Dmitry Prilutsky became one of the true ascetics of the Orthodox faith. This man, endowed with a rare gift and inner strength, was sent to our land during times of difficult trials. The saint did a lot to guide his people on the righteous path and cleanse them from sin. His life became an example of true spiritual achievement and self-sacrifice in the name of God.
The biography of Dmitry Prilutsky is covered in detail in the work of the monk Macarius, who became the monk’s successor as abbot. For more than one century, this ancient literary work, which has more than 200 copies and several editions, has been kept in the Vologda State Museum-Reserve.
Beginning of life's journey and becoming a monk
The future Saint was born into a wealthy merchant family at the beginning of the 14th century. His parents lived in the village of Veslevo, not far from Pereslavl-Zalessky.
The author of “Life” tells that from an early age Dmitry was distinguished by a calm disposition and extraordinary humility. The boy, who was alien to the vanity of the world, did not want to continue his parent’s work and saw his destiny in something else. Dmitry learned to read early, then began to get acquainted with church literature.
Having become a youth, he left his father's house and went to the Goritsky monastery. In this monastery, located not far from his native place, the young man took monastic vows and received the name Demetrius. From that time on, his faithful service to the Lord began, which lasted until the last day of his life.
The monk was distinguished by rare external beauty, which he considered evil and a test sent down to him. That is why he did his best to hide his face from prying eyes. Dimitri constantly wore a doll, adhered to strict fasting, and engaged in heavy physical labor. He had almost no contact with the laity and never spoke to women.
There is a story about how one parishioner, having heard about Demetrius’s beauty and chastity, tried to see his face and burst into his cell. For her sinful act, she received punishment in the form of sudden immobility. The woman was able to recover only after the Saint forgave her for her insolence and read healing prayers.
Abbess at the Nikolskaya Monastery
From the first days of his monasticism, Demetrius was distinguished by special obedience and strict observance of all God's commandments. Some time after accepting monasticism, he was ordained to the priesthood. Soon, on the initiative of the monk, the Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker was erected, at which a male monastic community was founded.
Already at this time, Demetrius of Prilutsky began to be revered as a Saint. People came every day for his advice and blessing, many of whom decided to stay forever in the St. Nicholas monastery and devote themselves to God.
Particularly significant in the life of the Reverend was his acquaintance with Sergius of Radonezh, the founder of the Trinity Monastery, which took place in 1354. Abbot Nikolsky often came to the Trinity Monastery, where he had long, thoughtful spiritual conversations with Sergius.
News of the abbot's extraordinary holiness filled the entire Russian land and soon reached Moscow. As a sign of special respect, Grand Duke Dmitry Ivanovich asked the monk to become the godfather of his son Vasily. The saint fulfilled this request, but the fame, attention and honor that followed began to weigh on his soul.
Having received the blessing of Sergius of Radonezh, Demetrius went with his only student Pachomius to the Vologda land. Here the spiritual brothers hoped to find inner peace and retire for prayerful conversations with the Lord.
Prayers
Troparion to Demetrius of Prilutsky, Vologda
From Above, O Reverend, / you received spiritual grace, / and from Him you were known, O blessed one, / for this reason, you also knew in spirit the best of Him, / of the future age, / and having experienced fasting in your abodes. / And now, rejoicing with the angels, / I pray for the salvation of everyone for us, Saint Demetrius, and we all cry out: / Glory to Him who gave you strength, / glory to Him who crowned you, / glory to Him who heals you all.
Troparion Presentation of the image of St. Dimitri
Rising today, like the sun, / the most honorable image of your sacred likeness, / more than the sun, illuminating everyone with the rays of your miracles, / creating the darkness of demons without a clue, / which I joyfully greeted, spiritual faces composed of them, / we continually cry out to you: / Demetrius, our father, pray to the Savior of all / save your city and our country, / giving salvation to your flock / and great mercy.
Construction of the Spaso-Prilutsky Church in Vologda
Seeking silent solitude, Demetrius and Pachomius first decided to settle in a sparsely populated place near the Lezha River. The monks built a small church in the name of the Resurrection of Christ, but were forced to leave this territory. The reason was local residents who were afraid of losing their land plots after the organization of a new monastery.
Having come to terms with this situation, the monk and his disciple went to Vologda, next to which they subsequently built a wooden church. It is known that many local peasants shared their desire to spread the Orthodox faith and willingly gave up part of their lands for the construction of the monastery. Later it received the name of the Spaso-Prilutsky Dmitriev Monastery, and Dmitry became its abbot.
When the monk settled in the Vologda lands, the good news spread everywhere. Many of his students left the St. Nicholas Monastery and moved to the Spaso-Prilutsky Monastery. All the brothers accepted by the abbot were distinguished by deep faith. The abbot himself showed rare mercy and attention to his neighbors:
- distributed food free of charge to the poor and hungry;
- received tired wanderers;
- talked to every person in need of consolation;
- blessed for good deeds, gave wise advice.
The monk always tried to pray in private, for which a special place was set aside in the church. The elder strictly abstained from food. He constantly consumed prosphora with warm water and surprised others by the fact that even on holidays he did not take wine with fish. At any time of the year, he wore the same old sheepskin coat and did the hardest work with his brothers.
Fully consistent with the canons of the Orthodox faith, Dmitry Prilutsky showed complete selflessness and did not strive for earthly goods. When Grand Duke Dmitry Ivanovich sent him rich gifts, and local residents donated funds for the construction of the monastery, he distributed a significant part of the money to poor people. The saint rightly believed that they needed them much more.
Preface
This book contains prayers for the feasts of the Lord, the Mother of God, the ethereal Heavenly Powers, the holy saints of God and icons of the Mother of God in the order of the church year, which begins in September. Dates are indicated according to the old (first digit) and new (second digit) style.
Prayer
- this is the elevation of the mind and heart to God, which is manifested by a person’s reverent word to God. The model for all prayers or the general Christian prayer is the Lord’s Prayer “Our Father,” which our Lord Jesus Christ taught to the apostles and which they passed on to all believers.
Prayer,
like a golden key, it opens to us all the treasures of God’s mercy and bounties.
"Prayer
- the path to the Lord. Let us call on the name of the Lord and be saved. Prayer most of all gives the grace of the Holy Spirit, because it is always in our hands as an instrument for acquiring the grace of the Spirit; The doors of prayer are open to everyone: the rich, the poor, the noble, the simple, the strong and the weak, the healthy and the sick, the righteous and the sinner. It is especially important to always keep the Jesus Prayer in your mouth and in your heart: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”...Keep this constantly in your mouth and in your heart. By invoking the name of God in this way, you will find peace, achieve spiritual and physical purity, and the Holy Spirit, the source of all good things, will dwell in you, and He will guide you in holiness, in all piety and purity.”
(From the instructions of St. Seraphim of Sarov.)
"Prayer
is one of the highest needs of the human soul, one of the essential accessories of worship of God. The soul, immersed in sensuality, distracted, darkened by sin, does not feel that in its beginning it is the breath of the mouth of God. But the power of this feeling, without her knowledge, arises from her depths and moves her heart towards God, even to the unknown or only erroneously known. Nowadays we boast a lot and do not repent enough. And time advises us to boast less and pray more. The Lord demands your heart. The Church puts prayer into the mouth so that it penetrates the heart. In order for a beggar to accept alms, he must extend his hand; In order for a baby to take food, he needs to open his mouth. Likewise, a person must reach out to God in order to achieve His grace; he must have an open soul in order to accept His gifts. Prayer is an outstretched hand to receive the grace of God, an open mouth to partake of Heavenly food. The gracious spirit was given to prayer from God to help sinners who have felt and hated their sinfulness, and who resolutely desire cleansing and perfect correction—those who lack only the power to do good, and not good intentions.”
“If you want your prayer to reach God, then give it two wings: fasting and almsgiving.”
(Saint Philaret, Metropolitan of Moscow and Kolomna.)
Prayers
saints have very great power, but only when we ourselves repent and demonstrate a good life. If we ourselves do not try, then through others we will not receive anything and will not be saved. God is more ready to give us what we need for the sake of our prayer than for the sake of the prayers of others.
(St. John Chrysostom.)
In addition to prayers, troparia, kontakia and magnifications are also given for each saint of God or holiday.
Some days of the year commemorate saints for whom there are no prayers. In these cases, in addition to the troparia and kontakia, they are given ikos, stichera, luminaries, or sedalena.
Troparion
- a short church song in which the deeds of God or His saints are glorified, that is, a song composed in honor of a holiday or saint, in which the essence of the holiday or the way of life of the saint is briefly expressed and which is compiled and sung according to a well-known model.
Kontakion
- a short church song in which the life of a saint or the history of a sacred event is expressed in a condensed form.
Greatness
- praise, glorification of the works of God or His saints.
Zadostoynik
- a chant that is sung as part of the Eucharistic canon instead of the Theotokos song “It is worthy to eat.” At the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom on the days of the twelve feasts and Easter (from the day of the holiday to the day of sacrifice), as well as at the Liturgy of Basil the Great on Maundy Thursday and Great Saturday, the irmos of the ninth song of the canon of Matins is honored: on other days, when the Liturgy of Basil the Great is celebrated, - special Troparion of the Theotokos “Rejoices in You.”
This is the most complete collection of prayers, troparions, kontakions and magnifications. Such a complete collection has never been published.
For the work, we used the Monthly Words, Books of prayer chants published at different times, Menaions of the Months and other liturgical and church books, individual private services, Lives of saints with prayers, etc.
The compiler did not set out to list all the saints for every day of all months of the year - they can be viewed in the “Orthodox Church Calendar”, and only those saints of God to whom prayers are given are indicated.
If a prayer is not specified for a holy saint of God or a holiday in honor of the icon of the Mother of God, then in this case general prayers can be read (see the section “Common prayers, troparia, kontakia and magnifications”)
Miracles and prophecies of Dmitry Prilutsky
The venerable elder received from the Lord a valuable gift that allowed him to read human souls, as well as foresee many important events. The most famous miracles and prophecies of Demetrius are:
- The Saint's brother, who inherited his father's wealth, acquired large debts and fell into extreme poverty. Wanting to improve his financial situation, he asked the monk to bless him to trade with pagan peoples. Having received a good profit, the merchant decided to repeat the profitable deal with the wild tribes several more times, but his brother-seer warned him of possible death. Not believing it, the merchant went on a trip again, from which he never returned alive;
- One day, a man named Ilya, wanting to help the Spaso-Prilutsky Monastery, brought food for the brethren. The abbot did not allow them to be taken, because he saw that this Christian had a hungry family left at home. He advised Ilya to take the food home and feed his relatives, and give what was left to the temple. Realizing that he had done wrong, this man nevertheless persuaded Demetrius to accept his gifts and promised not to repeat a similar mistake in the future;
- The elder was able to accurately predict the death of Prince Dmitry Donskoy even before it became known throughout the state. This happened in the spring of 1389, when the Monk Dmitry Prilutsky worked together with his brothers near the monastery. Suddenly he burst into tears and said that the noble Grand Duke was no longer bothered by his vain life. After this, the abbot began to pray for the repose of the soul of the newly deceased. The sad news of the death of the Moscow ruler came only a few days later and confirmed the rightness of the Saint.
Being spiritually enlightened, Demetrius also knew about the time of his own departure from life. Feeling the approach of his inevitable death, the abbot decided to leave behind a good successor, who became the devoted student Pachomius. When the saddened monks asked their mentor where his body should be buried, the ascetic answered them: “Throw it into the swamp and trample underfoot.”
The death of the saint and posthumous miracles
In 1392, in February, the brothers of the Spaso-Prilutsky Monastery felt an unusual fragrance at night that spread throughout all the premises. Hastening to the cell of St. Demetrius, they found his body lifeless. At the same time, the face of the newly deceased shone with bliss and unearthly light.
Having mourned their wise mentor, the monks buried him in the Spasskaya Church. They erected a wooden tomb over the place of the saint’s last earthly resting place.
At the end of the 19th century, a cast copper canopy appeared over the elder’s grave. His relics were never transferred to another place and are still located in the lower church of the monastery.
A few years after his death, Demetrius Prilutsky began to show many posthumous miracles:
- One God-fearing widow named Antonina lost the use of her arm and became blind in one eye. After praying to the monk, she saw him in a dream and found out what she needed to do for her recovery. Having followed all the instructions, the woman got rid of her tormenting ailments forever;
- in 1408–1409 the Vologda land was subjected to a terrible epidemic, which was stopped only thanks to prayers to the holy ascetic;
- at the beginning of the 15th century. Vologda was attacked by Vyatichi tribes, who plundered and destroyed the city. Trying to enter the Spassky Monastery and steal its valuables, they were repelled by an invisible force, after which they fled in horror and released all the monks from captivity.
One day, on the territory of the Spaso-Prilutsk monastery, two churches burned down. The brethren began building a new temple, but could not find enough funds to carry out the construction. One of the monks saw in a dream how the holy elder was carrying logs to the church, and an unearthly glow was spreading around him. After this sign, which Dimitri sent to the monk, the work went faster, all problems were successfully resolved, and after a short period of time the new church opened to parishioners.
For several centuries, the monk was considered the patron saint of merchants and traders who did not resort to making dishonest profits. Also, many people possessed by evil spirits were healed at his tomb.
Icons and temples of the holy prayer book
Iconographic images of Abbot Demetrius appeared at the beginning of the 15th century. It is known that Dionysius Glushitsky was the first to paint the image of the holy elder. This painting was located at the tombstone of the miracle worker for some time, but has not survived to this day.
In the first half of the 16th century, Dionysius Glushitsky also created a hagiographic icon of St. Demetrius of Prilutsky. Around the central face you can see 16 fragments telling about important events from the life of the Saint. They depict tonsure as a monk and the miraculous deeds of Demetrius. Today, the original of this icon is kept in the Vologda Historical and Architectural Museum. There are many lists of the saint’s face located in Orthodox churches in Russia and other countries.
On the icons, Demetrius of Prilutsky is depicted as a gray-haired old man, dressed in monastic clothes, a schema and a doll. His left hand holds a scroll with spiritual teachings, and his right hand is folded in a blessing gesture. In many paintings, in addition to the monk, there are images of Byzantine and Russian holy primates.
On the territory of Russia, 19 churches were erected in the name of the holy abbot, most of which are in the Vologda region. The oldest among them is St. Nicholas Cathedral, which adorns the central square of Vologda. Another 3 temples were built in the seer’s homeland, in the Yaroslavl region, as well as in the Kostroma lands. At the beginning of the last century, a single-altar church was erected in Moscow in honor of the holy wonderworker.
Shrines in honor of Demetrius
Since he is considered a miracle worker, it is not surprising that in many religious buildings it is considered a rule to hold a prayer service in his honor. But there are also those who bear his name. For example, the Temple of Demetrius of Prilutsky in Moscow. This is the only building in memory of him in the city, which was built with the money of the merchant Dmitry Storozhev.
The first building appeared in 1890. After the revolution it was closed, and its premises later housed a printing house and an anesthesiology laboratory. Later it was returned to the church and services began again. You can attend them and read a prayer.
“O sacred head, wonderful miracle worker, God-bearing Father Demetrius! Diligently falling to you, we pray: show us, humble and sinners, your powerful intercession. Because it is a sin for our sake, the imams do not have the boldness to ask the Lord for His gifts that are beneficial to us, but we offer and ask you, a prayer book favorable to Him: ask us from His goodness for everything that is for the benefit of our souls and bodies: faith, truth, undoubted hope , unfeigned love, courage in temptation, patience in suffering, constancy in prayer, prosperity in piety, longed-for health, fruitfulness of the earth, goodness of the air, well-timed rains, contentment for everyday needs, peace in our days and blessings from above for all our good deeds. Do not forget, miracle-working saint, to graciously visit your monastery, the cities and towns of our Orthodox country, preserving and protecting them with your prayers from all evil. Remember all those who have faith and love for you and call on your name in prayer, and graciously fulfill their good requests, overshadowing them with your patristic blessing from above. To her, Holy One of God, do not deprive us sinners of your powerful intercession, but grant us the gift of achieving a good end to our lives and inheriting the Kingdom of Heaven. Let us sing and glorify our wondrous God, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, forever and ever. Amen."
But in addition, there is also the opportunity to listen to the reading of the akathist to Demetrius Prilutsky. When praying to the saints, it is important to think about the words you say, and it doesn’t matter whether it is a special request or whether they come from a pure heart.
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God bless you!
You will also be interested in watching a video story about the holy abbot Demetrius:
What do Orthodox Christians ask the elder for?
St. Demetrius of Prilutsky is approached on different occasions:
- during physical and mental illness;
- when resolving debt disputes;
- in case of financial difficulties;
- in extreme poverty;
- if you are dependent on alcohol or drugs;
- when possessed by demons;
- if you want to strengthen your faith.
The saint helps to get rid of problems at work, strengthens the human spirit in the fight against sinful temptations, and protects against attacks by robbers. People who want to work honestly and avoid obstacles on the way to their goal pray to him.
The dates when the Orthodox Church honors the memory of Demetrius of Prilutsky are February 24 and June 16. In order to be heard and receive the bright help of the reverend elder, Christians read the akathist and other special prayers to the Saint. They also address the miracle worker in their own words, which originate deep in the soul of a believer.
How does the holy abbot help?
Every year crowds of pilgrims head to this place of his death, trying to attract favor with their prayers. Most often they ask him for help in debt litigation. But besides this, he is capable of:
- get rid of alcohol addiction;
- help return borrowed materials;
- get rid of physical and mental illnesses;
- avoid temptations and other bad thoughts;
- find the right solution in a difficult life situation.
The chronicles contain many references to miracles that occurred even after the death of the saint. One of the most often described is when a robber snuck into the monastery and wanted to rob the coffin. As soon as he extended his hand, an unprecedented force threw him away and he died.
