Martyr Christopher
Before his baptism, his name was Reprev; he lived at the turn of the 3rd–4th centuries in North Africa, which at that time was part of the Roman Empire. He was a strong and tall man and served in the imperial army. Before going against the Goths, Emperor Decius demanded that the soldiers sacrifice to idols, but Christopher refused, declaring himself a Christian. For this he was tortured and then beheaded.
In the Western tradition there is a legend that before his baptism, Christopher began to seek the most powerful God. He went to the king, but he was afraid of demons. I studied demonology, but the demons were afraid of Christ. And he found Christ in the form of a Boy who asked to be carried across the river. In the middle of the ford, the mighty Reprev realized that the Boy had become incredibly heavy. At that moment Christ revealed himself to him, saying: “Go, with My help you will definitely cross.” And after that he became invisible.
Saint Christopher. Hieronymus Bosch
Christopher means “bearer of Christ.” The name echoes the legend about the appearance of Christ to Christopher in the form of a boy, whom the saint carried across the river. This plot was depicted by many great artists: Bosch, Memling, Witz and others.
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Quotes about the Bible and the Gospel
The storehouse of human wisdom is concentrated in the Bible and the Gospel, which teach a person love and faith. They encrypt the path of unity with God. Here you can find the answer to any everyday question that seems insoluble, you just need to read, passing everything through your heart and mind. People who constantly read the Gospel are surprised to note that the same text is perceived differently every time. Words written several thousand years ago have magical powers that affect a person in an incomprehensible way, depending on the state of the person’s soul.
Saint Ignatius (Brianchaninov) wrote that about all your thoughts, as well as about the thoughts of your neighbor, you must definitely consult the Gospel, since it is in it, as mentioned above, that you can find answers to any questions. Saint Ignatius also wrote the following words: “The path to God is prayer, the soul of prayer and attention.”
Saint John Chrysostom spoke about the gift of Holy Scripture to humanity in such a way that it was given to us from above not by chance, but for the correction of the soul. That God is not as irritated by human sins as by the unwillingness to change. God gives his love to those who, realizing their sins, repent of them, trying to cleanse their souls and not repeat their mistakes in the future.
Holy Fathers about slander
A person has many sins, for which, if a person does not realize them and does not repent, God's punishment awaits him. One of them is perjury. According to St. Basil the Great, the slanderer harms not only the agreed upon, but also himself and the listeners. He said that if a complaint is unfair, then it is slander. The Monk Efim the Syrian said: “If someone in your presence speaks against your brother, humiliating him with malice, then do not speak out against him, so as not to receive what you do not want.”
According to him, there is no need to diminish the honor of your neighbor when he is slandered: “Do not reduce it in your eyes, this will protect you from the sin of slander.” Do not pass on to others information that you have heard from a slanderer and that defames your neighbor. Since in this case the person himself becomes a slanderer. How often can we come across similar situations in our lives when people endure gossip with enthusiasm and interest, not suspecting that they are becoming slanderers.
Patience in life
The greatest grace in life is patience, which strengthens the spirit and makes it strong. Many holy fathers devoted their thoughts to this quality of a person, whose Orthodox quotes speak about this. The Monk Ephraim the Syrian characterized patience as a wonderful gift that frees a person from anger, hot temper, and contempt. These feelings destroy a person's soul. With the help of patience, the soul is cleansed.
Everyone has encountered in life insults and humiliations that, in his opinion, were inflicted unfairly. What to do in this case? The Monk Neil of Sinai said on this occasion that if an offense is caused, then one should resort to patience, and the harm will pass on to the offender, and God's punishment awaits him.
Holy Fathers about spiritual peace
How to gain peace of mind, which makes a person strong and gives him the love of God? Saint John Chrysostom wrote that if a person wants, then no one can offend him, and even with his attacks the offender brings great benefit to those who endure insults without complaint. To achieve such a state, you need: first, remission of sins; secondly, generosity and patience; thirdly, philanthropy and meekness; fourthly, getting rid of anger, which destroys a person from the inside, brings him a lot of trouble.
How to restrain yourself and not respond to the attacks of the offender? John Chrysostom also said: “If someone offends you, insults you, then you just need to imagine what God’s punishment will be for your offender, and you will not be angry, but shed tears in sorrow for them.” There is no need to be afraid that others will accuse you of cowardice, since this is wisdom.
Is it necessary to show immeasurable sorrow for one’s sins?
Veneration in Rus'
The veneration of Saint Christopher in Rus' begins in the 13th–14th centuries. The image with the head of a dog becomes especially popular: many icons are painted, several churches are built in honor of the martyr.
In 1666, a Church Council was held in Moscow, which approved the reforms of Patriarch Nikon, after which the Old Believer schism began. The depiction of the martyr Christopher with the head of a dog is also prohibited. The Old Believers do not accept the decision of this Council and continue to portray the saint as before.
The ban on the image of St. Christopher with the head of a dog applies to the creation of new images. In some churches and monasteries, ancient icons and paintings were left as they were (Assumption Monastery, Sviyazhsk), and somewhere they painted a new, human face on top of the dog (Savior Transfiguration Cathedral, Yaroslavl).
Sviyazhsk
Yaroslavl
In Western tradition, Saint Christopher is considered the patron saint of pilgrims. The image of the saint can be found on rings and medallions. A pilgrim, while traveling to a holy place, must go with prayer and thus carry Christ within himself. And the image of St. Christopher reminds him of this.
Where did the dog's head come from?
Saint Christopher was early depicted with the head of a dog. There are several reasons for this. In those days, they believed that people with dog heads really existed - travelers (for example, Marco Polo) and even historians (Herodotus) wrote about this. And if the former simply attracted attention in this way, then historians really saw something similar: these were semi-wild Berber tribes in Western Egypt, who were willingly taken into the army of the Roman Empire. During the battle, they wore animal skins and heads to intimidate them. Most likely, Saint Christopher was from this tribe.
There is also the following legend about the origin of the dog’s head: Emperor Decius, trying to get Christopher to worship idols, sent two harlots to him. And the saint, being very beautiful, asks God to disfigure his appearance. Therefore, in the icon Saint Christopher is depicted not only with the head of a dog, but also as a very ugly man.
Don’t ask for earthly things.
You need to say for everything: “Glory to God!” We are unworthy to receive what the Lord sends us (hieroschemamonk Aristokliy, metochion of the Athos Monastery in Moscow) How to be saved? Some answer that we need to pray to God. And they don’t leave this circle. Meanwhile, the prayer of a passionate person will not save him. The only purpose of our life is to eradicate passions and replace them with virtues. We have all passions, but some to a greater extent and others to a lesser extent. We must determine what passion dominates us and arm ourselves against it. It is impossible to fight all passions at once - they will strangle you. Having conquered one passion, one must move on to eradicating another, and so on (Reverend Barsanuphius, Optina Pustyn) Do not judge your neighbor: you know his sin, but his repentance is unknown. In order not to judge, you must run from those who judge and keep your ears open. Let’s take the rules for ourselves: do not trust those who condemn, never speak ill of those who are absent. Let us remember the old folk sayings: “Whatever you condemn someone for, you yourself will remain in that,” “Know yourself, and it will be done with you” (Elder Simeon, Pskov-Pechersky Monastery) You should never ask the Lord for anything earthly. He knows better than we what is useful to us. Pray like this: “I surrender, Lord, myself, my children, relatives and neighbors to Your holy will.” The prayers of loved ones, mother, friend are especially powerful - they have great power (Reverend Seraphim Vyretsky, was the confessor of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra). Salvation is given only through awareness of sins and heartfelt repentance, as well as through patience with sorrows. If people knew what awaited them after death, they would pray to God day and night. Otherwise they think he’s dead and that’s the end of everything. Our life after earthly death is just beginning; through earthly suffering we earn Eternity. He who knows God endures everything (Reverend Theodosius of the Caucasus) Do not seek peace until death. A person is born not for peace, but in order to work and endure for the sake of the future life (peace). Here we are wanderers, strangers, and strangers have no peace in a foreign country. They move forward step by step in order to quickly reach their native fatherland - the house of God, the Kingdom of Heaven. Death is inexorable! Not a single rich man in wealth, not a hero in strength, not a king, not a warrior can buy off death. No one can take with them anything acquired by them. Naked man was born, naked and departs. Only faith and good deeds go with him into the future life, and no one will help - neither friends, nor relatives (Reverend Elder Sebastian of Karaganda)
