven?

All these names indicate the way these people came to God, how they used the talents given to them. The Orthodox Church honors the saints of God in various ranks: prophets, apostles, equal to the apostles, saints, saints, martyrs, great martyrs, holy martyrs, confessors, faithful, unmercenaries, fools for Christ's sake and passion-bearers.

ABOUT prophets we know from the Old Testament. These are those ascetics who received a special gift from God - to know the Will of the Creator about people and the destinies of the world. The Lord revealed the future to them.

For example, from the Old Testament we know about the so-called four Great Prophets: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel and Ezekiel. Particularly revered in our time are Saint Elijah and John the Baptist. The Church also knows the names of the wives whom God awarded such a gift (Righteous Anna belongs to them).

Apostles- followers of Christ and, in fact, the first preachers of Christianity. From ancient Greek this word is translated as ambassadors, that is, messengers of Jesus. The Church especially honors the memory of the 12 apostles, among whom Peter and Paul are considered the supreme ones.

But this is far from a complete list. In fact, there were much more disciples and followers of Christ, so they call the number 70 or even 72. The names of most of them are not present in the Gospel, so a complete list was compiled already in the 4th-5th centuries on the basis of Holy Tradition.

Those saints who lived several centuries after the first preachings of Christianity, but also worked to spread the teachings of the Church, are called equal to the apostles. For example, Equal-to-the-Apostles Constantine and Helen, Equal-to-the-Apostles Princes Vladimir and Olga.

Saints It is customary to call representatives of the third degree of priesthood - bishops, archbishops, metropolitans and patriarchs who have pleased God with their service to the flock. There are a lot of them in the Orthodox Church, but the most revered are Nicholas of Myra, Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian and John Chrysostom (also called ecumenical teachers, who expounded the Orthodox teaching on the Holy Trinity).

Reverends They call those who served God in the monastic rank. Their most important work is fasting and prayer, taming their own will, humility, and chastity.

There are a lot of saints who shone in this face, because it is difficult to find a monastery that has its own history, but does not have saints of God. Another question is that time must pass for the saints to be canonized. The Kiev Pechersk Lavra is known by the Venerable Fathers of Pechersk. Famous and especially glorified are Seraphim of Sarov and Sergius of Radonezh.

The greatest number of saints came to the Kingdom of Heaven as martyrs. They endured terrible suffering and death for their faith. There were especially many such confessors during the time of persecution of Christians.

Those who have suffered particularly severe torment are called great martyrs. For example, the healer Panteleimon, Varvara and Catherine. There is also holy martyrs(accepted death in holy orders) and venerable martyrs(they suffered while in monastic vows).

Confessors are those who openly recognized themselves as Christians (confessed), but did not die a martyr’s death. Many confessors appear during persecutions for the faith.

The faithful are called saints of Christ, who were monarchs in the world (for example, princes or kings) and pleased God with their righteous lives. For many, they are associated with Alexander Nevsky, Andrei Bogolyubsky, Dmitry Donskoy and others, glorified in the Russian Church. In fact, this image of saints arose in the Church of Constantinople (they glorified the Byzantine emperors and their wives).

Unmercenary had a special gift from the Almighty - they could heal from physical and spiritual illnesses, but they did not take money for their help (for example, Kosma and Damian).

For Christ's sake holy fools- perhaps one of the most interesting and difficult paths to God. These people deliberately put on the guise of madness, although they had nothing to do with clouding of reason. They lived on the street, led a very modest and unpretentious life: they endured the hot sun and scorching frost, ate small portions of alms, dressed in rags, that is, they did not take care of themselves at all. For this, God gave them a special gift - to see the spiritual illnesses of other people.

Therefore, the holy fools engaged in denunciation, they could even directly tell the king if they saw that he was getting bogged down in vices. In addition, they hid their virtues, and for revealing the iniquities of others they often suffered insults or even beatings (although, for example, in Rus' they were considered “God’s people”, therefore beating a holy fool was considered a great sin, but human malice violated this unwritten rule). A striking example of such a path to salvation is Ksenia of Petersburg.

Sometimes fools for Christ's sake are also called blessed (for example, St. Basil the Blessed), but this word has different shades of meaning.

Passion-bearers they call those people who did not die a natural death, but, being Christians, suffered not for their faith, but for a righteous way of life, or gave their own lives for the well-being of others. Princes Boris and Gleb were considered the first passion-bearers in Rus'. Representatives of the family of the last emperor of Russia, Nicholas II, who led a truly Christian life, but were killed as representatives of the monarchy, were also canonized in this rank of saints.

We also know the names of some saints who are called righteous. Usually these are laity (also representatives of the white clergy) who led a righteous life and kept the commandments. This includes the forefathers (these include the Old Testament patriarchs) and godfathers (primarily the parents of the Virgin Mary - Joachim and Anna), as well as the righteous John of Kronstadt, Simeon of Verkhoturye and others.

The example of all these saints indicates that the paths to God can be very different, but one thing is fundamental: the presence of boundless faith and its reinforcement with good deeds, following the Gospel commandments.

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Why was the Holy Royal Family “glorified” in the Rite of Holiness “Passion-Bearers” in 2000? Why did the mouthpiece of the world behind the scenes - the Anti-Defamation League - trumpet with glee on this occasion: “It is very important that the decision on canonization in the FORM (!) in which it was adopted by the [bishops'] council BECOME KNOWN to the widest circle of laity and clergy "(International Jewish newspaper No. 30 (311) for 2000). What is the reason for such reactions? Have the Kabbalists really repented and turned to Christ? Or are there other reasons for such joy of the enemies of our Lord Jesus Christ? We will find answers to all these questions if we understand the meaning of the Rite of Holiness “Passion-Bearer”. What does the Order of Holiness “Passion-Bearer” mean? The Order of Holiness “Passion-Bearers” in the Orthodox Church refers EXCLUSIVELY to those Holy Saints of God who, for the Glory of the Name of God, endured bloody or bloodless temptations through the deceit and goiter of their fellow believers, Orthodox Christians. Those. Passion-bearers are those who suffered at the hands of their Orthodox brethren.

Two main meanings of the word “passion-bearer” There are two main meanings of the word “passion-bearer” and these meanings should in no case be confused or confused with each other: 1) The general naming of all Christian Martyrs. In the Liturgical Texts of the Orthodox Church we can often find the term “Passion-Bearer”, which is used in the meaning of “one who endured the saving PASSION (suffering/temptation/torment) of Christ.” “Beloved, do not be surprised if you relish the temptations that come your way, as they happen to you that are alien to you, but since you are partakers of CHRIST’S PASSION, rejoice, for even at the revelation of His Glory you will rejoice with joy” (1 Peter 4:12-13). In this sense, ALL the Holy Saints of God are called Passion-Bearers, for “there is a narrow gate and a strait path that leads into the Life, and there are few who find it” (Matt. 7:16). And especially the Holy Martyrs, who endured bloody suffering and death for Christ. 2) This is a SPECIAL ORDER OF HOLINESS. Chin is a Church Slavonic word denoting order, plan, charter, dignity, rank, dignity. The Order of Holiness is a special characteristic that expresses the spiritual ESSENCE of the feat by which a person pleased God and glorified His Holy Name. In this sense, the Church of Christ calls “Passion-Bearers” EXCLUSIVELY those Pleasers of God who, for the Glory of the Name of God, suffered from their own fellow believers - Orthodox Christians. When we talk about the Saints as a whole, about their many-sorrowful life path, we call them all “Passion-Bearers,” since all of them, during their earthly wanderings, endured various saving sorrows, temptations, sufferings, and some even death for the Glory of the Name of God. However, when we talk about the Orders of Holiness, each of which briefly in one word (for example, the Blessed, the Prophets, the Apostles, the Saints, the Martyrs, the Passion-Bearers, the New Martyrs, the Reverends, the Blessed, the Unmercenary, the Righteous, etc.) expresses the spiritual essence of that or other Feat/Service that a person has undertaken and accomplished for the Glory of God, then in NO EVENT should the Rite of Holiness “Passion-bearers” be confused with the Rite of Holiness “Martyrs”, etc. Because in this case the MEANING is fundamentally distorted.

What is the PRINCIPAL difference between the Rite of Holiness “MARTYR” and the Rite of Holiness “PASSION-BEARER”? The fundamental difference between these two Rites of Holiness is that the martyrs suffered: a) for confessing the NAME of Christ; b) by the hand of PAGENTS or HEREtics; The passion-bearers suffered for a) for fulfilling the COMMANDMENTS of God; b) at the hands of ORTHODOX brothers; The Rite of Holiness “Martyrs” is used to designate Saints who pleased God by undergoing bloody or bloodless temptations for the Name of Christ at the hands of pagans or heretics. The question was always directly posed to the martyrs: if you renounce Christ - life, if you do not renounce - death. This is the spiritual essence of the Feat of Martyrdom with which the Martyrs glorified God. The height and greatness of the Martyrdom lies in the fact that even to death they testified to their loyalty to Christ and did not renounce the Orthodox Faith, being forced to do so by both caresses and threats. For example, Great Martyr Demetrius. They demanded that he renounce Christ, but for the sake of his great love and loyalty to God he did not want to do this. And for his fidelity to Christ he endured numerous sufferings, torments, and ultimately death. The essence of his feat is that even to death he remained faithful to the King of kings - the Lord Jesus Christ - and did not renounce Him even in the most severe torment. Now let's look at the Holy Pleasers of God, whom the Church glorifies in the Rite of Holiness. The Rite of Holiness “Passion-Bearer” is used to designate Saints who pleased God by undergoing bloody or bloodless temptations for the faithful fulfillment of the Commandments of God through the deceit and malice of their fellow believers - Brothers of Orthodox Christians. Their tormentors NEVER directly demanded that the Passion-Bearers renounce Christ in order to save their lives, since the tormentors themselves were Orthodox Christians. And most importantly, the passion-bearers were killed not because of Faith, but because of worldly interests. For example, the Holy Passion-Bearers Boris and Gleb were killed by their father Svyatopolk not because he was Orthodox, but Svyatopolk was a persecutor of Christians. Not at all! Svyatopolk killed Boris and Gleb because of LUB OF AUTHORITY and LIKE OF MERE, in order to occupy the Kiev Grand Ducal Throne. The greatness of the Feat of Saints Boris and Gleb lies in the fact that, out of love for God, they did not want to participate in the fratricidal war and bloodshed. But they thought it best to give their lives themselves in order to quench the hostility. They themselves went to Svyatopolk, because they understood that if they did not sacrifice themselves, then Svyatopolk would move his troops into their lands. and then a lot of blood will be shed. This is the greatness of the feat of the Passion-Bearers Boris and Gleb. Using the example of the feat of the Holy Great Martyr George and the Holy Passion-Bearers Boris and Gleb, one can clearly see that the Rite of Holiness “Martyrs” and the Rite of Holiness “Passion-Bearers” are fundamentally different from each other, since the Feats of Holiness they designate are completely different in their inner essence and spiritual content. Thus, when we talk about the Order of Holiness, we must under no circumstances put a sign of identity (equality) between the Feat of Holiness of Martyrdom and the Feat of Holiness of Passion-Suffering.

History of the revelation of the Rite of Holiness “Passion-Bearer” in the Orthodox Church In the 11th century, the question was raised in what Rite of Holiness the Holy Passion-Bearers Princes Boris and Gleb should be glorified. They definitely did not fit under the Order of Sainthood “Martyrs”, because... they were killed by their own Orthodox Christians to gather and no one demanded that the Saints consciously renounce Christ. On this occasion, the Greeks (at that time the Russian Church was the metropolis of the Greek Local Church), by the Grace and Mercy of God, at the command of His Imperial Majesty, assembled a Pious Council in Constantinople, at which a special Rite of Holiness was revealed by the Conciliar Reason of the Church - the Rite of Holiness “PASSION-TIMER”. In the Rite of Holiness, the “Passion-Bearer” began to glorify the Saints who, for the Glory of God, endured (blood or bloodless) temptations from their fellow believers, i.e. victims at the hands of their own Orthodox brethren. (Russian Saints. - M.2001, P.14; see also: Complete Church Slavonic Dictionary by Archpriest Dyachenko). Thus, starting from the 11th century, in the Orthodox Church, the Order of Holiness, Passion-Bearer, is assigned EXCLUSIVELY to those Pleasers of God who suffered martyrdom at the hands of their Orthodox brethren. Could Tsar Nicholas be the "Passion-Bearer"? The answer to this question is definitely NO! UNDER NO CONDITIONS can the Anointed One of God be killed at the hands of Orthodox Christians. Because, according to the Teachings of the Orthodox Church, anyone who even THINKS of rebellion and treason (not to mention actively raises his hand) against Christ the Lord falls under anathema and is no longer a Christian, but is a heretic and an enemy of God. The 11th anathema on the Sunday of the Triumph of Orthodoxy directly states: “TO THOSE WHO THINK that the Orthodox Sovereigns [Anointed of God] are not elevated to the Thrones by God’s special Grace for Them, and with the Anointing of the Gift of the Holy Spirit for the passage of this great [Royal] Title is not poured into them are; and Thus, to those who dare against Them for rebellion and treason, anathema, three times." And in the Approved Charter of the Pious Zemstvo-Local Council of 1613 it is said even more definitely that everyone who rebels against Christ the Lord “may he be CURSED in this century and in the future, for he will be EXCLUDED from the Holy Trinity. Whoever does not want to listen to this Council Code, his God BLESS, and will begin to say OTHER things, and to create RUMOR among people, then in whatever rank you will not be; EXCLUDED, and Communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ, as a SCHISMANT of the Church of God and all Orthodox Christianity, a REBEL and DESTROYER of the Law of God, and according to the city (i.e. civil) Laws will take revenge (i.e. righteous execution), and do not bring blessings on him from now to eternity.” I could never and never have debunked the Tsar with the Crown. Therefore, the Holy Tsar Nicholas UNDER NO EVENT could he be martyred at the hands of Orthodox Christians. Because Anyone who only thinks against God and His Anointed One is not an Orthodox Christian, but is an anathematized heretic.

The spiritual consequences of the false veneration of the Sovereign Emperor NIKOLAI ALEXANDROVICH in the Rite of Holiness “Passion-Bearer” Through the wicked false veneration of the Holy King the Redeemer NIKOLAI ALEXANDROVICH in the Rite of Sainthood “Passion-Bearer”, the slander of Satan, in fulfillment of the will of his father - the devil - is imposed on Orthodox Christians: 1) confession of CHRIST CHECK heresy; 2) confession of the heresy of ECUMENISM; 3) spiritual SUICIDE through Slander of oneself in the sin of REGICIDE How? – All this is a direct consequence of the blasphemous false veneration of the Holy King and Redeemer NIKOLAI ALEXANDROVICH in the Rite of Holiness “Passion-Bearer”. Let us explain in more detail. How is the CHRIST-BEATING HERESY imposed through the blasphemous FALSE REVERENCE of Tsar Nicholas in the Rite of Holiness “PASSION-BEARER”? This heresy is set out in the so-called. "materials of the canonization" of Sovereign Emperor NIKOLAI ALEXANDROVICH and His Holy Royal Family at the "anniversary" gathering in 2000. The heretics of the Christ-sobs reject the dogma of the tsarist power: that Christ is the Lord by the grace and mercy of Christ the Lord is the head of the earthly military-growing church, the leader of the God-chosen people and the Father of the state of the Heritage of God (summary the dogma of the tsarist power, see here: http://vkontakte.ru/topic-1053462_20965656565656565656565656 ). And therefore, they dare to JUDGE Christ of the Lord in His Royal Service, reaching even that level in their heretical madness (see: Jewish rabbis, according to the teachings of the Talmud, are “higher than God”), they dare to put themselves in the place of God and “forgive” the King for his supposed “sins” . For example, we will dissolve His friendship with the Man of God - the Holy New Martyr Grigory Efimovich, etc. In general, the purest water is insane Judaism (for more details, see How a Jew differs from a Jew and a Jew http://vkontakte.ru/topic-1053462_7162671) For heretical Christ-fighters, Tsar Nicholas is not the Anointed One of God, but the “first layman” and “ slave of the church" (read: "slave of the priests"). Which is also not surprising, since the overwhelming majority of Christ-fighters are papists, in whose ideas only they – the Clergy – are “shepherds”. And the Head of the Earthly Militant, the Sovereign Shepherd of all Christians on earth - Christ the Lord - by whose command the decisions of the Ecumenical Councils are assembled and approved, Bishops are appointed/removed (including Patriarchs) for the papazhniks of all the "flocked sheep", or rather the cattle, over Whom they – the papists – are “doomed” to “domination” (for more details, see about the essence of the heresy of papism http://vkontakte.ru/topic-698603_4613731). Judaizers also think along similar lines. The only difference is that the Judaizers, unlike the papists, consider themselves masters and judges of everyone and everything, even God himself. And therefore, in the heretical “canonization materials,” the position of the Judaizers completely coincided with the position of the papists. When getting acquainted with the “canonization materials”, one can clearly see that the “theological” (more precisely, demonic) justification for the false glorification of the Holy King the Redeemer NICHOLAI ALEXANDROVICH in the Rite of Holiness “Passion-Bearer” was cooked up by the papist heretics and the Judaizers together. Because they were united in the main thing - in their blasphemy against God and His Anointed One - the Greatest Russian Tsar NIKOLAI ALEXANDROVICH. Apparently, the papists and the Judaizers quickly found a common language. Which, in other matters, is not surprising, since they are spiritually related: the father of all heretics is the same - Satan... The fundamental point of the anti-Christ heresy in the “materials of canonization” of the Tsar is that both the papists and the Judaizers reject the ritual nature of the murder by the Kabbalists of the Holy The Royal Family and consider this crime to be the work of the Russian Orthodox People.

We can name at least one of the main reasons for this - this is the blasphemous false veneration of the Holy Redeemer NIKOLAI ALEXANDROVICH in the Rite of Holiness "Passion-Bearer", implanted by the servants of Satan. After all, such false veneration is one of the forms of CONFESSION of the ecumenist heresy. Through the false veneration of Tsar Nicholas, spiritual SUICIDE is imposed on us through slander of ourselves in the sin of REGICIDE. Spiritual suicide through slander of ourselves in the sin of regicide occurs when, to please the servants of Satan, we begin to confess that Tsar Nicholas was killed by Orthodox Christians. The Rite of Holiness “Passionate” applies EXCLUSIVELY to those who suffered from fellow believers. Consequently, either the Kabbalist Jews (and other evil spirits who participated in them) are our co-religionists (this option is discussed above), or... the ritual murder was committed by “Orthodox Christians” (this is this case). The assertions that the sin of Regicide lies on the Russian Chosen People are lies and blasphemy, since the Russian People did not kill “Christ of the Lord” - the New Testament “bishops and elders” did this at the hands of Jewish Kabbalists. It is they - our New Testament "Bishops and Elders" - like once their Old Testament would-be predecessors, out of ENVY (Mark 15:10) out of the people's love for the Anointed of God, they decided to kill and KILLED (Matt. 12:14; Matt. 14:5 ; Mark.3:6; Mark.19:47; John.5:18; .8:40; John 11:53; Acts 9:23) “Christ of the Lord” by the hands of fanatical Satanists. On us - on the Russian People - there is a completely different sin - the sin of the Holy Apostles, the sin of JUDES, for we BETRAYED our Sovereign Shepherd the King-Father. The Russian Chosen People, in violation of the Council Vow of 1613 to be faithful to God's Chosen Ones - the Autocratic Tsars from the House of Romanov - like the Apostle Peter (Apostle Judas and Apostle Peter essentially committed the same sin - BETRAYED their Teacher; the difference between them is that Peter was able humble themselves and come to the Savior with Repentance, and Judas, repenting from despair, hanged himself) three times, out of cowardice, they renounced FAITHFUL service to God and His Anointed King. The sin of the Apostle Peter is the sin of renouncing Christ (we also renounced Christ, for the Anointed of God is the Earthly Christ and the living icon of His Heavenly Prototype - the Lord Jesus Christ; according to the Dogma of the VII Ecumenical Council on Icon Veneration, “the attitude to the image is to ascend to the prototype”) and grx "Bishops, scribes and elders" because of proud madness and satanic envy, who betrayed the Lord Jesus Christ and His Anointed, the Holy King, to death. – These are completely DIFFERENT sins: they have different culprits, they have different degrees of severity, and most importantly, they have completely different Spiritual meaning. In no case should they be confused. Through false veneration of the Tsar, the servants of Satan pursue one very important goal: to make the Russian People themselves agree to become a SCAPHEGOAT. The true regicides are trying to pin their sin on the Orthodox – the sin of the ritual murder of Tsar Nicholas. The scapegoat - on which all sins are hung - is an integral element of Kabbalistic ritual. It is precisely this order from the world behind the scenes that is carried out by the heretical, lukewarm and false members of our Russian Orthodox Church, who instill false veneration of the Tsar. And now the question is: if we ourselves actively participate in the deeds of darkness by slandering ourselves in the sin of regicide (through false veneration of the Tsar in the Order of Passion-Bearer), then why are we surprised at those MASS spiritual SUICIDES that are committed by our brothers and sisters at the so-called “rites of conciliar repentance in regicide"?

WHY YOU CAN’T PARTICIPATE IN PSEUDO “CONFLICT” “REPENTANCE” IN THE REGICIDE OCCURRING IN TAININ Satan has always hated genuine Repentance, genuine conversion and the return of man to God. When the devil fails to knock a person off his feet, he tries to “knock him off the right road” and direct him along the wrong (soul-destructive) path. One of these “newfangled” ways was pseudo “conciliar” pseudo “repentance” for the regicide. These so-called rites of “conciliar” “repentance” (or rather slander) are the most real DEMNITY and spiritual SUICIDE. Why? FIRST, there is NO sin of Regicide on the Russian People. We are burdened with a more SERIOUS sin - the sin of TREASON, the sin of violating the Council Vow of 1613. They killed the Tsar - completely different people. Regicide is the sin of the Jewish Kabbalists. The sin that these CONSCIOUS servants of the devil are trying to pin on us. So that we OURSELVES take upon themselves their sin, and in a practical way, and bear God’s punishment for it. After all, from the Word of God we see that when we repent of a sin that we did not commit: on the one hand, we slander ourselves, on the other, we will be responsible for the sin that we take upon ourselves. In the Holy Scriptures we have an extremely strong and instructive example of how terrible and soul-destructive false (i.e., repentance for a sin we did not commit) “repentance” for regicide is. Let's open the second book of Kings and read what happened to the man who slandered himself in the sin of regicide. “After the death of Saul, on the third day a man came from Saul’s camp.. Having come to David, he fell to the ground and worshiped [him]. And David said to the young man who told him: How do you know that Saul and his son Jonathan are dead? And said the youth who told him: I came by chance to Mount Gilboa, and behold, Saul fell on his spear, and the chariots and horsemen overtook him. Then he looked back and, seeing me, called me. And I said, “Here I am.” to me: who are you? And I said to him: I am an Amalekite. Then he said to me: come to me and kill me, for mortal anguish has taken hold of me, my soul is still in me. And I approached him and killed him, for I knew. that he would not live after his fall; and I took the crown that was on his head, and the bracelet that was on his hand, and brought them to my master here. Then David took his clothes and tore them, and so did all the people. Those who were with him mourned and wept and fasted until evening for Saul and his son, because they fell by the sword. And David said to the servant, Why were you not afraid to lift up your hand to destroy the CHRIST of the LORD? And David called one of the youths and said to him: Come, kill him. And [he] killed him, and he died. And David said to him [to the youth who slandered himself in the regicide]: YOUR BLOOD IS ON YOUR HEAD (i.e., for the sin that you took upon yourself, you will answer), for YOUR mouth HAS WITNESSED against you (since you yourself took upon yourself this sin, which you did not commit), when you said: for I have killed the Christ of the Lord" (2 Samuel 1:1-16).

SECONDLY, anyone who raises his hand against the Anointed One of God falls under the 11th anathema on the Week of the Triumph of Orthodoxy and the curse of the Pious Zemstvo-Local Council of 1613 (http://www.ic-xc-nika.ru/texts/Alexandrov_M/Dokument... ). Thus, those who take upon themselves (through the Sacrament of Repentance) the sin of murdering God’s Anointed One, knowing or not, themselves (by their own stupidity) put their heads “under the sword” of God’s curse. Those. they simply go under anathema. In this case, it is appropriate to remember how the true Christ-killers (the Bishops and elders of Israel, who out of envy betrayed the Lord to death) vilely “hanged” their sin - deicide - on the common Jewish people. “When the morning came, all the CHIEF PRIESTS and the elders (i.e., those in power and the rich) of the people had a meeting about Jesus, to put HIM TO DEATH; and having bound Him, they took Him away and handed Him over to Pontius Pilate, the governor. On the feast of [Easter ] the governor had the custom of releasing to the people one prisoner whom [the people wanted]. At that time they had a famous prisoner called Barabbas; so, when they gathered, Pilate said to them: whom do you want me to release to you: Barabbas, or Jesus, who is called Christ. ? For he knew that [the Bishops and Elders] betrayed Him OUT OF ENVY. But the CHIEF PRIESTS and the elders stirred up the people to ask Barabbas, and to destroy Jesus. Pilate, seeing that the confusion was increasing, took water and washed his hands before the people, and said: I am innocent of this. the blood of this righteous man; behold, ALL THE PEOPLE answered, “HIS BLOOD IS ON US AND ON OUR CHILDREN” (Matthew 27:1-25). This is how, succumbing to demonic seduction on the part of the Bishops and “elders,” the common Jewish people took upon themselves a monstrous sin - the sin of deicide. “Such is reckless rage,” says Saint. John Chrysostom, - such is the evil passion... let it be that you cursed yourself; Why are you bringing a curse on your descendants too?!” The most terrible thing is that the retribution for this curse, which the Jewish people, through UNREASON, being deceived by their “blind leaders” (Matt. 15:14), turned out to be effective and “was fulfilled in the further history of the Jews, who have since been scattered throughout the world , in those countless “pogroms” to which they were constantly subjected, in fulfillment of the prophecy of Moses in Deuteronomy (chap. 28:49-57; 64-67)” (St. Averky Taushev). “The Jews take upon themselves and their children the monstrous sin of deicide; This retribution soon befell them when the Romans exterminated them and their children. However, UNTIL NOW the Jews, like the children of those who killed the Lord, bear His blood on themselves. For for lack of faith in the Lord they are persecuted by everyone and there is no mercy for them” (Blessed Theophylact of Bulgaria). So why do we Russian people, to the “calling drum” of today’s New Testament Bishops and “elders,” take upon ourselves the sin of killing the earthly Christ – the Anointed of God, who is the living icon of the Lord Jesus Christ?! Does the example of the Jewish people teach us nothing?! The sage was truly right when he said: “The times are still the same, only the faces change.” Like, since it happened 2000 years ago, why not try it now?!!

In this article you will find out why the holy Emperor Nicholas II is not a martyr and redeemer, how crazy the fools for Christ's sake are, and also which saints are the most numerous in the church calendar.

Depending on the type of feat suffered during life for the sake of Christ, saints are usually divided according to the faces of holiness. Today we will look at what ranks (or faces) of saints exist in the Orthodox Church and how they differ from each other.

Martyrs

The ancient Greek word “μάρτῠρος” is translated into Russian not as “martyr”, but as “witness”. The fact is that the martyrs testified to their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ through their torment and death. And in the original meaning, the emphasis is not on the type of feat (torture), but on its meaning (testimony of faith even under the threat of death).

Martyrs are one of the most ancient faces of holiness, the mosta numerous face of Christian saints and, at the same time, the most supported by documentary evidence.

In the first three centuries, while Christianity in the Roman Empire was considered a sect of the Old Testament religion of the Jews, and then simply a dangerous anti-state teaching, openly professing oneself as a Christian or denunciation from ill-wishers almost always meant a trial with the then accepted methods of inquiry - torture and execution, as a result of confession of guilt. the defendant.

The entire course of the trial, questions from the judge, answers from the accused, testimony and apologies in defense of the person brought to trial were carefully recorded in the protocol. Therefore, many of the lives of martyrs have a documentary basis, which is least affected by additions to legends and traditions.

Moreover, from the first centuries of Christianity, only members of the Christian Church were considered martyrs, not schismatics or sectarians, and only those who endured all the torments until their death, without renouncing or making sacrifices to the pagan gods.

The bodies of martyrs were usually taken by Christians in one way or another for burial in catacombs or martyriums - special chapels built above the coffin. Quite quickly, the Church formed a tradition of performing services in front of the tombs and on the tombs of martyrs, which became the prototype of modern altars in churches. On the modern altar, the liturgy is always performed on an antimension - a special plate, into one of the edges of which is sewn a capsule with a particle of the relics of one of the saints.

Various people became martyrs - ordinary laymen, clergy, nobles and monks. Therefore, in relation to some saints from the list of martyrs, one can find such titles as “venerable martyr” - a martyr from among the monks, “hieromartyr” - a martyr from the clergy, or “great martyr” - a martyr from among the royals or nobility. Nowadays you can also find the name “new martyr,” which refers to the feat of Christians who suffered for their faith in the USSR in the 20th century.

In the Russian Orthodox Church, “great martyrs” are saints who have endured particularly severe, often multi-day, torments for Christ. But in the first centuries of Christianity, this tradition was preserved in other Local Churches; those of noble origin who suffered for their faith were called great martyrs.

Confessors

Another face of holiness, whose feat in meaning is no different from the feat of martyrs, is made up of confessors of faith. Confessors are people who openly professed their faith, who endured torment and torment for this, who did not renounce, but who remained alive for one reason or another beyond their control.

Initially, the feat of confessors was understood to be somewhat less significant than the feat of martyrs, but already Saint Cyprian of Carthage in the middle of the 3rd century proposed to venerate confessors on an equal basis with martyrs, noting, however, that not every Christian who has undergone torture and has not renounced and who has remained alive can be considered a confessor. only the one who spent the rest of his life righteously and remained faithful to the Lord.

For obvious reasons, the number of confessors is significantly inferior to the martyrs, which cannot be said about the next rank of saints - the venerables.

Reverends

The venerables are the second largest rank of saints after the martyrs, and perhaps even the quantitatively equal rank of saints. There are almost no days in the church calendar that do not commemorate at least one of the saints.

This rite of holiness honors representatives of monasticism, which appeared around the 2nd century, and already by the 3rd-4th centuries acquired the character of a mass movement in the Church. A little later, monks begin to take holy orders and occupy bishop's chairs.

The term “venerables” refers to saints from among the monastics who, through prayer and physical labor, acquired the Holy Spirit and became like God.

The presence in the calendar of a huge host of monastic saints is, of course, associated with their highest spiritual, cultural and moral authority among believers. Many venerable fathers were known for amazing ascetic feats such as standing on a stone for a thousand days, living in a cage or on a pillar, wearing chains, etc. Also, many monks became the founders of huge monasteries and helped their contemporaries survive the rise of inner life on the scale of entire states (Antony the Great, Savva the Sanctified, Savva the Serbian, Anthony and Theodosius of Pechersk and others).

Many reverend fathers became famous for the works of spiritual literature they created, for their active participation in the lives of the people around them, not only in terms of prayer, but also treatment, miracles, social assistance, and giving alms.

The two reverend fathers are considered the most revered in Russia: Sergius of Radonezh and Seraphim of Sarov, several hundred churches are dedicated to each of them.

Apostles

The apostles (“messengers”) are the most important group of saints, among whom the direct disciples of the Savior from among the twelve are revered (Peter, Andrew the First-Called, James Zebedee, John Zebedee (Theologian), Thomas, Matthew, Nathanael (Bartholomew), Simon the Zealot (Zealot ), Jacob Alpheus, Judas Alpheus (Thaddeus), Philip and Matthias, chosen to replace Judas Iscariot), as well as the Apostle Paul, separately chosen by the Lord.

Also honored among the apostles are the companions in the preaching of the Savior’s direct disciples, who lived in the 1st century and are conventionally called “the apostles of the seventy” (in fact, there are more of them and not all of them personally saw the Savior at least once).

The feat of the apostles, in contrast to the feat of the saints, which will be discussed later, did not consist in preserving the Church locally, but in preaching the Gospel throughout the world, that is, it was inextricably linked with travel and missionary work.

Most of the apostles sooner or later ended their journey with martyrdom. Of the twelve disciples of Christ, only the Apostle John the Theologian died a natural death.

Among the apostles there were not only men, but also women, for example Priscilla, who preached with her husband Aquila. Strictly speaking, Mary Magdalene, who is usually called “equal to the apostles,” is essentially a female apostle, since she preached Christianity in many places, and also personally knew the Lord and was a listener to many of His teachings.

Some confusion in the titles of certain saints in the Church can be found quite often. For example, one of the apostles of the seventy, Haggai, bore the nickname “Prophet” for the corresponding gifts of grace, but is not revered among the prophets.

Saints

Saints are called glorified righteous men from among the church hierarchs - bishops who were worthy shepherds and also showed personal righteousness.

The Greek word “bishop” is translated into Russian as “overseer.” The apostles, after preaching in a particular city, appointed one of their disciples - the most pious and the one who had best mastered Christian teaching - to oversee the life of the local community. When the apostles left the founded Church and went on to preach further, the bishop was given the responsibility of caring for the converts.

The names of the saints were included in diptychs and were regularly commemorated during services. Local Churches exchanged similar diptychs and commemorated each other's saints.

The Church owes many of its traditions to the saints. For example, Easter messages were invented by St. Athanasius the Great, religious processions by St. John Chrysostom, and social assistance centers by St. Basil the Great.

Equal to the Apostles

Equal to the Apostles is the group of saints who performed apostolic ministry primarily after the first century after the birth of Christ. They were not direct disciples of the Lord and did not listen to his teachings personally, but like the apostles they converted entire countries and peoples to Christ.

There are not very many Equal-to-the-Apostles, as well as apostles. In this choir of saints they honor the memory of Averky of Hierapolis, Mary Magdalene, Apphia of Colossus, Thekla of Iconium, Constantine the Great and his mother Elena, Princess Olga and Prince Vladimir, brothers Cyril and Methodius, Patrick of Ireland, Nicholas of Japan (Kasatkina), Savva of Serbia, Nina of Gruzinskaya , Tsar Boris of Bulgaria, Cosmas of Aetolia and Innocent of Moscow (Veniaminov).

Prophets

The face of the holy prophets is the most ancient of all, since almost all the holy prophets lived before the Nativity of Christ. The prophets preached repentance among the Jewish people, predicted the coming of the Messiah - Christ, and proclaimed the will of God to the Jews.

In total, the Church honors eighteen saints in the rank of prophets, highlighting twelve minor prophets and four great ones - Isaiah, Ezekiel, Jeremiah and Daniel.

Standing somewhat apart among the prophets are the prophet Moses, who led the Jewish people from captivity in Egypt to the Holy Land, and the prophet, Forerunner and Baptist of the Lord John, the only saint of the prophetic order who lived already in New Testament times and personally knew the Lord Jesus Christ.

Most of the prophets became famous for performing amazing miracles, predicting the future and openly exposing the sins of some Jewish and Asian sovereigns. Some prophets left behind entire books, and some we know about only from the stories of the historical books of the Old Testament.

Passion-bearers

The passion-bearers are the “most Russian” face of saints. In it, the Church honors mainly noble righteous people who suffered not for their faith, but as a result of rampant human passions - conspiracy, civil war, and who at the same time showed personal self-sacrifice and good-naturedness.

Some Christians mistakenly call the family of the last Russian Emperor Nicholas II martyrs, attributing to him the role of some kind of “redemption” of the Russian people. In fact, the Russian people, and indeed all Christians in general, can have only one Redeemer - the Lord himself, the God-man, with whom not even the greatest saint can compare. It is also incorrect to call the royal passion-bearers martyrs, since they were killed not because of their Orthodox religion, but as a potential living “banner” for the white movement.

At the same time, the Church does not question the holiness of Emperor Nicholas II and his family, honoring them in the ranks of the passion-bearers along with princes Boris and Gleb, Dula of Egypt (who is also considered a saint), Tsarevich Dimitry of Uglich, and Prince Mikhail of Tver (who is also considered and to the face of the faithful).

The faithful

The rank of blessed saints is another rank “for the nobility.” The Church counts among the faithful those rulers who have done a lot to strengthen faith and morality, the development of the Church and enlightenment in the lands under their control.

This image of holiness arose in the Church of Constantinople during the period of the Ecumenical Councils and was used during the canonization of Byzantine emperors and their wives, and then began to be used in other Orthodox Churches.

Among the Russian noble princes they honor: Alexander Nevsky, Yaroslav the Wise, Andrei Bogolyubsky, Dmitry Donskoy, John Kalita, Daniil of Moscow, Igor of Chernigov, Oleg Bryansky and others.

Unmercenary

This is the name given to saints who renounced wealth and helped other people for free for the sake of Christ. Almost all the saints of this group were related to the art of medicine and, with the help of prayer, miracles, potions and medical skills, helped people regain lost health.

Christ himself performed his miracles and healed people for free, for the sake of mercy for the suffering, and he commanded his disciples to do the same: “heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons; Freely you have received, freely give” (Matthew 10:8). The unmercenaries literally followed this covenant of the Savior.

Among the unmercenaries they honor Cosmas and Damian, the healer Panteleimon, Ermolai, Cyrus and John, Samson the Host, the physician Diomedes of Nicaea, Tryphon, Photius and Anicetas, Thalaleos of Cilicia, Prochorus the Lebednik, Agapit of Pechersk and others.

Sometimes certain saints are also called miracle workers, but this is not a special face of holiness. Many saints performed miracles abundantly both during their lifetime and after their death, and the epithet “miracle worker” can be found both in relation to saints and martyrs, unmercenaries, saints and saints of other orders of holiness.

Righteous

In the first three centuries of Christianity, hundreds of thousands of Christians suffered martyrdom. Subsequently in the history of the Church we will also encounter many turbulent periods when new martyrs appeared. Monasticism was also very widespread, in fact, by the 7th century, it had usurped the highest positions in church administration, founded thousands of monasteries and had enormous spiritual and moral authority both in the Church itself and in society as a whole.

This is not bad, but that is precisely why the focus of the Church’s attention was most often directed on the lives of martyrs and saints, of whom we know many, and rarely noticed the quiet exploits of other saints - doctors, large couples, philanthropists, warriors, whom we know relatively little. In other words, the Church honors literally a few righteous people from among the laity, but there were certainly a lot of such saints among Christians. It’s just that their lives and exploits remained hidden from us until the Day of Judgment.

Among the righteous, the most famous saints are: Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebecca, Jacob and Rachel, King David, Joachim and Anna, Job, Simeon the God-Receiver, Simeon of Verkhoturye, John of Kronstadt, Alexy Mechev, John of Russia, Peter and Fevronia of Murom, Matrona of Moscow, Feodor Ushakov and others.

The righteous rarely exhausted themselves with any special feats, but all their lives they tried to follow the will of God, for the sake of the Lord to help others, often attend divine services and pray at home and follow the spirit, and not the letter of the Holy Scriptures. Many righteous people secretly did good to those in need and performed miracles.

Fools for Christ's sake (Blessed)

The Slavic word “fool” is translated into modern Russian as “fool, crazy.” Fools for Christ's sake were not crazy - they only pretended to be crazy in order to, through the contemptuous attitude of others, get rid of pride and the obligation to follow all the rules of society (often far from Christianity).

Fools for Christ's sake, as a rule, began their feat by distributing almost all their property to the needy and began to wander and live on alms. These saints prayed a lot, openly exposed human vices, predicted the future, helped those in need and, sometimes, healed those suffering from illnesses.

All fools for Christ's sake are also called “blessed” and this is where confusion can arise. There are other saints who are consistently called “blessed” in the church tradition, but who do not belong to this list of saints - Augustine of Hippo (saint), Jerome of Stridon (venerable) and Matrona of Moscow (righteous).

Also, one should not confuse the Orthodox blessed ones - holy fools - and the Catholic rank of “blessed”, which designates the first stage of canonization, as if “honored Christians”.

The predecessors of the blessed fools can be considered some of the righteous and prophets of the Old Testament - Job, Ezekiel, Hosea and others, who are known for their strange actions that exposed public lawlessness.

Among the Orthodox blessed ones, the most revered are: Ksenia of Petersburg, Vasily of Moscow, Andrei Yurodivy, Procopius of Ustyug.

To summarize, we can say that in the Orthodox Church there are mainly twelve faces of saints, who are divided both according to the type of their deed dedicated to God, and according to their position in society or the church hierarchy. At the same time, some saints, whose exploits are especially multifaceted, are sometimes attributed to two or more ranks of holiness at once. Probably, this article will help some of our readers to navigate the life of the Church a little better and understand who and what they prayerfully honor, which will be very gratifying for the author.

Andrey Szegeda

Veneration of saints is an important part of Orthodox doctrine. Saints are earthly people who have achieved deification, a state of participation in God through permeation with divine energies, which is given to them as a reward for righteousness. Sharing with people in earthly life all the hardships of mortal existence, they became real, bodily bearers of qualities inherent in another world. A saint, a righteous man is an earthly angel and a heavenly man. It connects the earthly church and the heavenly church, clearly testifying to the effectiveness of the divine principle in the world. Entering the Heavenly Church after death, he becomes a prayer book and patron of Christians who resort to his help. From the point of view of understanding the history of mankind, saints are historical figures who discovered for their time the paths of national religious calling, which clearly characterize a particular historical era. Russian historian G.P. Fedotov wrote that it is the national concept of holiness that contains the key to understanding the most complex and contradictory phenomena of Russian culture.

Popular, spontaneously developing veneration of a saint, as a rule, precedes his recognition as a saint by the official church. Church recognition is expressed by the act of canonization, calling the flock to venerate the righteous in the forms of public worship. Saints are glorified through the painting of icons, the creation of lives, church services and prayers. The basis for church canonization is the life and feat of a saint, miracles performed by him during his life or after death, and in some cases, the incorruption of his relics. In addition to church-wide canonization, there is the concept of local, diocesan canonization, when the veneration of a saint has narrowly local forms and takes place within the boundaries of a city, monastery, or temple.

Princes.

It is significant that the first Russian saints were princes Boris and Gleb. However, they were glorified not as “autocrats”, but as “passion-bearers.” Their glory consisted in their voluntary renunciation of power and self-sacrifice, on which the Russian state of the era of Yaroslav the Wise was established. From now on, all Russian princes were called upon to follow this model of behavior of a Christian prince, whose religious duty was to sacrifice himself for the salvation of his people. The entire host of holy princes, depending on the feat they suffered in life, is divided into several groups.

The first group consists of princes equal to the apostles, the essence of whose feat is to spread Christianity. This is, first of all, the holy Prince Vladimir, the baptist of Rus', and his grandmother, the holy princess Olga. Constantine, the enlightener of the remote pagan land of Murom, was also ranked among the rank of Equal-to-the-Apostles princes. The second group consists prince-monks. The humble worker of the Kiev-Pechersk Monastery was Prince Nikola Svyatosha (12th century), in the distant northern Spaso-Kamenny Monastery the Zaozersky Prince Andrei labored, who in his early youth took monastic vows (15th century). The most numerous group is passion-bearing princes. Here, princes who became victims of political murders are glorified (Andrei Bogolyubsky, Igor Kyiv - 12th century), and princes who died on the battlefield (Georgy Vsevolodovich - 13th century), and princes who suffered martyrdom defending the Christian faith (Mikhail Chernigovsky , Vasilko Konstantinovich, Roman Olgovich - 13th century).

Reverends.

In Russian history, no less important than princely holiness was the rank of saints, those who chose the monastic path and in their lives sought to become like Christ Himself. The Monk Theodosius of Pechersk, the father of Russian monasticism, was the second (after Boris and Gleb) saint to be solemnly canonized by the Russian Church. In him, Rus' found its ideal saint, to which it remained faithful for many centuries. The main character traits of Theodosius and his feat, reflected in his life, became the measure of righteousness for his students and followers. Thanks to Saint Theodosius, the idea of ​​a Russian monk is forever associated with a special love of books as a manifestation of love for spiritual enlightenment, with humility based on the living contemplation of the humiliation of Christ himself, rejecting rich clothes and being content with “thin garments.” A Russian monk is one who, like St. Theodosius, hides his ascetic deeds and whose life, apart from prayer, is filled with hard, “slave” physical labor; who, having left the world, did not lose touch with worldly society, taking upon himself the burden of serving as a spiritual father for the laity. The second most important figure in the rank of saints is Anthony of Pechersk, founder of the Kiev-Pechersk Monastery and teacher of Theodosius.

Saints.

From Byzantium, Rus' adopted the custom of electing bishops from the monastic clergy. However, holy bishops - hierarchs - the third most important rank of Russian holiness, are glorified by the Church not for ascetic deeds, although monastic traits are one way or another present in the image of any bishop. The saint’s feat combines monastic, secular, and church service. Its meaning is teaching, protecting the purity of faith, and serving the salvation of one’s flock. Unlike Byzantium, the Russian Church never knew the tradition of canonizing all its hierarchs by virtue of their holy orders. The saint was glorified when he achieved personal holiness through his life and service to the church. Typical features of the Russian saint are generous alms, concern for the founding and decoration of churches and monasteries, secret asceticism, strict implementation of the principle of civil justice, and severity in the fight for truth. The first saint to receive all-Russian recognition was Niphon of Novgorod (11th century), who combined the talents of a politician and a peacemaker, which allowed him to achieve peace by pacifying the warring princes. Political activity strongly colors the church service of the Moscow metropolitans: Peter, Alexy and Jonah. However, unlike the Novgorod rulers, who defended the local interests of the Novgorod Republic, the Moscow metropolitans pursued policies that had national significance. The most complete image of a bishop-ruler was created in the life of Metropolitan Alexy, who worked as a regent during the childhood of Prince Dmitry Donskoy on the creation of the Moscow state. The despotic regime of the reign of the first Russian Tsar Ivan the Terrible demanded from the saints of this era a feat in confessing the truth before the tyrant. Defending the truth of piety, the demand to stop shedding Christian blood cost the life of Metropolitan Philip (Kolychev). A special time that required feats of confession from bishops was the 1920s–1930s. The new Soviet government, which came to power as a result of the October Revolution of 1917, actually attempted to destroy the Russian Orthodox Church by physically eliminating believers. From this point of view, church hierarchs posed a particular “danger” to the authorities. A huge number of priests, metropolitans, bishops, and monks were torn from their flock, exiled and shot. The first to bear the brunt of pressure on the church organized by the Soviets was Patriarch Tikhon (Belavin). Canonized in 1989, he became the first holy Russian patriarch.

Holy Fools

- this is the name of the new order of holiness, which has been included in the Russian Church since the beginning of the 14th century. “For Christ’s sake, a holy fool” or “blessed” is a person who has taken on the guise of madness for the sake of rejecting the values ​​of worldly life. With their feat of feigned madness or immorality, they revealed the incompatibility of such concepts as Christian truth and common sense. Almost all holy fools are credited with the gift of prophecy, which is given to them as a reward for their contempt for human reason. According to contemporaries, the ancient Russian holy fools walked naked, with loose hair and an iron chain around their necks. Novgorod became the birthplace of Russian foolishness. It was from Novgorod that Procopius of Ustyug (14th century), Nikola Kochanov (14th century), and Mikhail Klopsky (15th century) came from. The series of Moscow holy fools begins with St. Maxim (15th century), and the most famous among them was St. Basil the Blessed (16th century). The last saints of this order of holiness were Blessed Xenia of St. Petersburg (18th–19th centuries) and Blessed Nikolai Rynin (19th century), canonized in the 20th century.

Why can't you be a staff captain if there is no God? What lesson does the evangelical centurion teach us? Why is it so important to know your place and when you can leave this place? And how can we prevent the devil’s hierarchy from prevailing in our lives?

Greetings, dear lovers of God!

Dostoevsky (I think in the novel “Demons”) has the following remark from one of the characters: “If there is no God, then what kind of staff captain am I?” Such a paradoxical, even Zen Buddhist phrase that opens consciousness says the following: a staff captain is a person who does not begin and does not end the military hierarchy; below him there are smaller ranks, above him there are greater ranks, above the greater ranks there are even greater ones, and above all the ranks in the state there is a king, and above the kings there is the King of kings - the Lord God. This is such an orderly chain, and if you destroy it, this is what happens: what kind of staff captain am I?! And if there is no God, there is no father, no mother, no boss, no subordinate, then this is some kind of general mess of all against all, rebels, considering themselves absolutely equal.

In fact, there is no equality in the world. This is a very important idea and should be well understood. So, if there is no God, what kind of staff captain am I? The Roman centurion knew this well, and he asked the Lord to heal his youth. The Lord told him: “I will come and heal,” and he answered: “Lord! I am not worthy for You to come under my roof, but just say the word, and my servant will recover; for I am a subordinate man, but, having soldiers under my command, I say to one: go, and he goes; and to another: come, and he comes; and to my servant: Do this, and he does it...” (Matthew 8: 8-9). In these words, the centurion confesses the following: I am a subordinate person, I am not the most important, there are bosses above me, but I am also a kind of boss, and my subordinates obey me. What does Christ have to do with it? And despite the fact that the centurion sees in Christ the One Whom everyone obeys. Christ is the head of the hierarchy, He is at the head of everything, and, according to the centurion, if they obey him, the centurion, unquestioningly, then You, Lord, just say the word - and the boy will be healed. A centurion is a person who is taught discipline and obedience, who lives within a hierarchy, has superiors above him, subordinates below him, and he understands perfectly well that he must obey his superior, just as his subordinates obey him, and the Lord is the chief over all, and Everyone listens to him.

Hierarchy is a very important word for us. Why? Because everything is headed, there is nothing in the world that is not headed, even in the housing office there must be a boss over the broom. There is no one in the human race who would not submit to someone, who would not answer to someone.

The ladder is a theological concept, and one must walk along it step by step, without jumping over several at once.

The saint said amazing words: “When people have love, they do not think about justice.” That is, when people lose love, they are passionately concerned about justice. And justice is understood in terms of equality. And I want to pull the one who is taller down, and maybe climb up myself. I want, so to speak, to straighten the ladder of the world order into a straight line. The ladder is also a theological concept. Jacob slept and saw a ladder - from earth to heaven, and the angels of God ascended and descended on it, and the Lord established himself on it. And the Monk John Climacus wrote a book about ascension, where one does not jump on steps, where one gradually, step by step, walks along the steps of divine illumination and practical sanctification. Moreover, they go in order, that is, first specifically the first step, then specifically the second, and so on - and these steps do not change places.

And they are given hierarchically: first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh... - up to the tenth, they are logically connected, flowing into one another, starting from the most important one. The head commandment is a sign of God, and then moral concepts gradually multiply. The Beatitudes are also given not in a confused way, but hierarchically, namely, as a ladder of transition from one to another. And they end: “... of such is the Kingdom of Heaven.” If you do anything, you will be expelled for the sake of truth, because the world will expel the one who exposes it with his holy life.

There must be a hierarchy everywhere, and earthly reality copies heavenly reality. We read about the heavenly hierarchy from Dionysius the Areopagite and the Apostle Paul. The angels are not all gathered into a herd, the angels are like an army, and the army has a military leader and then captains of thousands, tens, centurions, and so on. Any army is a hierarchical structure. We have a heavenly army, and the Lord is the King of the heavenly army; By the way, He is called that way – Hosts, that is, “Lord of armies.” And if it’s a military force, it means military ranks and hierarchy. And there are nine angelic ranks: Angels, Archangels, Principalities, Powers, Powers, Dominions, Thrones, Cherubim and Seraphim. They do not change places, each performs their own special service, each is in obedience to the highest and all serve God together.

The demon world is also hierarchical. He is a shapeshifter of the real, bright world. And here there are terrible bosses - demonic princes, who, like, say, thieves in law, command mongrels and rogues. There are just hooligan little demons who commit all sorts of dirty tricks and nasty things that are not capable of turning half the world upside down. So there, too, there is its own nasty hierarchy - just a hierarchy, and from the lives of the saints we know how older demons, for example, mercilessly beat and punish the younger ones, and they, in turn, even younger ones. Such a prison hierarchy, built not on love, but on fear of punishment. But they also know their elders. This is an angelic changeling. The light, angelic world that ascends upward and the dark angelic world that ascends downwards - they are fully reflected in our lives. Quite rightly, Dante also depicts hell as stepped - a funnel, twisting downwards, decreasing and reaching the point where Satan is frozen in the ice, in the icy Lake Cocytus. These steps go from the upper circles, where they suffer for lighter sins, then those whose sins are heavier and heavier, and finally the perjurers, traitors, devil-worshippers and the leader of all evil himself. This idea expressed in artistic forms is absolutely theologically correct. By the way, this immortal Dante’s trilogy is called “The Divine Comedy,” but there is nothing funny in it: in the Middle Ages, a comedy was a work in which there is a good ending, in which the hero does not die. In a tragedy the hero dies, but in a comedy the hero does not. That, in fact, is all comedy, and there is nothing to laugh at, there are nightmares. This is a whole encyclopedia of medieval life. So: there, and there, and there, and there - everywhere there is a hierarchy.

People's lives are designed to reflect the angelic hierarchy, and therefore we must have elders

What is our human life? Human life, according to theologians, should reflect the angelic hierarchy, and in this sense there should be elders. There must be angelic leaders, there must be assistants lower, lower, down to the simplest person who can be an angel. As they say, I’m not a magician yet, I’m just learning, but God helps me do real miracles. And each person can be this lesser of the angels, gradually ascending from strength to strength. And the Scripture says: “To those who go from strength to strength the God of the gods of might will appear” (cf. Ps. 83:8). This is the spiritual purpose of our life. You need to respect your elders, not strive to take their place, take your place and do what you need to do until the right hand of God raises you to a more worthy place. As in the Proverbs of the Lord: sit lower, because it is better when they tell you: “Friend, sit higher, you deserve to be here” (cf. Proverbs 25: 7). This is precisely the elevation of a person from a humble place to a more worthy place.

The demonic hierarchy is also present in our lives. In criminal communities this is most clearly visible or in some other semi-criminal and criminal relations, where there are senior bosses, where there are some princes, few people see and know, whose names they tremble, and where there are, so to speak, “ sixes" and syavkas who do the dirtiest and most disgusting work. This is also a hierarchy, but it is, of course, a sad hierarchy. But it also proves the inevitability of a hierarchical world.

And this is what I want to draw your attention to: we people think and have heartfelt reasons to believe that it is true that the higher angels do not hesitate to do the work of the lesser ones. The smaller one cannot do more work, because he is not capable of it, but the larger one can do less work. This is a very beautiful principle. They say that in the Georgian Church (I heard this from many and I think this is true) a priest can, in the absence of a deacon, as an exception, put on a deacon’s vestment and serve the service with an orarion, and not with an epitrachelion - that is, perform a smaller service. Or serve as a sexton or reader. Of course, a reader cannot be a deacon - one cannot rise from the bottom up without worthy ordination; and the deacon cannot perform the priestly service. But the higher one can come down and perform the service of the lower one. Just like, for example, a person standing at a machine cannot take the place of the director, but the director, if he has worked on the machine at one time, can give a skill lesson - take off his jacket, put on a robe and glasses and show how to sharpen this or that part correctly . The higher condescends to the lower, the lower does not rise to the higher, since he does not have a natural resource for this - this is how the hierarchy operates according to the laws of love.

Superior, do not be afraid to do the work of the inferior - it will not humiliate you! Inferior, honor the superior and remember: you cannot do his work.

Superior, do not be afraid to do the work of the inferior! Those at the top, don’t be afraid to pick up a broom, a pick, a screwdriver... Don’t be afraid! You will not be offended by the work of an inferior. And you, the lower one, respect the higher one and do not twitch, because people who rebel against the authorities, against the authorities, against those above them, boldly insulting the authorities, as the apostle says, are people who have a satanic spirit. They do not want to obey, they are self-confident, they believe that they deserve more, they do not love anyone who is higher than them. And they try, so to speak, to shake the universe, arousing in themselves and in those around them hatred towards those who are higher. Envy is a vile feeling, the ancestor of all revolutions and upheavals, the mother of all murders. Envy threw the devil from heaven to earth, envy put a stone in the hands of Cain against Abel, envy is the mother of all atrocities in the human race. And this envy manifests itself precisely in the unwillingness to obey your elders, in the unwillingness to respect those placed above you.

Honoring those above is so natural and necessary that even in the era of pagan kings the apostles demanded this from their disciples. “Honor everyone, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king,” says the Apostle Peter (1 Pet. 2:17). The Apostle Paul wrote that he desires that holy men in every place would lift up their blameless hands in prayer—including for those in power. And in power, that is, the emperor, let me remind you, then Nero was. As we see, the prayer for the scoundrel sitting on the throne did not bother the Apostle Paul, because he understood: the Roman Empire itself is a divine permission and dispensation of salvation. And this order, which has reigned over a huge part of the universe, is the work of God. And order must be led. The king sits on the throne in Rome, he has Caesars subordinate to the provinces, procurators, prefects, various heads of regions, commanders of legions, and this whole harmonious structure exists so that people do not eat each other like fish in the sea. In ancient times, Jews said: live where the laws are obeyed. That is, if you have to lose the land of your fathers and live in exile, try to live where the laws are obeyed. Because if people do not have the law, what happens is what is written in the book of one of the minor prophets: “The wicked swallows up the one who is more righteous than himself... people are like fish in the sea, like reptiles that have no ruler” (cf.: Hab. .1:13–14). In the sea, the big fish swallows the smaller ones. They, fish, are constantly busy darting around the depths of the sea in order to swallow someone who is smaller than you. This, in fact, is the life of sea animals: to eat someone who is smaller than you. So, to prevent this from happening in the human race, we need laws. The laws must be fulfilled - and fulfilled hierarchically: from top to bottom and from bottom to top, like those angels who ascended and descended on Jacob’s ladder, which the forefather saw in a dream.

A few words, my friends, about practice. Find your place in life's hierarchy. Who are you at home? Here you are - the husband, you are in the family - . And when the mother pours soup at dinner, the first plate goes to the father. Necessarily! The first piece is for the father. Not because he is the best, but because God ordered it so. When one wise man was asked: “If both mother and father are sick and both ask for water, who should you give it to first?”, he answered like this: “Give it to your father first, because if the mother were healthy, she would run to him with a glass.” water, she herself agrees that he comes first: he is the eldest.” The wife submits to her husband, and this continues even when they are both already helpless. This is the law of hierarchy.

What is the law of hierarchy in fraternal relations? In large families, older and younger brothers constantly argue with each other, prove something to each other, but in the end everything smoothes out. But parents must ensure that the elder does not offend the younger, and the younger does not mock the elder and does not argue with his, so to speak, legal demands, because the elders always have power over the younger ones: mother over children, husband over wife. And children should always honor their parents. So - in the family.

And at work, find your place and, being seniors, please don’t be rude to the younger ones, don’t skin them, don’t be demons. This is only an evil person with an unrepentant black heart - black as tar - whose goal is to climb higher and crap on everyone who remains below. This is the goal of the demonic hierarchy - to climb higher and spit on the bald heads of those who remain below. This is not the case with us. With us, the one who climbed higher loves the one who stayed below. And, of course, honor and pay tribute to those above you. Not only at work: in the workshop, at the enterprise... But also at the institute. Someone is a laboratory assistant, and someone is a professor, rector, vice-rector... You all understand perfectly well that our life depends on the hierarchy. She is in the army, of course, and in various business structures. And in medical matters: orderly, doctor, chief physician.

We need to take our place and not go beyond it, and when necessary, God’s right hand will lift us up

You need to take your place and not go beyond it. Believe me, God’s right hand will raise you to the right places, from darkness to light, just as the Lord took David and put him in the kingdom. God is interested in taking away from the sheep and goats a person who is capable of ruling the state, and He does this. Just don't go there yourself. Wait until they ask.

It’s the same in the Church. You need to know your place, who you are: a layman, a novice, a monk, a monk bearing holy orders, or a priest, and if a priest, then adorned with protopresbytery or simply a priest who has recently taken upon his shoulders the heavy cross of the priesthood; bishop or you are the Patriarch. There must be an upward hierarchy, and everyone must be given their due: to whom honor is given honor, to whom fear is given fear, to whom love is given love. Everything here must be respected. This is a guarantee of the stability of human society, a guarantee of its success in any work, when everyone knows their place and follows orders.

Let’s end with what the Wise One says when he wants to teach people: “Go, sloth, learn from the bee, learn from the ant.” The wise Solomon advises us to learn from ants and bees. So, not only in hard work can one imitate bees and ants - both of them are also examples of the great hierarchy. Among these workers in the world of insects, everyone knows their job: they have hard workers who carry heavy loads; there are those who protect them, stand guard; there are those who command, those who carry food, etc. etc. The highest degree of socialization! In the hive, they say, there are several dozen “professions.” There are even bees that do not collect any honey, do not build these geometrically correct wonderful honeycombs, absolutely amazing, but flap their wings with a certain frequency in order to maintain the desired temperature in the hive - these are air-conditioning bees. Each bee has its own obedience, and they do not go beyond their limits, do not make these demonic coups, otherwise we would never eat honey. We would have no wax, no honey, no propolis if the bees rebelled and organized democracy.

Bees have older ones and younger ones - everything is fine. And we have no honey, no propolis, because there are not a single bee, but only flies - due to the fact that everyone climbs up over the heads of those standing below. And this, of course, is a demonic activity, which suggests that our life, which should be a mirror image of the heavenly hierarchy, is actually filled with dirt from the lower hierarchy - from the hierarchy of demonic fallen creatures. Think about it and draw conclusions. Goodbye!