The Catalog of Good Deeds

Archangel Michael is one of the angels who always influences the life of the Church and takes part in the most significant events of its history. The word “angel” itself means “herald”, and the Holy Scripture calls them so, as they often announce people the words of God’s will.

In the Holy Scripture Archangel Michael is referred to as “prince”, “the leader of God’s warriors”. He is depicted as the main fighter against the devil and any lawlessness among people. The Book of Revelation describes him as the main angel in the war against the devil dragon and other fallen angels. “And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him” (Revelation 12:7-9). Apostle Judah shortly describes the archangel as the main enemy of the devil.

The miracle at Chonae

In the land of Phrygia, not far from the city of Hierapolis, there was a church in honor of Archangel Michael, and near that temple there was a healing spring. At that time there was a man, who lived in Laodikeia. That man had an only daughter, who was mute and could not speak from birth. Her father was in mourning because of that, and he did his best to find a cure for her. Unfortunately, he did not manage to help her and became quite discouraged. Once at night, when the man was sleeping in his bed, he saw the angel of God, shining like the sun. He was allowed to see the miracle so he could find God and help others to find Him too. The man was afraid and heard the following words: “If you want your daughter to speak, then bring her to my spring near the city of Hierapolis. Let her drink the water from this spring, and then you will see God’s glory."

When the man woke up, he believed in what he saw and heard, and went to Hierapolis together with his daughter. He found many people near the spring: some of them were baptized in it, the others would simply draw out water and were instantly healed. He asked them:

- Whom are you glorifying, when drawing out this water? – and then he got the answer:

- We are glorifying the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. We are also asking Archangel Michael for help.

The man proceeded to look at the sky and raise his hands, and began to pray:

- The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit! God of the Christians, have mercy upon us! Saint Archangel Michael, help me and cure my daughter! – then he took some water and made his daughter drink it. At that very moment she was healed from her muteness and began to speak clearly:

- God of the Christians, have mercy upon me! Archangel Michael, help me!

All the people there were amazed by God’s power, and began to glorify the Holy Trinity. When the man saw his daughter speaking, he was so happy that he decided to be baptized together with all his relatives, who came there with him. To express his gratitude, he built a beautiful church in the name of Archangel Michael over the healing spring.

A pious man by the name of Archippus served in the church of Archangel Michael for 60 years. Many people came to accept the true God through his teachings about Christ as well as his own pious way of life. Archippus never left the church and always continued to serve there, and that is why the pagans hated him even more than the other Christians living in that area. They decided to kill the man and destroy the church at the same time by joining two mountain streams together and directing them towards the church. When Archippus found out about that, he began to pray wholeheartedly: “Lord, the waves on the rivers are rising and the water is coming. But it is You, Who is much stronger than any sea wave. You are the One, Who gives us the true knowledge, and Your House, Your Church will stand forever”.

When Archippus was praying, he heard the voice ordering him to leave the church. When he did that, he saw the great defender of Christians – Archangel Michael. The pious Archippus could not look at him and fell on the ground. The Archangel told him: “Do not be afraid. Stand up and come to me, then you will see how God’s power will harness these waters”.

Archippus rose from the ground and stood to the left from the Archangel. He saw the pillar of fire, rising from the ground to the heavens. When the water was close enough, the Archangel raised his hand, made the sign of cross and ordered the waters to: “Stop there!” At that very moment the rivers stepped back and formed a wall. Then the Archangel hit the big stone near the altar with his staff and made the sign of the cross on it. The earth shook and the stone seperated into two pieces, making a large ravine. The Archangel said: “Let any dark force be defeated here, and let anyone who comes here with pure heart and faith, get deliverance from any evil!” Then he said Archippus to stand on the right and ordered the waters again: “Enter this ravine!”

The waters flowed through the crack in the stone. The pagans who witnessed these events were terrified by the miracle. After Archangel Michael saved his church from the flood, he ascended to the heavens, and pious Archippus glorified him and the Lord. The enemies were shamed, while the believers were rejoicing with Archippus and praising God. Since that time the feast was established to recall the miraculous event. Pious Archippus served God there for many years and passed away in the age of 70. Fellow Christians buried him near that very place, which was called later “Chonae”, which means “submersion”, as the water submerged into the stone.

Translated by The Catalog of Good Deeds

The traditions and teaching of the Christian Church often appear to change and evolve over time. It does not mean that the teaching itself changes, but that each generation brings new ways to express their faith, which is itself eternal and unchanging. The icon of the Mother of God “Unburnt Bush” is a great example of this. Indeed, the Icon in its current form weaves together numerous ancient teachings of the Church – on the Mother of God, the Incarnation, Old Testament Prophecies and Angelology – into a single composition. Peeling the layers of this Icon are both rewarding and illuminating…

The name of the Icon “Burning bush” (sometimes “Unburnt bush”) derives from the miracle, witnessed by Moses on the Mount Horeb. In the Book of Exodus it is stated: whilst Moses was tending the flock, he witnessed a bush burning with fire, but unharmed at the same time. God called out to Moses from the flame, ordering him to remove his sandals “for the place where you stand is holy ground” (Exodus, 3:1-6). Moses was then called by God to lead the Israelites out of Egypt.

The Church established by Christ has always looked back on this event and seen the “Unburnt Bush” on the Mount Horeb as a type – a prefiguration – of the Holy Theotokos, who gave birth to Christ while still remaining a virgin (burning with fire yet unconsumed).

Symbolism in the Unburnt Bush Icon

The icon of the Mother of God “the Unburnt Bush” has developed so that most examples of the Icon have a rich and intricate symbolism.

The burning bush itself is represented by the two diamonds – one flame-red, one leaf-green – arranged as an eight pointed star in the midst of which the Mother of God and Christ are sitting. The number of eight is well established in the Bible as a number symbolizing eternity. In between the eight points there are eight “petals” within which stand eight archangels – the highest ranking of the Heavenly Powers. The green diamond is decorated with more angels – seraphim and cherubim – and is often colored slightly darker, almost blue, and is arrayed with stars to suggest the heavens.

Green or blue can both symbolize “creation” as opposed to the divine, so the twin use of the blue to represent the bush and the Heavens is appropriate. The “divine” flame red diamond is almost always decorated with the angelic tetramorph representing the four Evangelists (and in the above icon the names of the four Gospel writers appear).

Around the border of the Icon more prefigurations and prophecies of the Incarnation of the Son of God are arranged. Different icons will contain different numbers of scenes, but the four most common scenes, shown clockwise from the top-right of the above icon, are:

A seraphim feeding a hot coal to the Prophet Isaiah. Though burning with fire, the hot coal cleansed the lips of the prophet just as Christ inside of the Virgin cleansed her.

Jacob’s dream of the ladder in which angels were seen dancing up and down a ladder which stretched from the earth up to Heaven. The ladder is associated with the Mother of God, through whom the glory of God descended from Heaven to earth and was incarnate as Jesus Christ.

Ezekiel’s vision of the temple gate through which the Lord passed and was ever-after sealed. This has always been recognized by Christians as a clear reference to Mary’s ever-virginity.

Finally in the top-left corner is Moses removing his sandals before the burning bush, the revelatory incident upon which the whole icon is based.

Not present on all Icons, but seen in the bottom centre of the icon above is a form of the “Tree of Jesse”.

At the center of all this, surrounded by the angelic powers, are the Mother of God and her Son, Jesus Christ. Besides Christ, our Lady may also hold “Jacob’s Ladder”, or any other symbol of the Gates of the Heavenly Kingdom. All of these Old Testament symbols point us towards the Mother of God, covered with a garment of Divine Fire, who in turn points us towards the birth or her Son, Our Savior.

Source: https://iconreader.wordpress.com/2010/12/20/discovering-the-unburnt-bush-icon

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The Rev Andrew Malakhovsky: Humans cannot get out of the seething flow of sinful filth, so they often die because they are maladapted to living in this sinful scum. Anyone who does not have a point of support or a helper to get out of this sea, needs an island or a ship or someone else's hand to pull him out. Likewise, a human being cannot get out of the sea of sin independently because there is no island in this sea. Many souls get drowned in this sea. Only God's hand, only the ship of the Church where we all stay now, can help us. This is why the Lord has granted us this ship — this Church. The Lord pulls us out of this sea and helps us to get rid of this sinful abyss. Every ship has certain rules in place, and the entire crew has to follow them; similarly, there are certain rules in the Church, which allow us to keep going and eventually reach the haven (the much-desired Kingdom of God) together. May the Lord help us to stay on this ship and obey Him.

Sermon after a Liturgy in the Boarding Home for Children with Special Needs on August 5, 2016

The Rev Valery Zakharov: Sin is when we are separated from God by a wall of misunderstanding. It is when our inner beauty breaks up into pieces like glass. If a glass bowl falls on a stone, it crushes and it is almost impossible to restore it. The same happens to us sometimes but — and it's a miracle — the Lord has enough power to restore us back to our original pre-Fall condition. Of course, it depends on us, too. We should open up our hearts to Him and allow Him to go ahead. Only then this miracle is possible — sin disappears and we can enjoy direct and unhindered access to God.

Sermon before the Confession in the Boarding Home for Children with SpecialNeeds on July 8, 2016

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The Lord teaches us the laws of His Kingdom. «Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy». We perceive these words as if they refer to someone else. Nevertheless, these words pertain to us. It is we who must become like this. We have to move towards this goal. By reminding us of it, the Lord does not intend to admonish us for our inability to live in accordance with His commandments: He helps us to find a seed of righteousness inside our hearts and grow it on the field where it can bring forth fruit.

Sermon after a Liturgy in the Boarding Home for Children with Special Needson July 16, 2016

We try to talk with God in prayer, and sometimes we succeed. At the same time, we attempt to hear His replies, and this is how we begin to have a conversation. Someone talks loud and clear, someone whispers to the Lord, someone sings — and the Lord responds to all their requests. If we can't see or understand it, it doesn't mean that the Lord turns a deaf ear to our requests. More often than not, it is us who cannot hear His replies. When we begin to talk with God, we should not only say something to Him without getting distracted, but also hear what the Lord tells us. People who haven't experienced it may consider it impossible and weird; those who have experienced it stop talking and keep silent because when you talk, you can't hear clearly. One cannot talk and listen at the same time. We need to be attentive both when we pray and when we try to hear what the Lord wants to tell us. This effort initiates God's mercy. He gives us what we ask Him for when He sees that we really need it. We get what we ask for to the extent of how much we yearn for it and believe in God. It does not depend on our age or education or the years we spend in church. Everything depends on how ready we are to open our hearts to God. Let us ask for God's help.

Sermon after an Akathist in the Boarding Home for Children with Special Needs on August 5, 2016

Communion helps us to push sin aside. God intervenes to instil silence and peacefulness of eternity, the eternal life, into our hearts.

Sermon after a Liturgy in the Boarding Home for Children with Special Needs on August 6, 2016

The Very Rev Andrew Lemeshonok: We must never give up. We must not listen to the sin, however hard it tries to make us believe that we are flesh and will die forever. The Lord says that there is a Heaven. «Let us lift up our hearts!»

Sermon after the Liturgy on August 7, 2016

The Rev Alexander Pashkovsky: It is vital that our heart only has good intentions so that we can learn to see only good things and justify everyone's actions, since we all are weak.

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One has to unlearn judging others in order to be saved.

Sermon after the Liturgy on August 3, 2016

The Very Rev Demetrius Basalygo: There are people who try to understand God, the Trinity, and the faith rationally, but it is useless because faith is a combination of the heart and the mind.

Sermon after the Liturgy on August 4, 2016

The Rev George Glinsky: People who want to live according to God's commandments but do not want to combine their love towards God with love towards their neighbours, become fundamentalists, religious fanatics who don't care about human lives.

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Faith implies trust in God, openness towards other people, and the understanding that it is not just your own salvation but also the salvation of other people that is valuable and important for God, and that God loves all people equally and they all are precious to Him.

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The Lord gives us life. We should not breed certain feelings artificially and go with the flow of our moods. Just like the tree from one of the Lord's parables, we should develop love towards all people who could then hide in the shade of our love.

Sermon after the Liturgy on August 2, 2016

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God is always looking at us. He always waits for our desire, our motivation, and our love. He does not need it but being a loving Father, He accepts it. The only thing that we need to bridge the gap between us and God is determination.

Sermon after the All-Night Vigil on August 1, 2016

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There were two brothers in Christ – deacon Evagrius and priest Titus. They loved each other purely and sincerely, and all the other brothers were amazed by their unanimity and limitless love. But the devil, who is constantly looking for a victim, just like a wild lion, managed to break their friendship and make them hate each other. Their hatred was so strong, that they could not even look at each other. The brethren asked them to make peace many times, but Titus and Evagrius did not want to listen to them. And so they lived in that sinful darkness for a long time, and partook of the Holy Mysteries – Titus without asking for forgiveness, and Evagrius being furious.

Once, Titus was near death because of a serious sickness. He began to lament about his sin and sent one of the brothers for Evagrius to ask for forgiveness, “For heaven’s sake, forgive me, brother, for my senseless hatred to you”. However, Evagrius did not honor his request and cursed him even more. When the monks understood that Titus was dying, they decided to bring Evagrius to him by force. When the sick priest saw his friend, he fell down to his feet and said: “Father, bless me and forgive me!” Cold-hearted Evagrius answered: “I will never forgive him, neither in this life nor in the future one”. And suddenly Evagrius wrested out of the monks’ hands and fell on the floor. They wanted to help him to stand up, but he was already dead. And they could not lay his hands and close his mouth and eyes, as if his body was dead for a long time. At the same time Titus stood up, as if he had not been sick at all. Everyone present stood in fear: when one of them died, the other one became cured. With great sorrow, they buried Evagrius: his mouth and mouth remained open and his hands were stretched out.

Example of an ancient pateriсon in Old Church Slavonic.

Then they asked Titus: “How could that happen?” And he told them everything: “I saw the crying angels, who stepped back from me, and I saw the demons, which were happy to see my anger. And then I began to pray, as I wanted my brother to forgive me. When you brought him to me, I saw another angel – he was taking a fire spear in his arms. When Evagrius said he would not ever forgive me, that angel hit him with the spear, so that Evagrius fell down dead.” When they heard that, the fear of God engulfed them, Who said once: “Forgive, and then you will be forgiven”. As the Lord said: “Each person, who is angry with his own brother for nothing, will be tried”.

If Evagrius will not find joy in his future life, then woe betide him, who was defeated by such a passion!

You be careful as well, brother, and do not let the demon of anger corrupt you. One, who listens to him at least once, will be enslaved by him. You have to bow to the one, who quarrels with you, in order not to be defeated by the ungracious angel. May the Lord preserve you from anger. One of His apostles said: “Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath”.

Source: Translated from

http://www.drevne.ru/lib/kppaterik_s.htm

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Angel and Porcelain Bells

An Angel was sitting in the heaven and listening to ringing bells. The usual loud reverberating sound suddenly dissipated into a tender tinkle, as if someone struck dozens of porcelain bells all at once. This chime was so nice that the Angel decided to go down. Once he was on Earth, he saw many children who laughed. «Oh, that's what you look like, God's bells! »

Children are pure creatures, so they noticed the heavenly guest, too. They stretched their hands to touch him. «Angel, would you like us to show you our world? » The Angel smiled.

The Wondrous Journey Begins Here

The children surrounded the Angel and led him along the monastery walls.

Here they met other children who looked as if they came from a different fairy tale: their smiles and their eyes were different — they were sunny children, indeed.

We adults know that some people live in boarding homes. We also know that some children are born with disabilities. However, this fact does not mean they must be left alone. We know it, too; so we do your best to break down the wall.

«Tinkle-dinkle» the children laughed. «Ding-dong» the clock struck. «Dong-dong» a girl fell down from above.

«Oh, where am I? » the guest shook off her blue dress (she wasn't frightened at all, it seemed) and introduced herself, «I'm Alice. What are your names? »

Everyone introduced themselves. Alice looked around:

— How interesting! Let's see what's going on here.

— Oh, look, a tree! A tree is walking towards us! — exclaimed a young boy.

The living tree had many pointers on its branches: Turn Right; No, Turn Left; Go Forward; Stand Still, It's Way Better.

«Dear Tree», Alice said respectfully, «you must be a local and you know everything, right? Can you tell us where to go? »

— Where do you want to get? — The Tree asked.

— Wherever. — Alice replied.

— Well, then you can go wherever you want. — The Tree stretched his branches in all directions.

— How is it possible? — Alice was puzzled. — How can we get to three places at once?

The Tree paused to think.

How Can One Be In Three Places At Once?

— Did I hear that someone wanted to get to three places at once? — someone's smile hung in the air. — It's easy! You simply have to walk clockwise.

A Rabbit came and took a watch from his pocket. The watch turned out to be a map.

— You simply have to decide which train you take. — The face, the paws, and the tail of the Cheshire Cat appeared. — And then you are ready to travel around our Wonderland.

Everyone wanted to travel around the Wonderland. The children formed three very long trains led by Alice, the Cat, and the Rabbit. The children went to the Wonderland, and each of them had a magic land of their own.

The Wonderland is the place where everything seems strange and wonderful.

The Wonderland is the place where everything is made of fruit jelly.

The Wonderland is the place where Mom and Dad live.

The Wonderland is the place where I will ache no more.

What Is Essential Is Invisible To The Eye

Everything in this Wonderland is unusual. Strong giants and little plywood men live in the Wonderland. Everyone can taste delicious and sweet buns that make you a better person. Everyone sings and dances. Little dogs walk on their hind legs. Mimes, rather than traffic lights, regulate the traffic. In the evening, the streets are lit with stars, not lanterns. People tell each other fairy tales instead of news. The tourists keep colorful cartoons in their albums to remember their journey around this country. You can always return to this land, and you don't need to buy a train ticket. You can simply look into your heart...