27th October. He took the five loaves and two fish and looked up to heaven, blessed them, broke them and gave them to the disciples to distribute to the people.

In the New Testament you can read a lot about the life of Jesus Christ and his miracles, which amazed the people, but not all people believe in it and not everyone understands how this or that miracle can happen. For example, many people often wonder how Jesus was able to feed 5 thousand people with 5 loaves and 2 fishes, if it is virtually impossible to divide such a small amount of food among so many people. Many people think that, using Divine power, Jesus created food out of virtually nothing, so they would like to have a clearer idea of ​​how everything really was.

Orthodox wedge

We read every now and then in the Holy Gospel about the miracles of Christ and ask ourselves the question: why was this possible in those days and we see so few miraculous things in our days?.. And it seems to me that three things can be answered to this.

The first is that we do not see the miracles that surround us; we take everything for granted, as natural. We accept everything good from the hand of God, as if it should be so. And we no longer see that life is a wondrous, joyful miracle, that God wanted to create us, that from non-existence He called us into existence and revealed to us the whole miracle of existence. And He didn’t stop there: He called us to be His friends forever and ever, to live an eternal, divine life forever and ever. And on earth He not only gave us existence and life: He revealed Himself to us; we know that He exists, we know Him in Christ as a God of such love that does not stop even before one’s own death in order to save the one we love. What can we say about those miracles that are even less noticeable to us, like health, like peace, like friendship, like love? This is all a complete miracle! You cannot buy them; It is impossible to force anyone to give us their heart; and so many hearts are open to each other, and so much love, so much friendship around us! And our bodily existence, which we accept so naturally, isn’t it a miracle? And this is the first thing I wanted to draw your attention to: that all life is a miracle. Oh, I know that there is a lot of pain in it, a lot of terrible things - a lot! But along with this, in the darkness, such a quiet and at the same time unwavering light shines in the darkness; if only we, as Christ says, believed in the light, so as to be children of light, children of light, bearers of light!..

And I want to say two more things: today we read about how people were in need, the Apostles noticed this need, drew the Lord’s attention to it, and the Lord told them: You must meet this need, feed these hungry people!.. With what ? We only have two fish, five loaves of bread - is there really enough for such a crowd?.. And Christ blessed these loaves and this fish, and there was enough for the crowd. This is what is expected of us so that God can freely, with His sovereign power, create heavenly miracles on earth: so that we notice the need of others. How often do we pass by it, without opening the door to God so that He can come in and do what is impossible for us. Let us open our eyes to see the needs of the people around us: material, mental, spiritual, melancholy and loneliness, and so many other needs.

And another thing that the Lord calls His disciples to: Give everything you have, and we will feed everyone... The disciples did not leave themselves separate bread or separate fish: they gave everything to the Lord. And because they gave everything, the Kingdom of love was established, a Kingdom where God can act unlimitedly, freely, and everyone was satisfied. And this call is addressed to us: when we see a need, we will give everything, and everything will be fine...

And the last thing, from last Sunday’s Gospel: seeing the faith of those around him, the Lord healed the sick man. We can bring to God the faith that the people around us lack, carry them on our faith, like on a stretcher. But faith is not enough; in this event of healing the paralytic there was not only faith that the Lord could heal the sick person: there was caring love for him. If there was such love around us, among us, then the beginning of the Kingdom of God would have already been established in our midst, and God could act freely.

Let's think about this, because every miracle of God was preceded and, as it were, conditioned by the participation of man: it depends on us that the Kingdom for which we ask, dream, but which we are called to build with God and in the name of God, is established on earth. Amen.

July 20, 1980

From the book of Metropolitan. Anthony of Sourozh “In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit” Klin, “Christian Life”, 2010

Photo from the collection “Orthodox Klin”

About the miracles of God Miracles and reality

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Domingo XVIII-del-Tiempo-Ordinario-Ciclo-

Quite often, when reading the Gospel, we notice in it only half of what it wants to tell us.

Our attention is drawn to the visible outline of events, especially unusual and miraculous ones, while we should focus on their essence and what they teach us, covered with the veil of the visible.

A wide field overgrown with thick grass on the shore of Lake Gennesaret.

Icon painting workshop of Ekaterina Ilyinskaya

On it there were crowds of thousands of people taking part in an extraordinary meal consisting of bread and fish. This bread and fish arose here, in a deserted place - no one knows when, where and how - according to the word of Jesus alone, and arose in such quantities that it was enough not only to satisfy the hunger of thousands of people, but even to fill the remaining pieces as material evidence, twelve baskets.

Audio (Size 1.25 Mb)

The miraculous fact of the multiplication of loaves - for non-believers, perhaps incomprehensible and shocking - for Christians should not be a reason for any special pride. Anyone who believes that Jesus was not only a man, but also God, will not widen his eyes at what is happening.

Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld

Paul Gustave Dore. 1866

He knows that for the One who created the whole world out of nothing, simply multiplying already existing matter will not be difficult.

Therefore, instead of paying too much attention to the event itself, described by the evangelist, we will try to take a closer look at some of the details characteristic of this miracle.

Giovanni Lanfranco. The Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes

joDDvJovy Lanfranco. "The Miracle of Loaves and Foods"

Although seemingly insignificant at first glance, they hide a deep and instructive meaning.

Let's consider one of them.

North wall; Italy. Ravenna; VI century ; location:

Italy. Ravenna. Basilica of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo

It is known that during His public activity, Jesus miraculously multiplied the loaves of bread twice.

At the same time, all four evangelists draw attention to the fact that every time, before resorting to their Omnipotence,

The Wonderworker asked the Apostles to independently satisfy the needs of the hungry

(Matt. 14:16), (Mk. 6:37), (Luke 9:13), (John 6:5), (Matt. 14:23), (Mk. 8:1).

There is nothing easier than holding God responsible for the shortage of bread on earth.

But concern for the material needs of man and the entire world created by God is entrusted primarily to us, and not to Him. After all, it was man who the Creator appointed to own and dispose of everything earthly.

In accordance with God's plans, one of his main tasks is to populate and develop the earth (see Gen. 1, 26; 3, 23).

Therefore, for everything that happens in the world: both for material well-being and for the lack of bread, for order or farce, justice or oppression and resentment, peace and war, progress or a return to barbarism, man is responsible. It is he who builds cities and villages, roads and airfields, schools and hospitals, churches and prisons, mines, factories and shipyards, barracks and nuclear test sites, and he also destroys what has been built. It is he who sows the field with grain or tramples the fields green with seedlings with the caterpillars of his tanks and armored personnel carriers.

Not because of God, but because of man - the evil, unreasonable or self-righteous master of the world - more than ten million people on our planet die of hunger every year.

It is not God, but man, who incites a new war on earth every few years.

It was he who dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and hid thousands of others, a hundred times worse, for tomorrow, for still unsuspecting cities and countries.

All this is so simple and obvious, but how often we forget about it!

While everything in the world is more or less good, we walk around puffed up like peacocks, as if we created this whole paradise on earth. And in days of ruin and misfortune, when everything we built with such difficulty falls on our heads, we make claims not so much to the person who destroys our happiness and who should be mercilessly slapped on the wrist, but to God.

We almost blame Him for everything that happened.

We become disappointed in Him, burst into reproaches, and sometimes even blasphemies.

But is He to blame for the misfortunes that befall us?

And who then instructed a person: do not kill, do not steal, do not commit adultery, do not covet other people’s property, honor your father and mother?

Who said to him: love your neighbor as yourself, and even more: love him as I have loved you?

It’s easy to forgive ourselves and shift the blame for our shortcomings, which then turn into a hail of adversity on our heads, to God. It's easy to say: God's punishment.

However, most often it is not God who punishes us.

This is not “an angry father punishes,” as it is sung rather frivolously in one of the religious songs.

It is our own sins that punish us.

This whips us with a lash of anger and stupidity, woven by our own hands or the hands of our neighbors.

Misfortune to the world and to man is most often brought by another person: our brother who is disobedient to God.

Let's try to understand this.

Let us also try to draw conclusions from this fact.

If the affairs of the world, according to the will of God, are also our affairs, then we should not sit idly by expecting that God will restore order in the world instead of us and miraculously cope with all the troubles that befall humanity.

Let's get to work ourselves. Let us not make the excuse that one person is too weak to resist evil and that the means at his disposal, against the backdrop of the needs of unfortunate humanity, are like that proverbial drop in the ocean.

From each of us, even the weakest and poorest, God expects that, despite his weakness and poverty, he will still contribute something to the creation of the common good.

Perhaps precisely in order to remind people of the often forgotten truth about the need to act themselves, that they must also participate and also bear responsibility, before miraculously feeding the crowd, Jesus turns to the apostles with a strange wish - however, the Evangelist John does not give this wish verbatim, but Matthew, Mark, and Luke carefully wrote it down for us in teaching: “You give them something to eat” (Matthew 14:16), (Mark 6:37), (Luke 9:13 ).

James Tissot - Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes 1896

Although in those conditions these words could pass for a joke, from the tone in which they were spoken, the apostles understood that the Teacher was speaking seriously.

Therefore, they began to anxiously calculate how to feed these thousands of hungry people, if there was practically no food. Philip quickly calculates that there is not even enough bread for two hundred denarii for everyone. And none of them had that kind of money.

Andrei, Peter’s brother, timidly reports that here in the crowd he saw one boy who had prudently taken five loaves of bread and two fish with him on the road.

And then he smiles disarmingly at just the thought: “What is this for such a multitude?” (John 6:9).

Bernardo Strozzi , nicknamed Prete Genovese or Cappuccino .

But Jesus is not funny, He was waiting for this boy and his beggarly gift.

He orders them to take these meager flatbreads of village bread and these dried fish and bring them to Him.

In a minute He will perform a miracle that will leave everyone amazed.

Surely He could have done it without asking anyone for help. He who can multiply can also create from nothing.

However, He wants the gift that He gives us to also contain our gift.

Coptic icon

If that boy from the crowd had been greedy and had not given his bread to others, then perhaps all these thousands would have gone home hungry?

Lambert Lombard — The Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes

Maybe there wouldn't be a miracle? But because he generously gave what he could, God added the rest.

Thus, five small cakes were multiplied for the hungry crowd not only by the omnipotence of Jesus, but, to some extent known only to God, also by the generosity of the little donor.

Always like this. It'll be this way forever. It has to be that way.

Masliy D. G. Five loaves and two fish

Although God did not undertake to interfere in earthly affairs, He is ready to rush to help the world, even by miracle, if only there are people in this world who will “help” Him in this.

artist workshop "Archangeliko" painting of the Church of the Savior Not Made by Hands

in the village of Usovo, Odintsovo district, Moscow region. (fragment of a fresco)

Work, kindness, sacrifice, dedication and love of individual people are never in vain, they will always be noticed by God and will always turn out to be beneficial to humanity, even if they are as inconspicuous and invisible as those loaves of bread and those thin fish that were once small a Galilean boy donated to Jesus.

Mosaic on the floor of the Church of the Multiplication

So let’s not shirk our responsibility to work for the world and people, hiding behind the fact that we can do a little.

God doesn't look at how much we bring, but whether we bring anything.

M Kronheim

He who can do a lot, let him do a lot. He who has little, let him give as much as he can afford.

Let us not sit back and wait for God, without looking back at us, to miraculously quench the thirst of humanity, hungry for happiness, peace, truth and love.

For through the centuries the words addressed to the disciples reach us as a warning: “Give them something to eat” (Matthew 14; 16).

So let’s look around for boys who have five loaves of bread and two fish with them. Let's look for sacrificial hearts that will share with others their knowledge, their experience, their penny or bread, and above all, their love for man. If there are such, Jesus, perhaps, will repeat the miracle of multiplication and, with the gift that a few brought, will bestow and save from death thousands of those who brought nothing.

The Galilean boy who placed his lunch at Jesus' disposal lost, in principle, nothing.

And on that memorable day I ate my fill. By giving to others, we also provide for ourselves.

After all, Jesus once said: “Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed together, pressed and running over, will be poured into your lap” (Luke 6:38).

Byzantium 14th century

Let's live this Sunday with the awareness of our personal responsibility for the world and for another person. But we will also live it in joy. With a small detail of his great miracle of multiplying the loaves, Jesus gave everyone a happy secret: no matter how poor you are, they have not forgotten about you. You need. And you can do a lot. Any gift you have will be noticed by God and used. God will multiply it and give it to you and your entire hungry world awaiting salvation.

Priest Stanislav Podgursky

Jesus said about knowing the Truth: “If you continue in My Word, then you are truly My disciples, and you will know the Truth, and the Truth will make you free.” John 8:31-32. Man himself (without the Word of Christ) will never be able to know the Truth.

The Miracle of the Five Loaves and Two Fishes

Word for Sunday Gospel

Anthony, Metropolitan of Sourozh, on the eighth week after Pentecost.

Matthew, 58 readings, XIV, 14-22…

We read every now and then in the Holy Gospel about the miracles of Christ and ask ourselves the question: why was this possible in those days and we see so few miraculous things in our days? And it seems to me that three things can be answered to this...

The first is that we do not see the miracles that surround us; we take everything for granted, as natural. We accept everything good from the hand of God, as if it should be so. And we no longer see that life is a wondrous, joyful miracle, that God wanted to create us, that from non-existence He called us into existence and revealed to us the whole miracle of existence. And He didn’t stop there: He called us to be His friends forever and ever, to live an eternal, divine life forever and ever. And on earth He not only gave us existence and life: He revealed Himself to us; we know that He exists, we know Him in Christ as a God of such love that does not stop even before one’s own death in order to save the one we love.

What can we say about those miracles that are even less noticeable to us, like health, like peace, like friendship, like love? This is all a complete miracle! You cannot buy them; It is impossible to force anyone to give us their heart; and so many hearts are open to each other, and so much love, so much friendship around us! And our bodily existence, which we accept so naturally, isn’t it a miracle?

And this is the first thing I wanted to draw your attention to: that all life is a miracle. Oh, I know that there is a lot of pain in it, a lot of terrible things - a lot! But along with this, in the darkness, such a quiet and at the same time unwavering light shines in the darkness; if only we, as Christ says, believed in the light, so as to be children of light, children of light, bearers of light!

Miracle of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes; Byzantium; XIV century

And I want to say two more things: today we read about how people were in need, the Apostles noticed this need, drew the Lord’s attention to it, and the Lord told them: You must meet this need, feed these hungry people! How? We only have two fish and five loaves of bread - is that really enough for such a crowd? And Christ blessed these loaves and these fish, and there was enough for the crowd.

This is what is expected of us so that God can freely, with His sovereign power, create heavenly miracles on earth: so that we notice the need of others. How often do we pass by it, without opening the door to God so that He can come in and do what is impossible for us. Let us open our eyes to see the needs of the people around us: material, mental, spiritual, melancholy and loneliness, and so many other needs.

And another thing that the Lord calls His disciples to: Give everything you have, and we will feed everyone... The disciples did not leave themselves separate bread or separate fish: they gave everything to the Lord. And because they gave everything, the Kingdom of love was established, a Kingdom where God can act unlimitedly, freely, and everyone was satisfied. And this call is addressed to us: when we see a need, we will give everything, and everything will be fine...

Naumov Valery. Five loaves two fish

See also: What is a miracle?

And the last thing, from last Sunday’s Gospel: seeing the faith of those around him, the Lord healed the sick man. We can bring to God the faith that the people around us lack, carry them on our faith, like on a stretcher. But faith is not enough; in this event of healing the paralytic there was not only faith that the Lord could heal the sick person: there was caring love for him. If there was such love around us, among us, then the beginning of the Kingdom of God would have already been established in our midst, and God could act freely.

Let's think about this, because every miracle of God was preceded and, as it were, conditioned by the participation of man: it depends on us that the Kingdom for which we ask, dream, but which we are called to build with God and in the name of God, is established on earth.

On the announcement: Multiplication of bread, A. Ivanov, 19th century

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Holy Epiphany. Gospel of the Baptism of the Lord

(“Pravoslavie.ru”)

Publication on the Pravoslavie.ru portal dated January 18, 2011 January 18, 2014

And the glory of the Lord will appear, and all flesh will see [the salvation of God]; for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it (Isa. 40:5).

In ancient times, the Lord promised to appear in great glory. People heard and forgot. But the Lord did not forget His words . For the words of the Lord are like strongholds of stone, unbreakable . The Lord promised to come; however, He came not when we needed Him least, but when we needed Him most. As long as a prophet or angel could replace the Lord, so long did the Lord send prophets and angels in His place. But when evil in the world increased so much that neither an angel could burn it with his light, nor a prophet could diminish it with his verb, then the Lord fulfilled His ancient promise and appeared on earth. But how did the Lord appear in glory? In indescribable humility and obedience. So that His angels seemed brighter than Him, and His prophets - more than Him. When the prophet and the Master stood on the Jordan, the prophet was more noticeable than the Master. John the Baptist looked more wondrous and greater than our Lord Jesus Christ. Christ hid His glory and greatness behind two heavy curtains: behind the human body and behind humility. Therefore, people did not notice or recognize Him, while the eyes of all heavenly powers were fixed on Him more than on the entire created world. Clothed in true body and true humility, the Lord Jesus Christ comes from Galilee to the Jordan to John to be baptized by him.

God is marvelous in His works! Through all His deeds He teaches us humility and obedience . He hides behind His deeds, like the sun at night - behind the shining of the stars, like a nightingale in a bush - behind its song.

He lends His light to the sun, and the sun shines on them as if it were His own, while God's light remains hidden.

He gives His voice to the thunder and winds, and they are heard, but He is not.

He gives His beauty to the mountains and valleys, and the mountains and valleys shine with their beauty as if they were their own, but God’s beauty remains in secret.

He gives beauty and fragrance to the flowers of the field, and beautiful flowers smell as if they were their own fragrance, but the fragrance of God remains unnoticed.

He gives strength to every creation, and all creatures are proud of each other in their strength as if it were their own, but the immeasurable power of God does not shout or be proud.

He gives to man from His mind, and man reasons and thinks with his own mind, but the mind of God remains in silence, away from rumors, hidden from the praise of the world.

This is how the Lord teaches us humility. For everything that He does, He does as much by His very nature as for the sake of man . Let man be ashamed and let him reject his foolish pride. Let no man boast of himself, having no good deeds; but let him let his affairs go ahead, and let him himself go behind them, like God behind his works, barely audible and barely visible, like a shepherd behind a large flock.

God is wonderful when He teaches us humility. But our God is marvelous even when he teaches us obedience . Man can never be as obedient as God. A man sows a field and leaves it to God. A man sows a field in one day, and God stands over the seed for a hundred days, and stores it, and warms it, and gives life, and gradually brings it out of the ground in the form of grass, and gradually fills the grass with grain, and gradually brings it to maturity, until man again will not come to the field in order to collect grain in a day or two and put it into the granaries.

The raven hatches the chicks - and abandons them, and no longer cares about them. And God takes care of them upon Himself and obediently watches over the cubs day and night. The fish spawn and leave, but God remains to hatch the fry and take care of their food and development. Countless orphans - both human and animal - would have died if God had not cared for them. God watches day and night over all His creations, listens to their desires and satisfies their needs.

God listens to the requests and prayers of people and fulfills them; fulfills them obediently whenever these petitions and prayers are not associated with sin . Prayers with which they want to draw God into sin and make him an accomplice in human sin, God rejects and does not listen. And of all prayers, God listens with the greatest favor to the contrite prayers of the repentant, asking for forgiveness of sins . For there is nothing in the world more beneficial for a person than the remission of sins, than liberation from sin. Through this a person becomes a new creature, through this he begins a new life, the life of a son instead of the life of a slave. That is why all the prophets from time immemorial have demanded repentance from people. That is why Saint John the Baptist not only preaches repentance, but also performs the baptism of repentance, so that people would seal their repentance in a visible way. The more people repent, the more they detach themselves from the world and cleave to God; and - the more quickly God becomes obedient to the prayers of people.

And thus, man can never be as humble as God, nor as obedient as God. Through all His creations in heaven and on earth, God teaches people humility and obedience. God gives this instruction to people out of His greatest love for man and out of His ardent desire that all people be saved and no one perish.

But God taught all those lessons of humility and obedience to people indirectly, either through created nature, or through his prophets, chosen ones and angels. Only in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ does God teach this to people directly, through Himself, clothed in a body. Every moment of His earthly life, from Christmas in the den to crucifixion on the cross, the Lord Jesus Christ is a living lesson for people in humility and obedience . He revealed the same living lesson at His baptism in the Jordan.

John was the hero of the day. Nobody knew Christ. And when they recognized Him, sinful people considered John greater than Him. People come out to John from all sides, simple and learned, poor and rich. John was very striking both with his appearance and with his desert and fasting life, as well as with his wondrous verbs. People sought John not so much out of awareness of their sinfulness or out of a thirst for repentance, but rather out of curiosity to see and hear an unusual person. Idle curiosity! How much precious time it takes away from us, giving us nothing in return except transient human sweetness, which quickly turns to bitterness! How it catches us in its snare, postponing and postponing our repentance, and at the same time our salvation!

Christ does not arouse curiosity. In the crowd of people He slowly walks towards the Jordan. He does not catch people's eyes, and no one pays attention to Him. His appearance is not as unusual as that of John, and His clothing is not so amazing, and His life is not so harsh and fasting.

He mingled with the mass of people, and this mass moved with Him from Galilee to the Jordan, people ate and drank with Him and talked with Him, as with every other person from the same crowd. The great Isaiah foresaw this in advance and warned about it, proclaiming: we saw Him, and there was no appearance in Him that would attract us to Him (Is. 53:2).

However, among all those gathered at the Jordan, there was one person, the only one, who knew Him, and knew Him truly. It was John the Baptist himself. And the eyes of the strict hermit shone, and his thunderous lips fell silent for a moment, and John forgot about the rest of the mass of the people, in the water and by the water, and, pointing his finger at Jesus, he tenderly said: Behold the Lamb of God (John 1:29).

Lamb of God! In two words the Forerunner expressed the humility and obedience of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is humble like a lamb and He is obedient like a lamb. And He is humble before God and obedient to God. That is why it is said: Lamb of God. Like a lamb, He walks meekly and humbly. And just as a lamb goes to the pasture and to the slaughter with equal devotion to his shepherd, so Christ goes where His Heavenly Father rules: to Christmas in the den, to baptism on the Jordan, to crucifixion on the cross - always with equal readiness and equal devotion.

But to the words of the Lamb of God, John also adds the following: Who takes away the sin of the world. How does Christ take away the sin of the world? By His love and His sacrifice, which are inseparable from each other; for there is neither true love without sacrifice, nor the making of true sacrifice without love . Out of His love, Christ descended into this bodily world and took on a weak human body. This world is not as pure, and beautiful, and kind as it was before Adam’s sin. Sin put on this world the dark and white fleshly image that the world now wears. The transparent world has become a world of whiteness and darkness; the pure world has become an unclean world; a beautiful world - a disgusting and ugly world; a kind world - a harsh world. The Most Transparent, the Purest, the Most Beautiful and the Most Gracious descended into this world. By this He already took upon Himself the sin of the world - by the fact that He appeared in the world in the body of the world, a coarse body that eats coarse food. So, He took upon Himself the sin of the world, firstly, by taking upon Himself the body, such as it became after original sin.

Secondly, because out of love He condescended to fulfill all the laws given to people after the Fall. Having no need for these laws himself, He condescended to fulfill them all, all of them - both the laws given to nature and the laws given to people. Therefore, He exposed Himself to hunger, and thirst, and fatigue, and various pains, like other mortal people; and therefore He had to grow slowly, like all that is born, for thirty whole years before beginning His public ministry. Finally, this is why He was circumcised; That’s why he was baptized; That’s why I went to church to pray; therefore he paid taxes to Caesar. He took upon Himself all the laws after original sin and fulfilled them. That is why it is said: he takes upon himself the sin of the world. That is, He took upon Himself the fulfillment of all the laws, and with the same measure of obedience and ease with which the measure of disobedience and difficulty people fulfilled these laws .

And, finally, thirdly, by the fact that He offered Himself as a sacrifice for the sin of the world, by His voluntary crucifixion on the cross; in that He was slain like a lamb and shed His innocent blood for the sins of many. Truly, His entire earthly life is a sacrifice, just as His entire life in general is love . Sacrifice - and the fact that He took upon Himself the body; sacrifice - and the fact that He took upon Himself the law. But on the cross He sealed His sacrifice with blood and finally tore apart the handwriting of our sins. On the cross He showed both all the horror of human sin and all the love of God, reaching the point of self-sacrifice.

Thus, Christ took upon Himself the sin of the world in three ways: first, by taking upon Himself flesh; secondly, by taking upon Himself the law; and thirdly, by accepting the sacrifice.

When the Lord, clothed in a body, came into the world and, as a body, submitted to the law, this event was accompanied by a wondrous natural phenomenon - the appearance of a star in the East; and then - and the descent of angels to earth; and the joy of the shepherds of Bethlehem; and the worship of the simple shepherds and the wise men of Him, the Infant God. But this event was followed by the murder of children by Herod and the flight of the Savior into the darkness of Egypt from an even darker darkness - Jerusalem.

When the Lord clearly and clearly submitted to human law and was baptized in the Jordan, this event was also accompanied by a wondrous natural phenomenon, as the saints of God later learned, namely: the water in the Jordan River stopped, the sea retreated back. The sea saw and ran, the Jordan returned (Ps. 114:3). Then the heavens opened, and the voice of the Heavenly Father was heard, and the Holy Spirit was seen like a dove. The human race felt and saw this through its representative, Saint John the Baptist. But this event was followed by a forty-day fast of Christ and the darkness and horror of the devil’s temptation. And then - the appearance of the angels who served Him.

And then, when the Lord captured all His sufferings in the flesh on earth with torment and blood on the cross, nature accompanied this event with terrible phenomena: the earth shook, the sun darkened, the stones disintegrated, the coffins were opened. The living and the dead felt the terrible greatness of God's sacrifice on Golgotha: robbers and pagans believed in the Son of God, and the dead appeared on the streets of Jerusalem. And this event was followed by darkness, darkness outside the tomb and darkness in the tomb; after which came the final dawn, the final victory and the final resurrection. And again - the appearance of angels!

And so these three events in the life of Christ give us the clearest and most immediate lesson of Divine humility and Divine obedience . The heavenly joy and sublimity of each of them are intertwined with the horror of human atrocity and devilish temptation. But in all three cases, Christ won a brilliant victory: over the man Herod, after His birth; over Satan, after His baptism; and over the people and Satan gathered together, after His death. Divine Matthew describes the baptism on the Jordan as follows:

Then Jesus comes from Galilee to the Jordan to John to be baptized by him. John restrained Him and said: I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me? John knew Christ, but did not know His plan of salvation. And now a unique scene in human history opens: God competes in humility with man! John performs a baptism of repentance over sinners. Meanwhile, the Sinless One comes to him, having nothing to repent of, and demands baptism from him. John, being spiritually stronger than all the mortal people around him, suddenly recognizes himself in Christ as the Strongest. And before seeing Him, John already knew that He had come to earth and was among people. But there is someone standing among you whom you do not know (John 1:26). However, only by standing face to face with Him did John recognize Him and point his finger to the people: behold, the Lamb of God. Having seen Him, Saint John could have thought that his role as the Forerunner was completed, and said, like the once righteous Simeon: Now you are releasing Your servant, Master, according to Your word, in peace (Luke 2:29); or as he himself will say later, in another case: He must increase, but I must decrease (John 3:30). But no; Instead of what John thinks about and what he expects, Christ sets before him an unexpected task. Having joined sinful people, the sinless Christ demands from John that the latter do with Him the same as with others, that is, baptize Him in the river, like the others. John's objections are completely understandable to mortal men. Oh, it’s scary, brothers, to introduce the purest water into the water! It is terrible, terrible for a creature to lay its hand on the head of the Creator. How dare man from dust and ashes lay his hand on Him for Whom the cherubim are His footstool!

But Christ quickly ends his conversation with John with a short but decisive statement: leave it now, for this is how it becomes for us to fulfill all righteousness. Then John admits Him. By this the Lord wants to say: “Now leave the words about My and your dignity and about who of the two of us is the greatest and strongest. This day is not predestined for this, but for another. The time will come when what you are talking about will appear. We cannot teach people anything that we have not done ourselves before. Otherwise, who will believe us? And how else would we differ from the lawyers and scribes of Jerusalem, who teach but do not practice? We must fulfill the entire law in order to give the entire law a higher, spiritual meaning and significance. And I must first be baptized with water, in order to then baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire. The plan of salvation is revealed by its very execution. What is not clear to you now will soon become clear. The heavens will open and justify what I require of you.”

Just as John was afraid at the first moment to perform baptism over Christ, he was now just as obedient to what the Messiah had commanded. And the heavens truly hastened to justify and bless the act of the hands of the Forerunner. (“There were three reasons why the Savior received baptism from John. Firstly, so that in this way, since He was already born as a Man, He might fulfill all righteousness and humility before the law. Secondly, in order to confirm by His baptism the meaning of John’s baptism. In -third, so that, by sanctifying the water of the Jordan, to show through the descent of the dove the descent of the Holy Spirit at the moment of the baptism of the faithful." Blessed Jerome.)

Christ is immersed in water not to purify Himself, but to symbolically drown the old man . By his immersion in water, He mentally repeats the global flood during the time of Noah and the drowning of Pharaoh and his Egyptian army in the Red Sea. During the global flood, sinful humanity drowned, and Pharaoh, the enemy of the living God, drowned in the Red Sea. Christ took the sins of people upon Himself. He voluntarily agreed to drown Himself instead of sinful humanity; He voluntarily took upon Himself the fate of the drowned Pharaoh, the enemy of the living God. He immerses His body in water as if laying it in a tomb. He plunges into the water for a moment, and then rises and emerges from the water. By this He repeats the terrible lesson that God gave to people by drowning sinners in the time of Noah and drowning Pharaoh in the Red Sea. By this He visibly but silently says what He later said in words to the learned leader of the Jews, Nicodemus, namely: unless one is born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of God (John 3:3). And from above, while still in this life, one can be born who will die to the old man, or, in other words, in whom the old, sinful man will die. The one who plunges into his sin and rises clean from sin. Whoever is immersed in the flesh as a natural man, and rises up in the spirit as a spiritual man. Whoever buries himself with Christ in baptism as in a tomb (Col. 2:12). Whoever drowns pride, disobedience, selfishness and all uncleanness of the old, sinful man, will erect humility and meekness, obedience and love . Whoever dies to himself will live for God. In a word: whoever buries himself as a sinner and is born again as a righteous person will follow the example that Christ set for him with His baptism in the waters of the Jordan. “Before another life begins, you must end the first,” says Basil the Great. Oh, how significant and instructive is Christ’s baptism, accomplished by immersing His holy body in water! Only the infinite wisdom of God could have arranged such a useful and edifying baptism in the Jordan for people. Only this boundless wisdom, seeing the past and future as the present, could connect the beginnings and ends of human history and reveal the connection between the flood of sinful humanity and the immersion of Christ in water. Only this unspoken wisdom can say more with one picture, one action, one sign, than all human languages ​​on earth. For, behold, the whole image of our salvation is expressed by the action of Christ's baptism in the Jordan.

And having been baptized, Jesus immediately came out of the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and John saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and descending on Him. And behold, a voice from heaven said: This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

The Spirit descended on Christ not when He was immersed in water, but when He came out of the water. Thus, the wisdom of God wants to show us that the Spirit of God does not descend on the old man, alive to sin but dead to God. And the Spirit of God descends only on a person who is born again, spiritually reborn, dead to sin and made alive to God .

The Spirit descended on Christ in the form of a dove (“A dove descended over the head of Jesus, so that no one would think that the voice of the Father was addressed to John, and not to the Lord.” Blessed Jerome), not incarnating in a dove, as Christ was incarnated in a man, but only in the form of a dove, like a dove. This means that the Spirit can appear in some other form. And, truly, He subsequently appeared to the apostles in the form of tongues of fire and a rushing strong wind (Acts 2:2). The Book of Genesis says about the Spirit: and the Spirit of God hovered over the waters (Gen. 1:2). Thus the Spirit of God appears in different forms, according to the events which He sanctifies or inspires. But every appearance of Him shows Him as Something active, moving and pure, causing with Himself warmth, movement and purity. At baptism with water in the Jordan, the Spirit appeared in the form of a meek dove; and at the baptism of the apostles with the Holy Spirit and fire on the day of Pentecost, He appeared in the form of a strong wind and flame. This shows the difference between the baptism of John and the baptism of Christ. The baptism of John, or the baptism of water, makes people meek and pure as doves, while the baptism of Christ, or the baptism of the Spirit, makes people strong and fiery (“Since man consists of two parts: soul and body, then cleansing is twofold: incorporeal for that which is incorporeal, and corporeal for the body. Water purifies the body, and the Spirit (cleanses and) seals the soul." St. Cyril of Jerusalem. Catechetical Teaching III). The descent of the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove - as the holy fathers interpret - recalls the dove that Noah released from his ark three times in order to test with its help whether the water had subsided from the earth. And the dove returned to him with an olive leaf in its beak. The olive leaf means peace; peace between God and man. And now, after Christ emerges from the water, after the symbolic drowning of the old man in the water, the Spirit appears over the head of Christ in the form of a dove, in order to show: now the flood is over and peace has reigned between God and the new man . Why doesn’t this dove carry an olive leaf in its beak - a sign of peace? Because here, instead of an olive leaf, the Lord Jesus Christ Himself is the most perfect sign of peace between God and man, between heaven and earth. He is the olive leaf in the New Creation. Therefore, the dove hovering over Christ has no need to hold another sign of peace, another olive leaf. Christ is the end of the flood and the beginning of the world.

And behold, a voice from heaven speaking. The heavens are open, the Spirit is in the form of a dove, and, moreover, behold - a voice from heaven! The significance of the baptism of Christ is so great that during it it is not angels who appear, but the Holy Trinity Itself: Father, Son and Holy Spirit; The Father in the form of a voice from heaven, the Spirit in the form of a dove and the Son as a new and perfect Man, as the God-man.

This is My Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. With these words, God the Father reveals His Son Jesus. In this voice and words is the fulfillment of the words spoken by the mighty Archangel Gabriel to the Blessed Virgin Mary: and he will be called the Son of the Most High (Luke 1:32); and also: He will be called the Son of God (Luke 1:35). And now God the Father truly calls Him His Son, the Beloved Son. For Christ is the only Son of God by birth and eternity, and the only Son of God by birth and time. God the Father does not call all people His sons, but only Christ. For other people can be called sons of God by adoption from God, and this - by Christ and in the name of Christ. And when Christ later tells people: you have one Father, who is in heaven (Matthew 23:9), He does not think to say anything other than that people are sons of God only by adoption. Only the great love of God can call His creations sons. But Christ is the one and true Son of God both in love and in essence.

That is why it is said: This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. These two phrases strengthen the expression of the Father's love and the Father's favor towards His Son. The eternal connection between the Father and the Son did not weaken and their mutual love did not cool due to the fact that the Son, having put on a weak human body, descended into a sinful world.

And thus, the baptism of Christ in the Jordan is associated with the revelation of the Holy Trinity to humanity . There is no greater revelation than this. For through him the mystery of the Trinity of the Divinity was revealed to us . The Savior on the Jordan also removed the seal from this secret, the greatest in heaven and on earth. We say “and on earth” because the Trinity of the Divinity also explains the deepest mystery of man himself - his trinity, as already at the very beginning of the Holy Scriptures it is said: God created man in His own image (Gen. 1:26). That is why the feast of the baptism of Christ is called the Epiphany, for God appeared on the Jordan River as He is, as far as this phenomenon is accessible to man in the body. This holiday is also called Enlightenment, for it illuminates the human spirit with the knowledge of the deepest Divine secret. It is called Enlightenment because the baptism of Christ by immersion in water enlightens our mind, purifies our heart and ennobles our soul with the knowledge of the structure of our salvation, which consists in the burial of the old man and the birth of a new one, or, in other words, in the death of all our sinners and mortals. nature and revival of the sinless and immortal.

Everything that happened at the baptism of Christ also happens at the baptism of each of us. (“The Lord, who governs our life, established for us the covenant of baptism, which has in itself the image of death and life... Water has the image of death, receiving the body for burial, and the Spirit infuses life-giving power, renewing the life of our soul from the death of sin into the original life.” St. Basil the Great. On baptism.) By immersion in water we die with Christ, by rising from water we are united with the living Christ. The gentle Spirit of God hovers over us like a dove, inspiring us with His almighty grace. And the Father adopts us through the love of Jesus Christ and testifies to this adoption with His voice. Who can know what happens in the soul of every baby at the moment of baptism? Darkened and depressed by subsequent sins, we forget the greatest heavenly mystery revealed to us at baptism. For by baptism we are cleansed from all sin, but after our baptism come temptations of the devil, to which Christ did not fall, but we fall. However, those of us who are zealous for our salvation day and night, with complete humility and obedience to God, can be rewarded with the revelation of the great mystery of God that appeared on the Jordan, as many saints and martyrs of Christ were rewarded with this vision. Martyrdom for Christ is considered the third baptism; for the first baptism was John’s, with water; the second is Christ’s, the Holy Spirit and fire. The third baptism, martyrdom, is called baptism of blood. The martyrs of Christ, baptized by the shedding of their blood for Christ, usually contemplated much of the Jordanian mystery revealed at the Baptism of the Lord. The most famous example of this mystical baptism of blood is the death of the first martyr of Christ, Archdeacon Stephen, about whom it is written: Stephen, being filled with the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. Here, therefore, the Spirit, the Son, and the Father are shown. And (Stephen) said: Behold, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God. And he was stoned by the Jews (Acts 7:55-60).

Let us also strive with firm faith, good deeds and fraternal participation in the joys and sorrows of our neighbors, and at the same time in constant humility and obedience to the living God, to return the sinless purity in which we have clothed ourselves with baptism; then we too will be worthy of the glory, joy and eternal grace of God’s saints and martyrs. So we too will be enlightened, the heavens will be opened to us, and God will appear to us - the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, the Trinity, Consubstantial and Indivisible, to Whose glory befits, now and ever, at all times and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Archpriest Alexander Shargunov

The Miracle of the Multiplication of the Loaves - Tissot James

Description of the work.

The canvas by James Tissot depicts a scene depicting the miracle of the Savior feeding 5,000 people. The account of this miracle is present in all four canonical Gospels.

It is known from Scripture that Jesus, having heard about the death of John the Baptist, went to a deserted place near Bethsaida. The Savior was followed by many people from different cities. When Jesus saw hundreds of people thirsting for His help and the Divine word, He took pity on them and healed the sick. In the evening, the disciples came to Jesus and told Him to let the people go into the villages to buy food. But the Savior replied: “They don’t need to go, you give them something to eat” (Matthew 14:16). Despite the fact that the disciples had only five loaves of bread and two fish, Jesus said to bring this small amount of food, gave thanks, broke it and gave it to His disciples.

A rocky Israeli landscape opens before our eyes, depicted by the artist with detailed accuracy. On a high mountain overlooking a lifeless desert, we see an impressive mass of people who came to listen to the preaching of Christ. All of them are dressed in traditional clothes of that time, protecting them from the scorching sun. They sit in rows of 50 and 100 people, waiting for their turn to receive the long-awaited food to strengthen their physical strength. Someone is sitting thoughtfully on the grass, looking into the distance, someone is talking to each other, someone is watching how helpers carry food in large baskets. But do they understand that a great miracle is happening right now? Is their heart sensitive? In the distance, closer to the top of the mountain, Tissot depicts Christ, his figure stands out with his snow-white robe. The Savior was surrounded by disciples who watched in amazement as the food was blessed.

The miraculous feeding of five thousand people with five barley loaves and two fish has a special spiritual meaning. The people of Israel, who lived in anticipation of the Deliverer, believed that the Messiah would give new manna. The special significance of this miracle was that it symbolically pointed to the future sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, which the Lord established at the Last Supper.

History of creation.

James Tissot began his creative career with salon painting. His works depicting ladies in fashionable outfits were a huge success among collectors and brought the painter an impressive income. However, after the sudden death of his beloved, the artist experiences a strong reassessment of values, comes to faith and decides to devote all his talent to the creative study of the Holy Scriptures. For this purpose, he visited Palestine more than once (in 1886-87 and 1889). The Promised Land becomes the last love of his life. Almost all of Tissot's works on biblical themes were written or conceived in the Holy Land: “It was in the Holy Land that scenes of the past appeared before my mind's eye... I indulged in reflection, staying in those places where events took place, and was imbued with inner visions so much that they were revealed to me in their entirety.”

Without exaggeration, Tissot's creative service can be called a feat. He creates more than 450 (according to some sources - up to 700) works. It is important to note the historical circumstances of the era in which the artist worked. Scientific, technical and economic progress in the second half of the 19th century led to the fact that the religious one was replaced by a different system of values, which placed personal material well-being at the basis of human existence and defined a new model of the world with its culture of denial, rebellious apostasy, recognition of the insurmountability of evil and the celebration of beauty withering. The appearance of a large series of works on subjects from the Holy Scriptures precisely during this period of time was an astonishing phenomenon, to say the least. Considering also the fact that it was carried out by one of the most fashionable salon artists in London and Paris at that time. With a brush in his hands, Tissot literally tried to “read” the entire Bible. The book, which had once been his mother’s guide, became for him not just a desk reference, but a window through which he sought to look at the world and its Creator. His cycle “The Life of Our Lord Jesus Christ” (“Vie de Notre Seigneur Jesus-Christ”) consisted of 365 watercolors, which were exhibited in 1896 at the Salon of the Champ de Mars (Paris). They now belong to the Brooklyn Museum. Tissot did not have time to complete the cycle on the Old Testament - only his works on the Pentateuch, Historical Books and the Books of Job were completed. Reproductions from them were published in Paris and London in 1904.

The series was executed in a realistic style, to which Tissot remained faithful, despite the new artistic trends of the late 19th century. The works are distinguished by extremely scrupulous attention to detail, to the characteristic features of life and architecture, to the nature of Palestine and to the types of local residents. The main artistic and expressive means in these watercolors is not so much color as line, masterfully mastering which Tissot creates expressive, lively, sensual images.

The author's attitude towards faith.

The creative path of James Tissot miraculously reflects the story of the artist’s acquisition of true faith. From a young age, the painter absorbed knowledge about Christianity from his deeply religious Catholic mother, for whom the Bible was a reference book. However, like many young people of that era, Tissot was subject to modern trends that affirmed the true good in material values. Thanks to his talent and choice of the extremely popular subject of his paintings depicting fashionable beauties, James Tissot became a wealthy man and a popular artist in London and Paris. His personal life is connected with Kathleen Newton, a divorced Irish beauty who became his real muse and the main model for many of his works. However, their happiness was destined to last 12 years.

In 1882, James Tissot's life literally turned upside down. His lover, who suddenly fell ill with tuberculosis, committed suicide. For a long time the artist could not find consolation. Experiencing a colossal mental crisis, Tissot resorted to mystical practices, but soon realized that this was the wrong path. And then James Tissot seriously reconsidered his life and turned to the Christian faith.

Such a spiritual revolution was fully reflected in the artist’s work. Tissot turned to religious art and devoted his talent entirely to creating a series of illustrations of the Holy Scriptures. He went on a trip to the Holy Land with the goal of seeing with his own eyes the places where the Savior lived and preached. The painter lived for a long time in Palestine and until the end of his days remained an ardent Christian believer who found consolation in God.

Biography.

Jacques-Joseph Tissot was born on October 15, 1836, the son of a successful textile merchant from Nantes and a devout Catholic mother. By the age of 17, after attending a Jesuit boarding school, Jacques-Joseph finally made the decision to become a professional artist - with the enthusiastic support of his mother and much to the disappointment of his father. In 1857 he went to Paris, to the School of Fine Arts. Tissot's teachers were Hippolyte Landrin and Louis Lamothe.

Three years later, the young provincial artist made his debut at the Salon, and from then on began to call himself James Tissot - in the English manner. Fame came to Tissot early: his painting “The Meeting of Faust and Marguerite,” which clearly showed the influence of the Pre-Raphaelites, attracted the attention of Count de Neuwerkerke, who purchased the painting on behalf of the Luxembourg government for 5,000 francs.

Tissot inherited the commercial instincts of his successful merchant father, which, combined with intelligence and sophistication, made him very successful. In 1863, the artist abandoned the historical theme and turned to the genre of fashion portraits, depicting graceful ladies in fashionable clothes. Two years later, Tissot, in recognition of his talents, received the right to exhibit at the Salon's exhibitions outside the competition program. Prices for his paintings depicting the entertainment and refined life of Napoleon Bonaparte's Second Empire were fantastic.

In 1869, at the height of his career, Tissot began collaborating as a cartoonist with the new London magazine Vanity Fair. The first work for the magazine was a malicious political cartoon depicting the defeated Napoleon III. And when the Second Empire collapsed in September 1870, the calm, measured life of James Tissot ended along with it. He became a sniper while defending Paris in the ranks of the Scouts (Éclaireurs) of the Seine. After the Franco-Prussian War and the bloody battles of the Paris Commune, James Tissot fled Paris for London with only 100 francs in his pocket.

It took the talented painter just two years to take his rightful place on the London art market. He mastered the art of engraving and in 1873 became a member of The Arts Club in London.

From 1872 to 1875, Tissot exhibited his work exclusively at the Royal Academy, earning a handsome income from sales of watercolor copies and engravings of his paintings. In 1876, James Tissot became a very wealthy man and spent the next six years in relative seclusion with his young model and muse Kathleen Newton, who posed for his paintings October, Evening, and Hammock. When Kathleen Newton died of tuberculosis at the end of 1882, Tissot returned to Paris and sold his London house a year later.

In the French capital, James Tissot attempted to restore his reputation as a fashionable painter by creating a series of fifteen large-scale paintings entitled "La Femme de Paris" ("The Parisian Woman"). Tissot devoted the rest of his life to illustrating the Bible, for which he made repeated trips to the Holy Land - in 1886-87, 1888 and 1889. His series of 365 gouache illustrations dedicated to the Life of Christ became a sensation. Works from the "Biblical Series" were shown at exhibitions in Paris (1894 and 1895), London (1896) and New York (1898), and were published in separate editions.

In 1888, James Tissot settled in the former abbey of Château de Bouillon, which he inherited from his father. The artist died in 1902, at the age of 66.

Author of the text: Minenko Evgenia Vladimirovna.

The Gospel of Him Who Multiplied the Loaves in an Empty Place

Matthew, 58 readings, 14:14-22

Everything that the Almighty God creates, He does purposefully. There is nothing aimless, unnecessary or superfluous in His deeds.

Why do some people move so aimlessly and indulge in such aimless activities? Because they don’t know the purpose of their life or the destination of their path.

Why do some people burden themselves with unnecessary cares and barely crawl under the burden of unnecessary things? Because they forget that there is only one thing needed.

In order to bestow composure to the scattered human mind, wholeness to the divided human heart, unity to the disordered human powers, our Lord Jesus Christ from beginning to end pointed out to humanity one - and only one - goal: the Kingdom of God. A cross-eyed man, looking in both directions, sees neither! Ah, how aimless is the life of a mind that sets itself many goals! How insensitively a divided heart! How powerless is wasted willpower!

Only one thing is needed - the Kingdom of God! Christ the Wonderworker sought to direct the views of all mankind to this one point. Whoever looks at this one point has one thought - God, one feeling - love, one desire - to get closer to God. Blessed is the one who has collected himself in this way - he is like a magnifying glass, which, collecting many rays of the sun, can light a fire.

The words that the Lord said to Martha: Martha! Marfa! You care and fuss about many things, but you only need one thing

(Luke 10:41-42) - were actually spoken as a reproach and a reminder to all humanity.
And this alone
is the Kingdom of God (Matthew 6:33). Everything that the Lord has spoken and everything that He has created is directed only to this point and only to this goal. Only at this point are all the flames gathered, shining for travelers wandering through the gorges and rapids of temporary life.

Everything with the Lord is expedient - that is, everything is directed towards this highest, one and only goal - everything is appropriate and everything is necessary: ​​both words spoken and deeds done. And not a single superfluous word, not a single inappropriate deed! And how fruitful both His words and deeds are! Millions and millions of times every word and every deed of His has brought forth and continues to bear fruit. And how sweet, fragrant and life-giving is this fruit!

Why didn’t our Lord Jesus Christ make stones into bread when the devil offered Him this, but later, when the people gathered around him were hungry, in the blink of an eye he created a huge amount of bread from a small amount, so that after the meal there was more left than there was at the beginning? Because the first miracle would have been inappropriate, unnecessary and superfluous, but the second was expedient, necessary and appropriate.

Why did the Lord not want to show a sign from heaven to the Pharisees when they demanded it of Him, but countless times He showed these signs from heaven, these unprecedented miracles over the sick, lepers, the demon-possessed, the fearful, and the dead? Again, because any sign from heaven before the envious and vain Pharisees would be inappropriate, unnecessary and superfluous, while in other cases it was expedient, necessary and appropriate.

Why didn't the Lord move the mountains from place to place and throw them into the sea? Without a doubt, He could have done it - why didn’t He? He, who could rebuke the stormy sea and winds, could, without any doubt, move mountains and cast them into the sea. But what was the need for that? No. That’s why the Lord didn’t do this. However, the need to calm the sea and stop the winds was extreme, for people were drowning and crying out for help.

Why didn't the Lord make the earth gold and the ravens doves? If He could turn water into wine, without a doubt He could do this too. But why? There was never any need for Him to make the earth gold and the ravens doves. However, once, at one wedding, there was an urgent need to find wine for the guests. And to help this need and protect the owner from shame, the Lord made water into wine.

Only demons and sinners demanded pointless, unnecessary and superfluous miracles from Christ. Just look at what nonsense the devil demands from Christ: to turn a stone in the desert into bread and throw himself down from the temple! And look how inveterate sinners, Pharisees and scribes, being eyewitnesses of many beneficial miracles of Christ, also demand from Him some kind of sign, some pointless and unnecessary miracle, such as, for example, the movement of mountains, the transformation of earth into gold and ravens into pigeons! Therefore, the Lord rejected the proposals of both the devil and sinners. But He never refused to perform a miracle if it was expedient and necessary to save people.

And today’s Gospel reading describes one of such expedient and necessary miracles: the multiplication of loaves in an empty place, but not in a place where there are no people, not in that desert where there is only the devil, but where there were perhaps more than ten thousand hungry people creatures (for it is said that there were more than five thousand of them, not counting women and children).

And Jesus went out and saw a multitude of people, and had compassion on them, and healed their sick.

This happened after King Herod executed John the Baptist.
Hearing about this, our Lord Jesus Christ retired on a boat to a deserted place
alone.
All four evangelists describe this event, some with greater, others with less detail. According to the Gospel of John, the Lord got into a boat in the vicinity of Tiberias and swam across the Sea of ​​Galilee, and according to the Gospel of Luke, He landed on the northwestern shore of the sea and went up the mountain, to an empty place, near a city called Bethsaida
.

The Lord had the custom of often retiring to desert places and mountains. He did this for three reasons. Firstly, in order to make a short pause in His hasty and abundant work, so that people, so to speak, digest all the teaching that He revealed, and all the miracles that He showed. Secondly, in order to show the apostles and us an example of the need to be alone, to enter a room

(Matthew 6:6), prayerfully remaining the soul alone with God.
For solitude and silence purify, humble, clarify and strengthen a person. And thirdly, in order to justify and encourage desert living and monasticism, showing us that a good and useful person cannot hide anywhere, just as a city standing on the top of a mountain cannot hide
(Matt. 5:14).

The history of the Church has shown thousands of times that the great hermit, man of prayer, or miracle worker could never hide from the people. Many people unreasonably ask: “What should a monk do in the desert? Wouldn’t it be better for him to be among people, serving them?” But how will an unlit candle shine? A monk carries his soul into the desert, into solitude, like an unlit candle, to light it with fasting, prayerful reflection and labor. And if he succeeds in lighting it, then the light will be visible to all people, and people will go to him and find him, even if he hides in the sand, in impassable mountains or inaccessible caves. No, the monk is not useless; on the contrary, he can be useful to the people more than all other people. This is clearly shown by the incident that happened to our Lord Jesus Christ. In vain He hid from the people in a deserted place - many people followed Him.

And He, seeing them, had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd.

.
Down in the cities, the synagogues were full of self-proclaimed shepherds who were in fact wolves in sheep's clothing. People knew this and felt it, just as they knew and felt the immeasurable mercy and love of Christ for them. People saw and felt that Christ is the only Good Shepherd who sincerely and compassionately cares for them. That is why they ran after Him even into a deserted place. And the Lord healed their sick. The people feel that they need Christ and demand a miracle not out of idle curiosity, but because of extreme necessity and torment. And he began to teach them a lot
,” says the Apostle Mark.

When evening came, His disciples came to him and said: This is a deserted place and the time is already late; send the people away so that they can go to the villages and buy food for themselves.

Evangelist Matthew does not tell what exactly the Lord was doing with the people for so long, reporting only that He healed their sick.
However, the Evangelist Mark fills this gap with words and began to teach them a lot
. See how wonderfully the evangelists complement each other! So, the Lord taught the people until late in the evening. This must have gone on for many hours. And in such a time you can read the entire Gospel. This means that in this one case the Lord told as much of His Divine teaching as would constitute a whole Gospel. In this case, isn’t the Evangelist John right when he says that if we were to write down everything that Jesus did and said, then the world itself would not be able to contain the books that would be written?

How merciful the disciples are! The place here is deserted and the time is already late.

People were hungry; it was high time to leave. But their homes are far away, and they are very hungry. There are many women and children here. We need them to get food as soon as possible. Let them go to the surrounding villages and villages and buy themselves some bread.

But isn’t Christ more merciful and compassionate than His disciples? How could He not know that the people were hungry? Of course, Christ is more merciful and compassionate than His disciples, and before their words He remembered what the people needed. Even at the very beginning, as the Evangelist John writes, Jesus lifted up his eyes and saw that many people were coming to Him

, said to Philip:
Where can we buy bread to feed them?
But then he was surrounded by people with their sick people.
The Lord first healed all the sick, and then began to teach the people. And this continued until darkness. And only then did the apostles remember that the people were hungry and needed food. Thus, the Lord foresaw this from the very beginning, but later deliberately did not want to talk about it, waiting for the apostles themselves to remember. This was for two reasons: firstly, to strengthen compassion and mercy in them, and secondly, so that their powerlessness without Him would become clear. For Christ said to the apostles: they do not need to go, you give them something to eat
.
He knows that they cannot do this, but he says this so that they fully realize and confess their powerlessness. They said to Him: We have here only five loaves and two fish
.
According to the testimony of the Evangelist John, this small amount of food that was available was not theirs, but that of one boy who was there. Here one boy has five barley loaves and two fish;
but what is this for such a multitude? This is reported to the Lord by Andrew, the First-Called Apostle, who, although he had been with Christ the longest, was not yet perfect in the faith, since he asked:
but what is this for such a multitude?
The breads were
barley
, which is also not accidental. From this we must learn, as the wise Chrysostom says, that we should be content with simple food, and not choose the best, for, in his words, “voluptuousness is the mother of all diseases and passions.”

Bring them here to Me

, the Lord commanded the disciples. Only now it was His turn. The people are unable to get food for themselves; the apostles also confessed their powerlessness to help the people. Now His time has come, now everything is ripe for a miracle.

And he ordered the people to lie down on the grass and, taking five loaves and two fish, he looked up to heaven, blessed and, breaking them, gave the loaves to the disciples, and the disciples to the people.

Why did our Lord Jesus Christ look up to heaven? He did not do this, performing great miracles: opening the eyes of the blind, cleansing lepers, casting out demons from people, rebuking the sea and the winds, turning water into wine, and even raising some of the dead. So why, exclusively in this case, did He look up to heaven, turning his gaze to His Heavenly Father?

Firstly, in order to show in front of such a huge number of people the unity of His and the Father’s will and thereby refute the evil slander of the Pharisees, who claimed that He works all miracles with the help of demonic power. Secondly, as the Son of man, to show people the image of man’s humility before God and gratitude for all the benefits that come from God. He gave us a similar example during the Last Supper: having blessed, He broke

(Matthew 26:26);
taking the cup and giving thanks, he said... taking the bread and giving thanks, he broke it
(Luke 22:17-19). He thanked His Heavenly Father and blessed the bread as a gift from God. So we must, before every meal, no matter how modest it may be, give thanks and praise to God for it and bless His gift. Thirdly, as the Son of God, so that with the multiplication of the loaves, which is completely like a new creation, to show the unity of the power of the Trinity in the Unit, which creates only as such. Father, Son and Holy Spirit - Trinity Consubstantial and Indivisible - is the Creator of all things.

Our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, with His own hands, broke the bread. For what? Why didn’t He command the disciples to break them? So that we can see His good desire to feed the people and His greatest love for people. And so that we learn through this: when doing alms and giving gifts, we must give carefully and with love, as He did.

And they all ate and were filled; and they took up the remaining pieces, twelve baskets full; and those who ate were about five thousand people, besides women and children.

Here is a miracle of miracles and glory of glory!
If so many people take only one piece the size of an antidor, still five loaves are unlikely to be enough. And here, look: And they all ate and were filled;
and collected the remaining pieces into twelve boxes full !
If this were some kind of mirage, then it would not have been said: and they were filled
.
Even if a person could create in another the illusion that he is eating, it is impossible to satisfy a hungry person with a mirage. And if it was some kind of mirage, where did the twelve boxes full of remaining pieces come from? No, no, only inveterate sinners can call this an illusion. However, this was reality, just as the existence of God is reality. Please also note that during this miracle no one dares to say anything against it or find any stupid explanations for it, as the Pharisees did in the case of other miracles. Not only did no one say anything against it, but the people who saw the miracle performed by Jesus said: This is truly the Prophet who is about to come into the world
(John 6:14).
Moreover, they wanted to come and accidentally take Him and make Him king
. This truly wondrous miracle of Christ made such a huge impression on the people! Who and when wanted to make some illusionist king? But here is reality and truth, and people, inspired by this reality and truth, wanted to force Christ to be their king. And this would have happened if Christ had not withdrawn, thus interfering with this intention of the inspired people.

And immediately Jesus forced His disciples to get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, until He sent the people away.

Doesn't it seem a little strange that Jesus commands His disciples to get into the boat alone and go to the other side before Him?
Why does He do this? Firstly, because of what happened; and secondly, because of what will happen. Let them separate themselves from the people as soon as possible and in private indulge in reflection and conversation about the great miracle of the multiplication of the loaves. And let them set off on a voyage, in which our Lord Jesus Christ will soon show them a new, unprecedented miracle, namely, he will walk on the sea as if on land. The Lord foresaw in advance both what would happen and what He would do. The disciples, not foreseeing anything and, of course, surprised that the Lord was forcing them to go, left Him with the people, went down to the sea and launched the boat into the water. Undoubtedly, the reason that the Lord hastily sent the apostles away from the crowd of people was His desire to protect them from pride and self-praise before the people: here, they are, they say, followers and disciples of such an unprecedented Wonderworker! Just as He wanted to teach them humility, saying: give them something to eat
, so now, by sending them away, He wants to protect them from pride and from exalting the Teacher.
And, finally, He wants to show them His infinite meekness and humility before God by the fact that after such a majestic miracle, He retires to the mountain to pray alone. He did not need to tell them directly about this - they were already quite familiar with His custom of often retiring for prayer. However, wasn’t it precisely on that day that He deliberately retreated to a deserted place, left alone
, after the news of the terrible execution of John the Baptist? Let the disciples see that He did not forget why He came to a deserted place, and above all, let them see and know that the great work He unexpectedly accomplished and all the praise and magnification from the admiring people did not in the least shake His spiritual peace and His meekness did not turn Him away from his intention to pray in private.

This whole event with the provision of loaves and fishes to people, as well as the number of loaves and fishes and the number of boxes full of remaining pieces, also has its own mysterious, internal meaning. Before His death, the Lord called the blessed bread His Body. And here He does this, true, not in words, but through the number of loaves. Five means the five bodily senses, and the five senses represent the whole body. Fish means life. In the first centuries of the Church, Christ was depicted as a fish, which can still be seen today in ancient Christian catacombs and shelters. So, Christ will give His Body and His life as food for people. But why were there two fish? Because the Lord sacrificed Himself in His earthly life, and after the resurrection He sacrifices Himself in His Church to this day. What does it mean that He personally broke the bread? It means that He voluntarily sacrifices Himself for the salvation of people. Why did He give the loaves and fishes to the disciples to distribute to the people? Because they will truly spread Christ throughout the world and provide Him as life-giving food to the nations. What does it mean that there are exactly twelve boxes of pieces left? Signifies the abundance of the harvest from the labors of the apostles. The harvest of every apostle will be incomparably greater than the seed he sown, just as every box contained more bread than that which the hungry ate and were satisfied with.

But all these secrets are deep and inexhaustible. Who dares to peer too closely into their destinies? Who dares in this temporary life to descend into their depths? Let the hints be enough for those who enjoy reading and listening to the Gospel. The angels also revel in the sweetness of the Gospel. The more a person reads it, prayerfully reflects on it and follows it in his life, the more the depths of the Gospel are revealed and the sweetness of the Gospel is fragrant. For this, honor and glory are due to our Lord Jesus Christ, with His Originless Father and the Holy Spirit - the Trinity, Consubstantial and Indivisible, now and ever, at all times and unto the ages of ages. Amen. (This miraculous multiplication of the loaves by the Divine power of Christ is remembered in the wondrous prayer during the blessing of the loaves at the litiya).

***

From the collection of works of St. Nicholas of Serbia (Velimirovich), published by the Sretensky Monastery publishing house. You can purchase the publication in the Sretenie store.

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Gospel of John, Chapter 6, verses 5-14

05 Jesus, lifting up his eyes and seeing that a large crowd was coming towards Him, said to Philip, “Where can we buy bread to feed them?”

06 He said this, testing him; for He Himself knew what He wanted to do.

07 Philip answered Him: There will not be enough bread for them for two hundred denarii, so that each of them may have at least a little.

08 One of His disciples, Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, said to Him:

09 There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what is this for such a multitude?

10 Jesus said, Command them to lie down. There was a lot of grass in that place. So the people, numbering about five thousand, sat down.

11 Jesus, having taken the loaves and given thanks, distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to those reclining, also the fish, as many as anyone wanted.

12 And when they were satisfied, he said to his disciples, “Gather up the fragments that remain, so that nothing will be lost.”

13 And they gathered and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves that were left over from those who ate.

14 Then the people who saw the miracle done by Jesus said, “This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world.”

Archpriest Pavel Velikanov reads and comments.

In the story about the miraculous feeding of a crowd of five thousand with five loaves of bread and two fish, there is one discrepancy that is not immediately visible. After everyone has had their fill, Jesus says to the disciples: now we need to collect all the remaining pieces so that nothing is lost. And they collect no less than twelve full boxes - thereby confirming that this was not an apparent, but a real miraculous increase of loaves.

But the problem is this: if it is not difficult for Jesus to multiply two loaves of bread so that thousands are satisfied, should he worry about the leftovers? Why such frugality - when at any moment He could again feed any number of followers?

Alas, such a question could only arise in our time - when we rarely think about frugality. Even less often do we think about the fact that throwing away not only bread, but also any food products, is still wrong and sinful. Indeed, at that very moment, somewhere a person may be ready to break the law - just in order to satisfy his wild hunger - and without the slightest doubt we throw away yesterday's food. And this is not at all a rigoristic formulation of the question: our trouble is that the disharmony of the daily way of life is becoming more and more strong. For comparison, in the village this problem does not exist: any food, even stale, becomes food for poultry and livestock. And what is unsuitable for animals goes into compost: it will rot, ripen, and there will be excellent fertile soil! Well, for the truly literate, there is also vermicomposting - when earthworms process the remains into valuable humus. There is not only ingenuity and frugality here - much more significant is the development in the consciousness of the understanding that you are not on your own in this world, not a soulless consumer of goods, you are included in a huge and complex cycle of relationships, and if you are impudent, intemperate, unscrupulous, there will be troubles can't be avoided!

Today they are increasingly talking about the importance of separate waste collection. And, strange as it may sound, I see in this a wonderful spiritual tool for a person’s spiritual growth from a rabid consumer to a God-blessed co-worker. And it’s not even a matter of the fact that not all waste processing plants are actually engaged in recycling: this is a matter of time, but our habits are much more difficult to cope with. But only when we personally feel our responsibility for every package abandoned in nature, a bottle broken on the road, a wrapper that didn’t end up in the trash can, can we hope that our world will not drown in the waste of its life, but will become another effectively working link in a harmonious chain in the marvelous cycle of all living things! And isn’t this wonderful - doesn’t it have its own spiritual dimension?...

Bible Online

There is a quote in the Bible: “One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to Him: “A boy here has five barley loaves and two fish”; but what is this for such a multitude? And Jesus said, “Tell them to lie down.” There was a lot of grass in that place. And so about five thousand people reclined. Jesus, having taken the loaves and given thanks, distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to those reclining also distributed the fish, as much as anyone wanted. And when everyone was satisfied, he said to his disciples: “ Gather up the remaining pieces so that nothing is lost .” And they gathered and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves that were left over from those who ate” (John 6:8-13).

Every time I see these lines about how the Lord Jesus fed five thousand people with just five loaves and two fishes, I feel shocked to the core and can further strengthen the faith in my heart that the Lord Jesus really is the only true God who gives everything, rules everything, and only He can bring something out of nothing. I am fully confident that even if there was no food at all at that moment, the Lord Jesus would have been able to perform this miracle and feed those five thousand people or even more, because nothing is impossible for God. The miracle performed by the Lord Jesus became the basis of my faith and my desire for Him.

After this, I saw the following passages of the word of God, thanks to which I came to an even deeper recognition and knowledge of the Divine thoughts of the Lord Jesus Christ, which preserve the true meaning of the “Miracle of the Five Loaves and Two Fishes.”

The Lord says: “ First, let's try to figure out who these five thousand people were. Were they followers of the Lord Jesus? We know from Scripture that they were not His followers. Did they know who the Lord Jesus was? Definitely not! At least they did not know that the Man standing before them was Christ. Perhaps some people only knew His name, knew something, or heard something about the works He had done. Through these stories, the Lord Jesus only aroused curiosity in them, and it can be said with certainty that these people did not follow Him, much less understand Him. When the Lord Jesus saw these five thousand people, they were hungry and could only think about how to be satisfied. It was in this situation that the Lord Jesus met their needs. How did He feel when He satisfied the desires of these people? What was His attitude towards people who thought only about eating their fill? At that moment, the Lord Jesus’ thoughts and attitude were guided by God’s disposition and God’s essence. Seeing these five thousand people with empty stomachs, who only wanted to eat well; Seeing these people filled with curiosity and hope towards Him, the Lord Jesus thought only of pouring grace on them with the help of this miracle. However, He did not expect them to become His followers, for He knew that they only wanted to have a good time and eat their fill. So He did the best He could do, using the five loaves and two fish to feed five thousand people. He opened the eyes of the people, eager to enjoy the performance and expecting miracles, so that they saw with their own eyes what God incarnate could do. And although the Lord Jesus used something material to satisfy their curiosity, yet in His heart He knew that these five thousand people only wanted to eat well. Therefore, He did not tell them anything at all and did not preach at all. He simply allowed them to see this miracle. The Lord Jesus absolutely could not treat these people the way He treated His disciples who truly followed Him. However, in God's heart, all created beings were under His authority, so He could, of necessity, allow all creatures before His sight to enjoy God's grace. And although these people did not know who was in front of them, and did not understand Him, as they did not have any specific idea about Him and did not feel gratitude towards Him even after they were satisfied with bread and fish, God did not take up arms against them for this reason. He simply gave these people a wonderful opportunity to enjoy the manifestation of God's grace. Some people believe that God is principled in His actions, that He does not guard or protect unbelievers, much less allow them to enjoy His grace. Is this really true? In God's eyes, since they are living beings created by Himself, He will guide and care for them. He will deal with them, plan for them, and manage them in a variety of ways. This is God's thoughts and attitude toward all creatures ."

«…Did He make any demands on these people? Did He experience any hatred? There was none of this. He simply did not want to occupy His thoughts any longer with these people who were not going to follow Him, and at that moment His heart ached. Because He saw the depravity of mankind and felt the rejection of Him by people. When He saw these people and was with them, human stupidity and ignorance greatly upset Him, causing pain to His heart. Therefore, He only wanted to leave these people as quickly as possible. The Lord in His heart had no demands on them. He did not want to give them His attention and especially did not want to waste His strength on them. He knew that they would not follow Him. But, despite all this, His attitude towards them continued to remain understandable. The Lord Jesus simply wanted to deal kindly with them and give them His grace. This was God's attitude towards every creature under His power: kindness to every creature, providing care for it and providing food for it. The real reason was that the Lord Jesus was God incarnate, He manifested the Divine essence quite naturally and treated these people favorably. He treated them kindly, showing them mercy and tolerance …

«…Although this story has been known to people for several thousand years, its plot is simple, it allows people to get acquainted with a simple miraculous phenomenon, but in this simple plot we can see something more valuable, namely God's character and who He is. is and what He possesses. Who He is and what He has is a personification of God Himself and an expression of His thoughts. The expression of God's thoughts is the manifestation of His voice. He hopes that there will be those people who can understand Him, know and comprehend His will. He hopes that there will be people who will hear His voice and will be able to actively cooperate to carry out His will. And the works that the Lord Jesus did were the silent expression of God ».

The Word of God led me to a new understanding of the story of the miracle of the five loaves and two fishes as presented in Scripture. I had read this passage of Scripture many times in the past, but I was only aware of the authority and power of God, without knowing the thoughts of the Lord Jesus or the divine providence and purpose He put into this miracle. It was only thanks to such a Divine appearance and revelation that I realized that everything that God had done was truly significant.

From God's words, I saw that people who simply wanted a satisfying meal, but did not want to follow the truth or seek to understand God, were given grace by God himself, allowing them to have enough to eat. This was God's moral position. Even if they did not follow him after they were satisfied, God did not have any demands or hatred towards them in His heart. This was an even greater revelation, showing His essence of beauty and goodness. Moreover, God knew that these five thousand people who had received a hearty meal would not follow Him, so He did not put His hopes on them that they would follow Him, but meanwhile God was not going to preach to them any more. From this came the realization that although God treats people with love and kindness, He is principled in His treatment of different people. As for those who believed in God, but only wanted to be satisfied with His bread, God gave them grace and treated them favorably, but He did not express His will to them. However, for His disciples who truly loved the truth and followed Him, God provided them with more truths to satisfy their spirits and enable them to live in the midst of His instructions and blessings.

In the word of God I also saw the voice of His heart, which God spoke to us with “five loaves and two fish.” Although many people come before God, if they believe in God just to be satisfied with His bread, and receive the world of the flesh or blessings in the future, but do not pursue the truth or knowledge of God, they will never be able to receive God's blessing, much less gain the truth and life. Only those who truly love the truth and pursue God can obtain the truth and life. Only such people can seek the truth, obey God, and continually follow God in all the trials, tribulations and tribulations sent by God. Only such people can live in the reality of God's word, change their attitude in life, and become the people whom God truly loves. Only such people can receive the promises of God and gain eternal life. Do we realize the true meaning of the Divine thoughts of the Lord Jesus, which he showed us through the “Miracle of the Five Loaves and Two Fishes”? Now do you understand this?

In relation to distribution⬇⬇⬇

Why did the Lord Jesus give Peter the heavy responsibility of Shepherding the churches?

Sunday Gospel Readings for Pentecost (Part I)

July 2, 1967

In the infinite richness of the personality of the All-Man Christ, each nation has identified the features of holiness that are closer to its heart, which are more understandable, which are more feasible for it. Today, from all the wondrous diversity of holiness, all the wealth of earthly and heavenly human possibilities, we celebrate the memory of all the saints who have shone in the Russian lands: people who are close to us by blood, whose lives are intertwined with the most decisive events of our history, people who are the glory of our land , the rich, beautiful fruit of Christ’s sowing, as they are spoken of in the festive troparion.

In this host of Russian saints, it seems to me, three features can be identified as characteristic properties of Russian holiness: not in the sense that they were absent from other peoples, but in the sense that these particular properties were accepted and loved in our native land.

The first is the endless patience of the Lord. The Holy Apostle Peter says that God does not hesitate in His judgment, but endures; He waits because He loves, and love believes everything, hopes for everything, expects everything and never ceases. And this property of Christ’s patient, endlessly waiting love, which costs Him so dearly - because patience means the readiness to continue to endure, until the will of God is carried out, the horror and ugliness and terrible pictures of the earth - this patience of the Lord finds its expression in ours. saints: not only by amazing endurance and endurance in feat, but also by such an openness of heart that never despairs about the fate of a sinner, such an openness of heart that accepts everyone, which is ready to bear the consequences of this patient love not only through feat, but also through suffering, and persecution, without turning away from the persecutor, without renouncing him, without throwing him out of your love, but with readiness, as the Apostle Paul says, to perish even in eternity, if only those who need salvation would be saved.

Another quality that struck the Russian people in Christ was the greatness of Christ’s humiliation. All pagan peoples sought in their gods an image of what they themselves dreamed of being - personally, each person, and together, the entire given people: they highlighted glory, highlighted power, power, kindness, justice. And even those gods of antiquity who died for the sake of the people died a heroic death and rose immediately in glory.

But the appearance of God in Christ is different; it was impossible, impossible, to invent Him, because no one could imagine a God like that: a God who becomes humiliated, defeated; God, whom the people surround with ridicule and contempt, nailing to the cross, mocking Him... God could reveal Himself like this, but man not only could not invent Him like this, but would not want to, especially if we remember the words of this God that He sets the example for us to be what He was.

And this image of the humiliated Christ, this image of the defeated God, the defeated God, the God who is so great that He can endure even the last outrage, remaining in all the glory and greatness of His humility, the Russian people loved, and now loves, and now fulfills.

And the third feature that I would like to note, which seems to me to be common to all Russian saints, is that throughout Russian history, holiness coincides with the appearance and manifestation of love.

Types of holiness alternated on our land: there were hermits and there were monks living in cities; there were princes and there were bishops; there were laymen and ascetics of all kinds - not forgetting the holy fools. But all of them did not appear by chance, but at that moment in Russian history, when in one or another image of heroism one could more clearly demonstrate one’s love for God and one’s love for people. And this is one of the joys of our tragic and often dark and terrible history: that in all its eras - whether they were bright or dark - this stream of Divine love ran like a red thread, a golden pattern, and that where sin multiplied, there grace abounded, and where human cruelty increased, there appeared new evidence of God’s love, kindled in human hearts, evidence of God’s pity, human pity.

Our saints are our relatives and friends; but if we think about ourselves, can we say that these traits are the lust, the dream of our souls, thirsting for eternal life? Are we not looking for security - not vulnerability, strength - not defeat, glory - not humiliation? Is our life in all, or at least in its main manifestations, love embodied in man? Do we find in ourselves this endless, indestructible patience, this humble love for our neighbor, this giving of ourselves, this ability not to reject anyone, but, according to the word of Christ, to bless everyone, to shine with love on the good and on the evil, to show that love, oh which the Apostle Paul tells us?..

And if we don’t find it, then we are outside the flow of Russian holiness, outside the path of Christ in the Russian soul and in Russian history. Then we are a fragment, a discard. How scary and pathetic it is to think! And if we want all the strings of our human souls to ring, so that everything that can live and sing the song of the Lord, even in a foreign land, will begin to live in us and sing, then we must partake of precisely these properties of Russian holiness, the Russian holy soul, and then we will be united with those ascetics who now continue their path of saving the Russian land - with blood and undying love. Amen.