Simeon's childhood
Tambov province, Lebedinsky district, the village of Shovskoye in the volost of the same name - this is where the deeply religious peasant family of Ivan Antonov lived. In addition to the mother and father, five sons and two daughters lived in a large and friendly family. One of the brothers was Semyon, the future monk Simeon of Athos. Later, as a novice of the monastery, Silouan admired the wisdom and intelligence of his father, a simple illiterate peasant. His deep faith in God, modesty, diplomacy, and even respect for all people played a major role in the formation of children's souls. The Antonov family with many children belonged to the poor. Everyone worked constantly and hard to earn their daily bread, but they never refused to help those who were worse off. Visiting church on weekends, learning church literacy, and reading the prayer book at home in the family became a balm of grace in the soul of little Semyon.
Quotes from Saint Silouan
The inner personality of Christians is formed under the influence of sermons, liturgies, reading of Holy Scripture and Orthodox literature.
The moral teachings and instructions of the Venerable monk Simeon of Athos with their simplicity come to the heart of every believer and non-believer.
- You don't need gold or special wealth to help a person in trouble, it's enough to have good nature.
- The surest sign of poverty is the love of money. Rich is not the one who has a lot, but the one who knows how to be content with little.
- A person who knows the love of the Creator will never offend his family and friends.
- Faith is the main indicator of a healthy soul; a person with mental illness is constantly in hopelessness.
The elder compared human life to a book that can only be closed with the last breath.
Writings of Silouan of Athos
The Monk Simeon left a legacy of prayer for gaining peace of mind.
O excellent servant of the Lord! By the mercy granted to you by the Lord, we mournfully offer up a prayer for the whole world - the dead, the living and the future - do not keep silent for us to God, who diligently come to you and obsequiously beg for your intercession (names are pronounced).
Move, O saint, to the prayer of the Diligent Patroness of the Orthodox family, the happy Mother of God the Virgin Mary, who wonderfully called you to appear as a devoted figure in His valley, where God’s chosen ones are merciful and patient about our misdeeds, appear to the Lord and beg, so that our lies and lawlessness are not remembered , however, by the indescribable kindness of our Most High Jesus Christ, show generosity and protect us by His enormous favor.
To her, the saint of the Lord, with the Happy Ruler of the earth - the Most Holy Abbess of Athos and the sinless hermits of His long-lasting lot, ask the immaculate Holy Word, to protect the blessed heights of Athos and its God-loving inhabitants from all the tragedies and slander of the enemy in society.
May the sinless Messengers liberate from malice and strengthen the faith and brotherly love with the Immaculate Spirit, until the end of the century about the One, Immaculate, Catholic and Apostolic Temple, prayers are created and shown to everyone the right path, and the Earthly and Heavenly Temple constantly glorifies the Creator and Father of the World, teaching and illuminating light in the endless truth and kindness of the Lord.
Ask the inhabitants of the world for a prosperous and calm life, a spirit of humility and brotherly love, morality and protection, a spirit of fear of God. Yes, it is not anger and lack of rights that anger human souls, capable of destroying the love of God in people and overthrowing them into sinful hostility and murder, but in the power of Sacred love and truth, as in heaven and on our planet, hallowed be the name of God, may His desire become immaculate in people, and may peace and the Kingdom of God be established on the planets.
Likewise, for your dear Fatherland - to beg the Russian soil, pleaser of the Lord, for the desired peace and heavenly protection, protected by the strong omophorion of the Mother of God, to be freed from hunger, destruction, cowardice, flame, blade, invasion of people from another tribe and internecine swearing and from all opponents, obvious and invisible, and so the Blessed Mother of God will remain in his most holy dwelling until the end of the century, the Life-giving Cross with the power, and in the love of God he will abundantly affirm himself.
For all of us, in the darkness of transgressions and repentance of warmth, below the fear of God, not rich and so boundlessly adoring us, the Almighty constantly insulting, beg, O blessedness, from our Magnanimous Lord, that His Almighty grace will sacredly visit and revive our souls, and any anger and may he destroy everyday pride, oppression and negligence in our hearts.
We also ascend, so that we too may strengthen the happiness of the Immaculate Spirit and warm ourselves with God’s sympathy, in love and brotherly love, reconciliation for each other and for everyone, to affirm ourselves in the truth of God and to decently gain a foothold in the favorable love of God, and to approach filial love to Him. Yes, so, those who create His immaculate freedom, in any righteousness and tidiness of the fleeting road of life, we will pass without shame and with all the sinless we will deserve the Kingdom of Heaven and His Union of the Lamb. After all, may He be known, respected and adored by all in earth and in heaven, with His Beginningless Parent, His Most Holy and Good and Life-Giving Spirit, now and always and throughout the ages. Amen.
Important!
Every person, especially a clergyman or a monk, should not for a moment abandon the thought that all people are mortal, and at the end of life they will have to give an answer. Reflecting on this fact, it will be easy for a person to acquire such character qualities as:
- repentance;
- humility;
- purity of soul and heart;
- loyalty to God;
- virtues.
Being in constant awareness of their mortality, reflecting on the last day of life, which no one is allowed to know prematurely, Christians can easily avoid temptations and many evil deeds, and receive liberation from addictions and stumbling blocks.
The life of a monk can sometimes take a sharp turn, when serving people and even parents can fade into the background if the Lord demands it.
Orthodox Christians, especially clergy and monks, should live every day as if it were their last, helping people with a sincere soul, as if this is the last service on earth, then God will cover them with His solitude and communication.
Prayers to Silouan of Athos help to gain peace of mind
Negligence in service, constant hope for tomorrow to fix everything will lead to condemnation of the world around us and negligence in service. Such ministers easily fall into temptation, monks, through attachment to women, leave monasteries with the desire to find a family, but instead of happiness come illness and death, for God is jealous (Exodus 34:14).
The thought of death should not leave the minds of monks. She will control not only the actions, words, but also the thoughts of the clergyman, saving him from the temptations of evil places.
Forgetting about death, monks allow themselves excesses, starting with sleep, food, and drinks. This is a common cause of their sudden death.
Internal struggle
Simeon of Athos became what he was due to a coincidence of many circumstances. The authority of a wise father, the religious environment in the family, and theology lessons played, of course, an important role in the formation of Semyon Antonov’s worldview, but many lived in these circumstances in those days, take the rest of the Antonov children for example. All of them grew up to be worthy and honest people, but only one of them was awarded by God with a special inner world, the ability to analyze, think deeply and form their own stable views. One of the childhood incidents especially characterizes the impressionability of Semyon’s childish soul. A four-year-old boy witnessed a conversation between his father and one of the random travelers, who expressed his doubts about the existence of God. His speeches struck the child so much that he decided to go look for God at all costs and prove that he exists. The special world of the boy Semyon Antonov is evidenced by the fact that this thought lingered in him until his mature adolescence, until he heard stories about holy hermits and divine miracles. Why go looking for the divine if it is near us? If there are holy people, then God is in everyone. The ensuing enlightenment so strengthened faith, illuminated the mind, and changed his attitude towards the entire world around him that Semyon decided to devote himself to spiritual service and began to ask his father to let him become a novice at the Kiev Pechersk Lavra.
Worldly concerns
The father’s wisdom was manifested in this case too; having seen a lot in his life, he understood that one must go to monasticism with life experience, otherwise one will not understand human ordeals and suffering. His father insisted that Semyon think about serving God after completing his military service. Youth and hot blood made themselves known, or maybe the Lord himself sent the foolish youth a test of temptation. Endowed with good health, heroic strength, beauty and a cheerful disposition, the guy went to great lengths. The family managed to get out of poverty, and the brave young man recklessly walked with girls, drank intoxicating drinks and fought with offenders. One of these fights almost ended with serious injuries to the enemy, since Semyon was a noble strongman. Who knows how Simeon of Athos would have ended his life if the Lord had not reminded him of himself again.
Enlightenment
My thoughts in moments of high enlightenment, the tossing of a suffering soul and the path to repentance will later be described in the series of books “Birds of the Sky”. Simeon of Athos returned to his good thoughts one night, after a prophetic dream in which the Mother of God visited him and showed him his sins in the form of a snake crawling into his mouth. This terrible dream had such a sobering effect on Semyon that monasticism, forgotten in the stormy, daring life, again became the main aspiration and goal. The guy nevertheless fulfilled his father’s order about military service. But Semyon Antonov, a guardsman of the engineer battalion of the St. Petersburg Life Guards, was no longer the same goulvesa with a harmonica on his shoulder. From the very first days, his colleagues spoke of him as a wise, calm man, a good comrade, and confided their secrets and sorrows to him. Thoughts about the spiritual did not leave Semyon for an hour. Having conscientiously served the allotted time, the enlightened man returned to his parents’ house, visited all his relatives, collected his simple belongings and went to the holy Mount Athos.
Teenage years and early life
Growing up, he only grew stronger in his faith. Everything went to the point that Simeon was increasingly moving away from the world and growing in the desire to be closer to the Creator. This is well reflected in his quotes and other writings.
In the end, Simeon made up his mind - he decided to become a monk. The monastery in which he wanted to asceticize was the Kiev Pechersk Lavra.
But things didn't go according to plan. The young man's father, realizing that the young man needed to gain experience first, forbade him to take tonsure, advising him to first undergo military service. Simeon obeyed his father's will.
Worldly sinful life
Young unstable consciousness and temptations made themselves felt. After his father's refusal, he indulged in intense partying and drinking. He spent time with girls and friends, often getting into various troubles.
One day one of his fights almost ended in death. Being a strong, healthy man, Simeon almost killed his opponent.
But the Lord decided to help the young man. In a dream, Simeon saw a disgusting snake penetrate him. Waking up, he heard the voice of the Mother of God, who explained that his sinful life was as disgusting to Her as this dream was disgusting to him.
Military service
While undergoing military service in St. Petersburg in a sapper battalion, the future monk became more and more confident in his desire for a monastic life. One day he wanted to visit John of Kronstadt, but, not finding him, he left a note in which he asked for prayers.
Simeon systematically sent the accumulated money for the needs of the Athonite monks. His colleagues even joked about him that his “mind was on the Holy Mountain.”
Monastic tonsure
In 1892, having returned from the army, the young man said goodbye to his family and began his long-awaited journey to Holy Mount Athos.
On Mount Athos, he entered the Russian St. Panteleimon Monastery. The physical work he did there was quite easy. It was more difficult to overcome temptations. There were even moments of despair when he wanted to leave the Holy Mountain, but the Mother of God and the memories of Her miraculous call strengthened the young man.
In 1896, Simeon took monastic vows with the name Silouan. And in 1911 he was elevated to schema (a degree of monasticism distinguished by particularly strict regulations). He carried the obedience of the monastery steward, was in charge of workshops, a food warehouse, and a trading store.
Silouan's further life is filled with a struggle with himself, with his passions and sins. He lived by the call of Christ addressed to him.
Keep your mind in hell and do not despair.
Keeping your mind in hell means constantly thinking about your sins. This method of asceticism helps a person to constantly remain in a state of humility and repentance. But it is not suitable for everyone; Silouan did not allow his students to practice it.
At the same time, Silouan began his writing activity, first in the form of notes, which he kept at home, and then in the form of appeals. Then he has a disciple, Sophronius, who subsequently introduced the Christian world to the works and writings of the saint.
Monastic life
The newly minted Simeon of Athos arrived on the Holy Mountain, at the Russian Monastery of the Holy Great Martyr Panteleimon in the fall of 1892. According to the rules of monastic life, the novice had to remember all his sins in complete peace, express them in repentance, and ask for God's forgiveness through prayers. At that time, the monastery was experiencing its heyday. The novices worked tirelessly. The calm, hardworking Simeon did not lag behind them. His monastic life began with hard work at the mill, later he became a housekeeper, then for a long time he managed workshops, and in his old age - a trading store. In 1911, monk Simeon of Athos was tonsured into the schema and lived there for 48 years. The life of the schemamonk ended here, on Mount Athos, on September 24, 1938. 50 years after his death, by decision of the Holy Synod of the Orthodox Church of Constantinople, the blessed elder was canonized.
Venerable Silouan of Athos
The Monk Silouan of Athos (worldly name - Simeon) was born in 1866 in the Tambov province of the Lebedinsky district of the Shovsky volost in the village of Shovskoye into the pious family of the peasant Ioann Antonov.
His parents were hardworking, meek and naturally wise, although illiterate. A large and friendly family, the elder later recalled, lived poorly, but never refused help to those in need, sometimes sharing the last with them. Travelers were especially welcome in the family. The father talked with them about God and Christian life, and these conversations made a strong impression on the receptive soul of the youth.
From childhood, Simeon worked together with his elders, helping his father in the field and his brothers with construction work on the landowner’s estate to the best of his ability. For this reason, apparently, he was forced to leave the rural school, having studied there for only two winters. But the desire for knowledge (which characterized his father, “languished in his darkness”) was always inherent in the monk.
The life of the devout Antonov family is inextricably linked with the temple, a visit to which instilled in Simeon from infancy a sense of reverence for the word of God, and raised him in the spirit of Christian humility and other virtues. In church, he studied church literacy, learned concentrated prayer, and listened to the reading of the “Lives of the Saints.” A few years later, the young man, having loved the Lord with all his soul, wished to retire to a monastery and take monastic vows at the Pechersk Lavra. His desire, however, did not meet with the support of his father, who insisted that his son first enter military service and only after completing it decide who he should be.
Obeying his parents' word, Simeon returned to his normal life. He was nineteen years old at that time. His pious intention soon abandoned him, and he, like many of his peers, succumbed to the temptations of the world. Young, handsome, strong, and by that time already wealthy, he enjoyed life and in the noisy bustle of the world began to forget God’s first call to monastic service.
But the Lord saved him from plunging into the abyss of sin, again calling him to leave the vanity of the world and take the path of monasticism. This happened, according to the elder, under the following circumstances: one day, returning home from a walk, he dozed off and in a subtle sleep, looking at himself as if from the outside, he saw how a “malevolent serpent” was penetrating into him. Feeling disgusted, he woke up and at the moment of awakening he heard the words spoken by the Most Holy Theotokos Herself: “You swallowed a serpent in a dream and you are disgusted; so it is not good for Me to look at what you do.”
Realizing his sins, the young man fervently repented of them before the Lord and thanked the Mother of God for the kindness shown to him. This event was decisive for the choice of further path. The desire to devote his life to God returned to him again.
Simeon did his military service in St. Petersburg. He was an efficient soldier, exemplary in behavior, loyal in his relations with his fellow soldiers, for which his colleagues loved him. In the army, the gift of his wise advice manifested itself with particular force, following which many found peace of mind and well-being. Having left for service with living faith and a deep feeling of repentance, Simeon never forgot about God. By that time, the place of his future monastic exploits had been miraculously determined - Holy Mount Athos, where he was called “from the darkness of sin to the light of the Most Pure Truth of Christ.” He often thought about monastic life and, wanting to somehow help the inhabitants of the monastery, several times sent the accumulated money to Athos. The words of his colleagues eloquently testify to the saint’s internal state at that time: “And he was with his mind on Mount Athos and at the Last Judgment.”
Shortly before the end of his military service, Simeon decides to ask for the prayers and blessings of Father John of Kronstadt - Holy Righteous John. Not finding him, he leaves a note with the words “Father, I want to become a monk; pray that the world will not detain me.” In the barracks, the very next day he felt “hellish flames” around him, which has been “humming” ever since, incessantly, everywhere he was.
Many years later, in the saint’s notes they will read: “O great Father John, our prayer book! I thank God that I saw you, I thank you, good and holy shepherd, for for the sake of your prayers I parted with the world and came to Mount Athos, where I saw great mercy from God.”
Simeon stayed at home for only one week. Having collected gifts for the monastery and what was necessary for the journey, he said goodbye to everyone and went to Athos. In the fall of 1892, the monk arrived at the Holy Mountain and was accepted as a novice into the Russian Panteleimon Monastery during the heyday of this monastery.
The life of the elder in the monastery was simple, accessible and outwardly unremarkable: at first his obedience was hard work at the mill, which was replaced by the busy work of a housekeeper, managing workshops, a food warehouse, and in his declining years, a trading store.
Having gone through the initial monastic trials, in 1896 he was tonsured into the mantle with the name Silouan, and in 1911 into the schema, leaving his previous name.
The monk did not have his own disciples and was not in obedience to any particular elder. “It’s hard to live without an elder,” he said later. “An inexperienced soul does not understand the will of God, and it will endure many sorrows before it learns humility.” He himself, like most monks, was brought up in the atmosphere of the spiritual tradition common to the monks of Athos, spending, as required by the centuries-old way of life in the monastery, days in the unceasing Jesus Prayer, long services in the temple, fasting and vigils, frequent confession and Communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ, reading spiritual books and work.
From the first to the last day, the monk showed himself to be an image of perfect obedience; for him, the abbot, confessor and simply elder brother are good mentors. If monks and laity, he believed, listen to their confessors and pastors without condemning them, without objection and without internal resistance, then they themselves will not be deprived of salvation, and there will be fullness of life in the whole Church.
Having lived for forty-six years in a monastery with a communal charter, the ascetic never sought to go into seclusion or retire to the desert, believing that without the favor of God they in themselves are only auxiliary means, and not the goal of Christian life. At the same time, he was far from worldly interests. And constantly being among people, the elder kept his mind and heart from extraneous thoughts, cleansed them of passions to stand before God in prayer, claiming that this was the shortest path to salvation. He did not seek martyrdom, but throughout his life he repeated the ascetic experience of the Fathers of the Church - famous ascetics of piety. What was this path like for the reverend?
According to Athonite custom, the new novice was introduced into the life of the monastery by confession. Having experienced the joy of cleansing and liberation from the sins that burdened him in the Sacrament of Repentance, Simeon, however, was immediately attacked by thoughts of returning to the world and getting married. The consciousness that he had again saddened the Mother of God shocked the novice and revealed to him that even here, on the Holy Mountain, as it seemed, in the haven of salvation, temptations and even death were possible. Sobered by his spiritual fall, he began to pray a lot and earnestly, resorting mainly to the Jesus Prayer, which soon entered his garden and began to be performed there incessantly. This gift was received by the monk from the Most Holy Theotokos through contrite prayer before Her image and became a solid foundation for his spiritual life.
The novice Simeon continued the feat of vigil, fasting and heartfelt prayer, but the spiritual struggle with new temptations - vanity and pride - did not leave him. They, not giving the soul the opportunity to “enter the path of faith,” either lifted Simeon “to Heaven,” evoking in him a feeling of supposedly their own infallibility, “You are now a saint,” or cast him down, it seemed, into eternal destruction, telling him: “You you will not be saved." The devil's attacks kept increasing, bringing a feeling of abandonment by God, driving Simeon to despair. And when he thought that “it was possible to beg God.” The Lord incomprehensibly appeared to the novice during Vespers in the temple of the prophet Elijah of God and led him in spirit into the Heavenly abode. At that moment, according to the elder’s testimony, he felt with his whole being how the grace of “martyrdom” filled him and he knew the Lord through the Holy Spirit. Since then, he considered everything that happened in the world only in relation to the experience of the soul that knew its Creator. “It’s another thing to believe in God,” he said, “and another thing to know God.”
The appearance of the Lord Jesus Christ brought the novice the joy of Easter, the Resurrection, a feeling of transition from the darkness of spiritual death to the inexplicable light of life. Once having come to know Divine love by the Holy Spirit, he begins to experience the loss of grace incomparably deeper and more acutely: “Whoever has lost it tirelessly seeks it day and night and is drawn to it. She is lost by us for pride and vanity, for hostility towards a brother, for condemning a brother, for envy, she leaves us for a prodigal thought, for an addiction to earthly things, for all this grace leaves, and the devastated and sad soul then misses God, as our father Adam missed being expelled from paradise.”
Elder Silouan often recalls the monastic service of St. Seraphim of Sarov, a miracle worker, whose soul, having come to know the Lord, uncontrollably strived for new exploits for the sake of acquiring grace. “The soul that has come to know God,” the Monk Silouan would later write, “cannot be satisfied with anything on earth, but everything strives for the Lord and cries out like a little child who has lost its mother: my soul misses You and is tearfully seeking You.”
How grace is acquired and retained, why and why it leaves the soul of a believer - these questions become the most important in the life of an ascetic.
Constantly being in asceticism, he abstained from everything and from everything that could interfere with the acquisition of grace: he slept little, in fits and starts, up to two hours a day, sitting on a stool, did not make concessions in fasting and limited himself in food, advising those who turned to him “eat so much that after eating you want to pray”; cut off his will, believing that this brings “great benefit” to the soul. She yearns, prays, cries, being in a struggle to retain grace, but the Divine light, if it returns, does not last long, and then, as before, again leaves the novice. “We suffer for this reason,” the elder explained, “because we do not have humility. The Holy Spirit lives in a humble soul, and He gives the soul freedom, peace, love, bliss.” Acquiring a humble spirit “is a great science that you will not quickly overcome.”
15 years have passed since the day the Lord appeared to the monk. His mind is again darkened by the attacks of the devil and the loss of peace of soul. Over time, these sufferings were intensified by painful struggles with demons, which at night tore him away from unceasing inner prayer. The ascetic later spoke about the mental pain he had to endure: “If the Lord had not first given me to know how much He loves a person, then I would not have endured even one such night, and I had many of them.” .
On one of these nights, when, despite all efforts, prayer did not come to the saint, he cried out with contrition in his heart: “Lord. You see that I want to pray to You with a pure mind, but the demons do not let me. Teach me what I should do so that they don’t bother me?” “The proud always suffer from demons,” was the answer. “Lord, teach me what should I do to humble my soul?” And again God’s answer sounded in my heart: “Keep your mind in hell and do not despair.” According to the elder. The Lord took pity on him and Himself taught him how the soul should humble itself and become unapproachable to enemies: when sinful thoughts approach, it recognizes itself as worthy of eternal torment and descends to hell in order to burn out the action of every passion in itself with the power of hellish flame and turn to the Lord with pure prayer , trusting in the saving effect of the love of Christ and thereby avoiding despair. “And by this,” said the monk, “enemies are defeated, and when I come out of the fire with my mind, my thoughts gain strength again.” This ability to renew in himself the genuine experience of hellish suffering for the sake of cleansing the soul from passions has not left him since then.”
The revelation given by the Lord was not only an extremely important practical instruction for the monk Silouan, but also marked the beginning of a new stage in his spiritual life. Gradually, the ascetic’s prayer begins to be dominated by sorrow for a world that does not know God. As the elder explained, people have forgotten the Lord who created them and are looking for their freedom, not realizing that it does not and cannot exist outside the true Source of life. Freedom is only in the Lord, who, by His mercy, gives those who resort to Him the grace of the Holy Spirit. In Him, the Holy Spirit, in His knowledge lies liberation from the slavery of sin and the fear of death.
He teaches love is more important and gives the soul the strength to feel sorry even for those who follow a sinful path. “Where there is no love for enemies and sinners, there is no Spirit of the Lord.” (We are talking about the enemies of the faith of Christ. The elder himself divided people not into enemies and friends, but into those who knew God and those who did not know Him.)
In a truly Christian way, you can only save your neighbor through love. In love for all people, the monk saw similarity to the Lord Jesus Christ, who “stretched out his hands on the Cross” to gather everyone. The love of Christ cannot endure the death of anyone, and in its concern for the salvation of everyone, it embraces not only the world of those now living on earth, but also those who have already died and descended into hell itself. And if the soul rejoices and rejoices when people are saved, then it prays just as strongly to the planets, seeing the opposite - their destruction.
“Praying for people is shedding blood,” said the monk. And he lived through the suffering of the whole world, forgetting himself, and there was no end to his prayer, calling on all the peoples of the Earth to know the Lord by the Holy Spirit. According to the deep conviction of the elder, if this happened and people, leaving their hobbies, would rush to God with all their souls, then the face of the Earth would change and the destinies of all people and the whole world would be transformed “in one hour.”
His whole life was a heartfelt prayer “to the point of great tears,” an exceptionally high feat of love for the Lord. “The world stands by prayer,” the monk asserted, “and when prayer weakens, then the world will perish.” In this prayerful aspiration, he achieved such an internal state in which he foresaw what was happening and saw the future of man, revealing the deep secrets of his soul and calling everyone to take the path of saving repentance. Continuous prayer did not leave the ascetic until the last hour of his earthly wanderings.
On September 11/24, 1938, Elder Schemamonk Silouan died peacefully. He showed with his ascetic life an example of meekness, humility and love for others.
Fifty years later, in the year of celebrating the 1000th anniversary of the Baptism of Rus', the Holy Synod of the Orthodox Church of Constantinople canonized the blessed elder.
With the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Rus', the name of St. Silouan of Athos was included in the calendar of the Russian Orthodox Church on September 11/24. However, long before the official canonization, many pilgrims came with faith in his prayerful intercession before the Lord to venerate the venerable head of the saint, resting in the Intercession Church of the Svyatogorsk Panteleimon Monastery.
The souls of believers are healed by the ascetic’s writings on the essence of Christian life and monastic work, translated into many languages and gaining great fame for the deep spirituality and wisdom of the words contained in them. His word is simple and kind, but in order to follow it, it is necessary to take the path of self-denial and complete obedience to the will of God, which the holy elder himself followed. Being our contemporary, the son of the Russian land and the Russian Church, he testified to the salvation of the Gospel truth, taught to all of us by our Lord Jesus Christ, to the high significance of the teachings of the Orthodox Church, thereby confirming that in the world of transitory values, unchangeable and truly valuable for all times are only the moral, spiritual foundations of human life.
(From the book: Akathists, prayers and troparia by month and day with a brief description of the lives of saints: Ternopil, 2004).
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Soul Salvation
The novice Simeon meekly fulfilled all the statutory instructions of monastic life, strictly observed fasting, and sincerely devoted himself to prayer and repentance. But his path to purification was thorny and difficult. The rebellious soul was constantly visited by devilish forces, and thoughts of returning to worldly life appeared. Sometimes the attacks of demons tormented the soul and drove the monk into a frenzy. He fought against them with firmness of faith and prayers. His appeals to God sometimes took almost the entire day and night; he slept for several hours. And enlightenment came; for his true conversion to faith, Simeon of Athos received a special gift from God. The ascent to heaven for him began with the appearance of Christ; he received the path to the discovery of light, the ability to bless human souls with his prayer.
Simeon of Athos: books
Simeon of Athos, one of the few, managed to comprehend the mystery of existence, overcome pride and know joy through humility. The great man did not hide his knowledge behind the monastery walls; he shared with everyone his wisdom, life advice through the mediation of books. Simeon did not have special students; all readers become them. Not everyone immediately understands in depth the thoughts that the Holy Father is trying to convey to the reader. The books of Simeon of Athos need to be read slowly and thoughtfully, returning to what you read again and again, thinking about each phrase.
Conditions of monasticism of St. Simeon
Having no disciples, the Monk Simeon left instructions for monks on how to combat passions in his books, describing literally point by point the mandatory conditions for achieving monastic mastery.
- The primary law for monks, on the recommendation of the holy elder, is confession, prostrations to the ground with the reading of the Jesus Prayer.
- Much attention about. Simeon of Athos paid attention to his heart, his calmness, and his ability to maintain his words, deeds and thoughts in the world. Cruelty and stubbornness, according to the saint, live in a dead heart; a living heart is filled with kindness, humility and calmness. This is a litmus test for the holiness of monks.
- Only constant stay in prayer will help you overcome and conquer all thoughts and temptations.
- The method of continuous prayer helps in the fight against the attacks of the devil.
This list can go on and on, reading and re-reading them is recommended for both clergy and church-going Christians who have decided to live according to the word of God in order to acquire eternal life.
Simeon of Athos: “Birds of Heaven”
Some literary scholars call a series of books with a general title an autobiography of the author. This is not an entirely accurate definition; what is correct is that the formation of the soul described in them is actually copied from the ordeals and thorns that the soul of Simeon himself went through. The first two volumes of “Birds of Heaven or the Journeys of the Soul in the Arms of God” are processed diary entries from past years. The second part, also of two volumes, “Birds of Heaven or through prayer to sacred silence,” tells more about the very essence of the high monastic spirit using examples from the lives of ascetics of Athos, Egypt, and Sinai.
