The Holy Prophet Elijah (Elias) is one of the greatest of the prophets and the first dedicated to virginity in the Old Testament. He was born in Tishba of Gilead into the Levite tribe 900 years before the Incarnation of the Word of God.
Saint Epiphanius of Cyprus gives the following account about the birth of the Prophet Elijah: “When Elijah was born, his father Sobach saw in a vision angels of God around him. They swaddled him with fire and fed him with flames.” The name Elijah (the Lord’s strength) given to the infant defined his whole life. From the years of his youth he dedicated himself to the One God, settled in the wilderness and spent his whole life in strict fasting, meditation and prayer. Called to prophetic service, which put him in conflict with the Israelite king Ahab, the prophet became a fiery zealot of true faith and piety.
During this time the Israelite nation had fallen away from the faith of their Fathers, they abandoned the One God and worshipped pagan idols, the worship of which was introduced by the impious king Jereboam. Jezebel, the wife of king Ahab, was devoted to idol worship. She persuaded her husband to build a temple to the pagan god Baal, which led many Israelites away from the worship of the true God. Beholding the ruin of his nation, the Prophet Elijah began to denounce King Ahab for impiety, and exhorted him to repent and turn to the God of Israel. The king would not listen to him. The Prophet Elijah then declared to him, that as punishment there would be neither rain nor dew upon the ground, and the drought would cease only by his prayer. Indeed, the word of Elijah was a torch (Eccles. 48: 1). The heavens were closed for three and a half years, and there was drought and famine throughout all the land.
During this time of tribulation, the Lord sent him to a cave beyond the Jordan. There he was miraculously fed by ravens. When the stream Horath dried up, the Lord sent the Prophet Elijah to Sarephta to a poor widow, a Sidonian Gentile who suffered together with her children, awaiting death by starvation. At the request of the prophet, she prepared him a bread with the last measure of flour and the remainder of the oil. Through the prayer of the Prophet Elijah, flour and oil were not depleted in the home of the widow for the duration of the famine. By the power of his prayer the prophet also performed another miracle: he raised the dead son of the widow.
After the end of three years of drought the Merciful Lord sent the prophet to appear before King Ahab, and promised to send rain upon the earth. The Prophet Elijah told the king to order all of Israel to gather upon Mount Carmel, and also the priests of Baal. When the nation had gathered, the Prophet Elijah proposed that two sacrificial altars be built: one for the priests of Baal, and the other for the Prophet Elijah who served the True God.
The Prophet Elijah told them to call on their gods to consume the sacrificial animals with fire, and he would call on his. Whichever was first to send fire on the sacrifice would be acknowledged as the true God. The prophets of Baal called out to their idol from morning till evening, but the heavens were silent. Towards evening the holy Prophet Elijah built his sacrificial altar from twelve stones, the number of the tribes of Israel. He placed the sacrifice upon the wood, gave orders to dig a ditch around the altar and commanded that the sacrifice and the wood be soaked with water. When the ditch had filled with water, the prophet turned to God in prayer. Through the prayer of the prophet fire came down from heaven and consumed the sacrifice, the wood, and even the water. The people fell down to the ground, crying out: “Truly, the Lord is God!” Then the Prophet Elijah had all the pagan-priests of Baal put to death, and he began to pray for rain. Through his prayer the heavens opened and an abundant rain fell, soaking the parched earth.
King Ahab acknowledged his error and repented of his sins, but his wife Jezebel threatened to kill the prophet of God. The Prophet Elijah fled into the Kingdom of Judea and, grieving over his failure to eradicate idol worship, he asked God to let him die. An angel of the Lord came before him, strengthened him with food and commanded him to go upon a long journey. The Prophet Elijah traveled for forty days and nights and, having arrived at Mount Horeb, he settled in a cave.
The Lord told him that the next day Elijah would stand in His presence.There was a strong wind that crushed the rocks of the mountain, then an earthquake, and a fire, but the Lord was not in them. The Lord was in “a gentle breeze” (3 Kings 19: 12). He revealed to the prophet, that He would preserve seven thousand faithful servants who had not worshipped Baal.
Later, the Lord commanded Elijah to anoint Elisha into prophetic service. Because of his fiery zeal for the Glory of God the Prophet Elijah was taken up alive into Heaven in a fiery chariot. The Prophet Elisha received Elijah’s mantle, and a double portion of his prophetic spirit.
According to the Tradition of Holy Church, the Prophet Elijah will be the Forerunner of the Dread Second Coming of Christ. He will proclaim the truth of Christ, urge all to repentance, and will be slain by the Antichrist. This will be a sign of the end of the world.
The life of the holy Prophet Elijah is recorded in the Old Testament books (3 Kings; 4 Kings; Sirach/Ecclesiasticus 48: 1-15; 1 Maccabees 2: 58). At the time of the Transfiguration, the Prophet Elijah conversed with the Savior upon Mount Tabor (Mt. 17: 3; Mark 9: 4; Luke. 9: 30).
Orthodox Christians of all times, and in all places, have venerated the Prophet Elijah for centuries. The first church in Russia, built at Kiev under Prince Igor, was named for the Prophet Elijah. After her Baptism Saint Olga (July 11) built a temple of the holy Prophet Elijah in her native region, at the village of Vibuta.
In iconography the Prophet Elijah is depicted ascending to Heaven in a fiery chariot, surrounded with flames, and harnessed to four winged horses. We pray to him for deliverance from drought, and to ask for seasonable weather.
Dear brothers and sisters – I know that many members of our community regularly supplement their prayers with canons and akathist hymns, and share texts with one another.
Some of us first discovered the following akathist through Father Deacon Andrew’s SGOIS book service, and I would encourage you to buy a printed copy to have at hand, as this akathist is a great spiritual help when life is challenging and we are beset by troubles and temptations.
KONTAKION I:O champion Leader and Lord, Thou joy and gladness of Thy servants! Wherever Thou art, all grief is set at nought; wherever Thou art not, all joy is in vain. Look down upon me, a sinner who am perishing in this misfortune, and with the revelation of Thy salvation visit me who cry out: O Lord, my Lord, my joy, grant that I may rejoice in Thy mercy!
IKOS I: O Creator of the angels and Lord of hosts, for the sake of the salvation of fallen man Thou didst not disdain the Virgin’s womb; and afterwards, O Word of God, didst endure spitting, mockery and a disgraceful death, in that Thou art good and the Lover of mankind. Mindful of this, I dare to approach Thee and to pray with tears:
O Lord, my Lord, my merciful Savior, save me who am perishing;
O Lord, my Lord, Who camest not to save the righteous, but sinners, deliver me from this temptation!
O Lord, my Lord, Who acceptest our infirmities and bearest our afflictions, send down Thy peace upon my troubled soul;
O Lord, my Lord, Who by Thy death hast abolished death, set at nought the wiles of the devil which are against me!
O Lord, my Lord, my joy, grant that I may rejoice in Thy mercy!
KONTAKION II: Seeing the many manifestations of Thy love for mankind shown forth upon sinners before me, I also dare to lift up mine eyes to Thee Who dwellest in heaven. Have mercy upon me, O Lord, for I am weak. Deliver me from this bitter grief and account me worthy of chanting to Thee with joy and gladness: Alleluia!
IKOS II: Thou didst create me a rational creature, O my Creator, but wretch that I am, I have allowed myself to become like unto irrational beasts and have likened myself to them, and have angered Thy goodness, O Savior. Wherefore, Thou hast justly afflicted me with this sorrow. This I acknowledge, and repenting I flee to Thee, praying thus:
O Lord, my Lord, Who preserved me in my youth, protect me from the enemies which assail me;
O Lord, my Lord, strengthening of my body in old age, strengthen me who am ailing in soul and body!
O Lord, my Lord, consolation of my soul, console me who am troubled;
O Lord, my Lord, my Guide, direct me to the path of salvation!
O Lord, my Lord, my joy, grant that I may rejoice in Thy mercy!
KONTAKION III: O Lord Who art mighty in battle, come to the aid of mine
afflicted soul, and be Thou my helper against enemies visible and invisible, for my father and my mother have forsaken me, and my friends and neighbors have stood far away from me. But be Thou, O Father of orphans and Judge of widows, the helper of me who am helpless but who chant to Thee: Alleluia!
IKOS III: O Thou Who hast heaven for Thy throne and earth for Thy footstool, O Dread One Who takest away the spirit of princes, reject me not who am dust and ashes, yet who dares say to Thee Who art everywhere present and knowest all things:
O Lord, my Lord, lift up Thy might and come to save me from the hands of the mighty who oppress me;
O Lord, my Lord, Whom all fear and before Whom all tremble, take pity on me, for the darkness of death hath covered me because of my sins!
O Lord, my Lord, Who clothest Thyself with light as with a garment, enlighten me who am benighted by the griefs of life;
O Lord, my Lord, Who stretchest out the heavens as a tent, extend to me the shelter of Thy help!
O Lord, my Lord, grant Thy peace to my lowly soul;
O Lord, my Lord, my joy, grant that I may rejoice in Thy mercy!
KONTAKION IV: Drowning in the tempest of this most turbulent life, I stretch out my hand to Thee, O Word of God. As Thou didst save drowning
Peter, so also stretch forth to me Thy mighty hand, and deliver me from this misfortune, that with joy and thankful heart I may cry to Thee: Alleluia!
IKOS IV: O Lord, I have heard Thy most sweet voice, for Thou didst say Call upon me in the day of thy tribulation, and I will rescue thee, and thou shalt glorify Me. And from the depths of my despair, I dare to approach Thee with boldness, saying:
O Lord, my Lord, I have sinned against heaven and before Thee; accept me as Thou didst accept the prodigal son;
O Lord, my Lord, Who didst justify the publican rather than the pharisee, enter not into judgment with Thy servant, for there is none living who is justified before Thee!
O Lord, my Lord, Instructor of wisdom, instruct me Thy servant;
O Lord, my Lord, Bestower of understanding, grant me understanding, that I may be able to escape the cunning wiles and wicked treachery of them that hate me!
O Lord, my Lord, Who lookest down upon the humble, behold also my tribulation and my difficulty, and reveal Thy mercy to me;
O Lord, my Lord, grant that I may rejoice in Thy mercy!
KONTAKION V: Through the divinely flowing blood of Thy beloved Son Jesus Christ have we been reconciled to Thee, O heavenly Father; yet, lo! I have returned again to sin, like a dog to its vomit, for which cause Thou art justly chastising me with this grievous misfortune. But hearken unto me, O Lord my God, on this day of my grief; show forth Thy mercy and salvation upon me, and grant me ever to cry out to Thee amid chastisement: Alleluia!
IKOS V: The prophet David, seeing the prophet Nathan denouncing him
for what he had done, came to his senses and confessed his sin, and said: I have sinned before the Lord, and the Lord hearkened unto me, and took away mine offenses. But wretch that I am, I have sinned more than he, and have in no-wise acquired the fruit of repentance. Wherefore, these evil things have come upon me. But be merciful unto me who pray thus: O Lord, my Lord, strengthen me with power from on high, that I may not fall under the weight of this tribulation;
O Lord, my Lord, Who mercifully regarded the tears of Hezekiah, look with the eye of Thy kindness also upon the shedding of my tears before Thee!
O Lord, my Lord, Who hearkened unto the sighs of Mannasseh, hearken unto the sighing of my heart;
O Lord, my Lord, Who dwellest in the highest and lookest down upon the lowly, look upon me a sinner!
O Lord, my Lord, my joy, grant that I may rejoice in Thy mercy!
KONTAKION VI: Thy Forerunner, the preacher of repentance, O Word of God, crieth repeatedly to my conscience, that I repent of my evil deeds. But, wretch that I am, I have paid him no heed. Wherefore, Thy righteous wrath hath overtaken me, for misfortunes and sorrows have befallen me, a sinner. But before Thou visitest me, O Lord God my Savior, grant me time, that I
may lament my evil deeds and cry out to Thee: Alleluia!
IKOS VI: O my Savior, amid my sorrow Thy comforting words have shone forth, which Thou didst utter, saying: Forgive, and it shall be forgiven you. And straightway escaping the snares of despair, with trust in Thy love for mankind I have fled to Thee, praying:
O Lord, my Lord, my consolation, comfort me who am grieved;
O Lord, my Lord, my helper, help me against them that rise up against me!
O Lord, my Lord, mine aid, help me for my soul hath grow weak because of this sorrow;
O Lord, my Lord, pre-eternal memory, grant that I may ever have Thy benefactions in mind and may never despair of Thy mercy!
O Lord, my Lord, my strength, strengthen me that without temerity I may ask help of Thee;
O Lord, my Lord, my joy, grant that I may rejoice in Thy mercy!
KONTAKION VII: The infamous King Nebuchadnezzar, desiring to destroy the three children, once commanded that they be cast into the fiery furnace. But Thou, O heavenly Father, didst send Thine Angel, that He might cool the burning flame. And do Thou now also, O Lord, send consolation to Thy servant, and save me for the sake of Thy mercy. For even though I have sinned, yet have I not departed from Thee, and I worship Thee, the one true God,
chanting: Alleluia!
IKOS VII: Wondrously wast Thou glorified before Pharaoh and all his host,
O God of Israel, for Thou didst not disdain the misery of Thy people, but hearkened to their cry. Wherefore, hearken also to my supplication and save me who cry to Thee thus: O Lord, my Lord, Who delivered Thy people out of the hands of their enemies, rescue me also from the hands of them that hate me;
O Lord, my Lord, Who led Thy chosen ones out of the land of Egypt, lead my soul out of this sorrow!
O Lord, my Lord, Who bringest warfare to nought, bring to nought the assaults of them that devise evils against me;
O Lord, my Lord, Who drowned Pharaoh’s chosen riders in the Red Sea, drown the multitude of my misdeeds in the sea of Thy lovingkindness!
O Lord, my Lord, my joy, grant that I may rejoice in Thy mercy!
KONTAKION VIII: I have made myself a stranger to Thy mercy, O heavenly Father; by mine evil deeds I have estranged myself from Thee and have
enslaved myself to this vain world. Wherefore, I am aflame with grievous sorrow, I am drowning in the profound depths of despair. But as Thou art merciful and the Lover of mankind, accept me, who am perishing, and from this tribulation save me who cry out to Thee: Alleluia!
IKOS VIII: Wholly polluted with the impurity of sin, plunged in the depths
of evil, I lift up mine eyes unto Thee Who dwellest in heaven. Hearken unto my cry of lamentation: O Lord, my Lord, Who hast illumined the day with the light
of the sun, illumine my soul which hath been benighted with the darkness of the vanities of this world;
O Lord, my Lord, All-good Comforter, fill my sinful soul with divine consolation!
O Lord, my Lord, by Whose word the heavens have been established, confirm me in the confession of Thy holy name;
O Lord, my Lord, Who art upborne upon the cherubim and art hymned by the seraphim, accept from me, a sinner, this entreaty which I offer unto Thee!
O Lord, my Lord, my joy, grant that I may rejoice in Thy mercy!
KONTAKION IX: O source of all mercy and Bestower of understanding, O All-Good Comforter, teach me to say worthy things in Thy presence, and with Thy divine consolation fill Thou my soul, which hath been darkened by the passions, and my mind, which is troubled by the grief of this world, that with gladness I may chant unto Thee: Alleluia!
IKOS IX: The most eloquent of orators cannot recount the extent of Thy
goodness and Thy love for mankind, O Son of God; for Thou didst humble Thyself even to take on the guise of a servant. Wherefore, do not reject even me who have committed sins without number, yet who stand before Thee with fear and pray thus:
O Lord, my Lord, good Shepherd Who layest down Thy life for Thy sheep, deliver me, Thy lost sheep, from the jaws of the soul-destroying wolf which raveneth to devour me;
O Lord, my Lord, Who for our sake wast mocked, slain and nailed to the Cross, keep me from the mockery of mine, enemies, visible and invisible, for the sake of Thy sufferings!
O Lord, my Lord, Thou sinless One Who wast numbered among transgressors, rescue me from the hands of them that hate me;
O Lord, my Lord, by Whose stripes all are healed, heal my heart which hath been afflicted with bitterness!
O Lord, my Lord, my joy, grant that I may rejoice in Thy mercy!
KONTAKION X: Wishing to save Israel Thy chosen from the oppression of
Egypt, Thou didst call Moses Thy servant from the burning bush, and didst say to him: I have seen the affliction of my people in Egypt, and have hearkened to their cry. Wherefore look now upon mine affliction, O Lord, and heal the pangs of my heart, that I may cry to Thee in thanksgiving: Alleluia!
IKOS X: O heavenly King, Comforter, Spirit of truth, show forth Thy
lovingkindness upon me, Thy servant, and visit my soul which is plunged in grief and strengthen me who pray to Thee: O Lord, my Lord, Who taughtest Thine apostles to speak in different tongues, teach me the fear of Thee;
O Lord, my Lord, Who filled the martyrs with boldness when they stood before the tribunals, grant me boldly to stand against sin, the world and the devil!
O Lord, my Lord, holy Sanctifier of Thy faithful, hallow my soul, that it may be worthy to be called Thy habitation;
O Lord, my Lord, Light and Bestower of light, illumine me who am benighted in the darkness of sorrow!
O Lord, my Lord, Treasury of good things, do not deprive me of the gifts of Thy goodness!
O Lord, my Lord, my joy, grant that I may rejoice in Thy mercy!
KONTAKION XI: O All-Good Master, do not disdain one who offereth most
compunctionate hymnody unto Thee, and prayeth to Thee with contrite heart. Rather, turn Thy face away from my sins, but do not avert Thy countenance from Thy servant, for I am afflicted. Quickly hearken unto me who chant unto Thee: Alleluia!
IKOS XI: O Christ God, true Light, illumine with the light of Thy grace my soul which hath been benighted by the passions, that with reverence I may pray to Thee, saying:
O Lord, my Lord, do not destroy me, wretch that I am, who am bereft of correction of life, yet dare to stand before Thee;
O Lord, my Lord, Fervor which createst life, warm me who am withering away amid this sorrow!
O Lord, my Lord, Splendor of the glory of the Father, shine the light of Thine aid upon me;
O Lord, my Lord, Who makest Thine angels spirits and Thy minsters a flame of fire, send Thine angel to keep me from all evil!
O Lord, my Lord, my joy, grant that I may rejoice in Thy mercy!
KONTAKION XII: For the sake of Thy love for the human race, O heavenly Father, Thou didst send Thine only begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ,
Who appeared on earth and dwelt among men; and afterwards, though He is sinless, He was numbered among transgressors and by His blood renewed our nature which had become corrupted by sin, and He taught the whole world to chant: Alleluia!
IKOS XII: Hymning Thine ineffable love for mankind, O Christ God, in
that for our salvation Thou didst will to endure the Cross and death, I confess also Thy just judgment, for in truth and justice Thou hast brought this sorrow upon me for the sake of my sins. But, O Thou Who camest not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance, hearken unto me, who have sinned more than the most sinful of men, for I pray to Thee thus:
O Lord, my Lord, Lamb of God Who takest away the sins of the world, take from me the heavy burden of my sins;
O Lord, my Lord, Who like a lamb led to the slaughter opened not Thy mouth, teach me to endure the evils which befall me without murmuring!
O Lord, my Lord, Who rent asunder the handwriting of Adam, rend asunder the handwriting of my countless sins;
O Lord, my Lord, Who accepted the repentance of the thief, accept also the repentance of me a sinner!
O Lord, my Lord, Who raised up the dead, resurrect my soul which hath been mortified by sins;
O Lord, my Lord, upraising of the fallen, raise me up who have also fallen!
O Lord, my Lord, grant that I may rejoice in Thy mercy!
KONTAKION XIII: O most loving and all-good Lord my God, Helper of the
oppressed and hope of the hopeless: look Thou with the eye of Thy compassion upon mine affliction and sorrow, and for the sake of Thy mercy, save me who chant to Thee: Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Thrice.
IKOS I: O Creator of the angels and Lord of hosts, for the sake of the
salvation of fallen man Thou didst not disdain the Virgin’s womb; and afterwards, O Word of God, didst endure spitting, mockery and a disgraceful death, in that Thou art good and the Lover of mankind. Mindful of this, I dare to approach Thee and to pray with tears:
O Lord, my Lord, my merciful Savior, save me who am perishing;
O Lord, my Lord, Who camest not to save the righteous, but sinners, deliver me from this temptation!
O Lord, my Lord, Who acceptest our infirmities and bearest our afflictions, send down Thy peace upon my troubled soul;
O Lord, my Lord, Who by Thy death hast abolished death, set at nought the wiles of the devil which are against me!
O Lord, my Lord, my joy, grant that I may rejoice in Thy mercy!
KONTAKION I: O champion Leader and Lord, Thou joy and gladness of Thy
servants! Wherever Thou art, all grief is set at nought; wherever Thou art not, all joy is in vain. Look down upon me, a sinner who am perishing in this misfortune, and with the revelation of Thy salvation visit me who cry out: O Lord, my Lord, my joy, grant that I may rejoice in Thy mercy!
FIRST PRAYER: Save me, O Lord, for I am perishing! Behold, my ship is endangered by the battering of the waves of life and is nigh unto sinking! But as Thou art full of loving kindness and sympathetic to our weakness, do Thou with Thine almighty authority rebuke the turbulence of tribulations which threaten to inundate me and drag me down into the depths of evil. And let there be calm, for even the winds and the sea are obedient to Thee. Amen.
SECOND PRAYER: Save me, O my Savior, according to Thy mercy, not according to my deeds. It is Thy wish that I be saved. Thou knowest how
to accomplish my salvation. Wherefore, save me as Thou desirest, as Thou canst, as Thou knowest. Save me by the judgements which Thou knowest. I trust in Thee, my Lord, and entrust myself to Thy holy will. Deal with me as Thou wishest: if Thou desirest to have me in light, be Thou blessed; if Thou
desirest to have me in darkness, be Thou likewise blessed. If Thou openest unto me the portals of Thy lovingkindness, be Thou blessed, O Lord, Who hast opened unto me in accordance with Thy righteousness. If Thou destroyest me not with mine iniquities, glory to Thy righteous judgment. Deal with me as
Ode I, Irmos: When Israel walked on foot in the sea as on dry land, * on seeing their pursuer Pharaoh drowned, * they cried: * Let us sing to God * a song of victory.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
O Lord, open mine unworthy lips and grant me a word of understanding, that I may worthily hymn the memory of the blessed Seraphim, who with the angels doth now beseech Thee to deliver us from every grievous circumstance.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Thou wast a great intercessor before the Theotokos, O venerable one, and wast deemed worthy to behold her with the apostles. And now, cease not to visit thy children by thine intercessions.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
From thy youth, O venerable one, thou didst surrender thyself in mind unto the Lord, and having subdued the passions of thy body through rigorous abstinence, thou wast adorned with every virtue, O most wise one.
Most Holy Mother of God, save us.
O most blessed Sovereign Lady, who hast given birth unto the supremely good God in the flesh, cleanse thou my heart which is tormented by passions, that I may magnify thee with faith and love.
Canon II to the Venerable Seraphim, in Tone VIII:
Irmos: Having passed through the water as upon dry land, * and having escaped the malice of the Egyptians, * the Israelites cried aloud: * Unto our God and Redeemer let us now sing.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Thou didst tread the straight and narrow path to the heavenly kingdom in accordance with the commandment of Christ the Master, disdaining the broad and spacious path. And now do thou pray for us that keep thy most radiant memory.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Having ascended the mount of dispassion and taken up thy cross from thy youth, thou didst unfalteringly follow after Christ. And having acquired spiritual wisdom, thou didst attain the heavenly Jerusalem, O venerable one. Pray thou to the Lover of mankind on our behalf.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
Standing now before the throne of God, O venerable one, intercede thou for the suffering Russian land; and by thy prayers, O venerable one, entreat salvation for the Christ-loving people of Russia.
Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
Hearken, O Lady, unto those who flee to thee with faith and love, and who hymn thee with fear.
Ode III, Irmos: There is none as holy as Thou, * O Lord my God, * who hast exalted the horn of The faithful O good One, * and strengthened us upon the rock * of Thy confession.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Standing before God with the angels in thy prayer, O venerable one, pray thou for the whole world, that the assaults of the enemy be overcome and that Orthodox Christians be granted victory over their adversaries.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
From thy youth thou didst cleave with faith and love unto the Master of the hosts on high, O venerable Seraphim; and, shining forth like the sun in the wilderness of Sarov, thou wast a comfort to those who approached thee in sorrow. Pray thou that we be saved!
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
To those who pray unto thee, thou hast been revealed to be an unshakeable pillar and a refuge for those who have recourse unto the Monastery of Sarov, and abundant grace for those who receive healings.
Most Holy Mother of God, save us.
Our first mother Eve heard: In sorrow thou shalt bring forth children. And thou, O pure Virgin, hearing: The Lord is with thee! Rejoice! didst put to flight the grief of our first mother with this cry of joy!
Another Irmos: O Lord, Creator of the vault of Heaven * and Builder of the Church, * do Thou strengthen me in Thy love, O Summit of desire, * O Support of the faithful, * O only Lover of mankind.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Beseech Christ God, O blessed one, to deliver us from famine and plagues, from sudden death, from secret transgressions and wicked thoughts, that with a pure heart we may cry out to Christ: O Lord, save us by the supplications of the venerable one!
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Following after Christ the Master in meekness and humility, thou wast all things to all mankind; tirelessly instructing both rich and poor in piety, thou didst foresee the future as though it were the present. Beseech Christ God, O venerable one, to grant us forgiveness of our sins!
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
Deliver thy monastery from every assault of the enemy, O venerable one, and fill it with love and grace, that it heed not the cares of this life, but attain unto the goodness and beauty which save the soul.
Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
Our trust and hope art thou, O most holy Sovereign Lady. Save the suffering Russian land and thy people that pray and call upon thy holy name!
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Sessional Hymn of the venerable one, Tone IV: Having utterly overcome the passions of the sea of life by abstinence, and attained unto the haven of dispassion, thou wast revealed as a vessel of abstinence, O venerable Seraphim. Beseech Christ God to grant us great mercy!
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit; now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
Theotokion, Tone IV: When thou dost stand before the face of my Creator on the day of His righteous Judgment, O Lady, intercede for me, and deliver me from eternal torment, that I go not down into Hades, but that I be saved by thy defence, O most holy Theotokos.
Ode IV, Irmos: Christ is my power, * my God and my Lord, * the holy Church divinely singeth, * crying with a pure mind, * keeping festival in the Lord.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Today the Monastery of Sarov doth radiantly celebrate thy memory, O venerable one, beseeching thee: Ask of the Lord peace for the whole world and great mercy for our souls!
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
In thy great struggles didst thou flourish like a palm tree, O venerable one, sweetening the hearts of those who have recourse unto thee with fruitful words and a blameless life: Wherefore, do thou now pray that we obtain mercy from Christ our Saviour!
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
By thy prayers entreat God for us, O venerable Seraphim, and drive away the sinful darkness of our grief. Adorn with dispassion, faith and love all who honour thy most glorious memory!
Most Holy Mother of God, save us.
Rejoice, O Virgin Sovereign Lady, thou beauty of the Churches, might and boast of the suffering Russian land! Pray to Christ God without ceasing, that He preserve us from misfortunes by thy prayers.
Another Irmos: I have heard report of Thy dispensation, O Lord, * and have glorified Thee * Who alone art the Lover of mankind.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
It is not the Monastery of Sarov alone, but the whole land of Russia which hath thee, O blessed one, as a fervent intercessor and speedy helper, almighty and invincible defender and mediator for our souls.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Be thou an intercessor and mediator for us before the most holy Trinity, and move thou to pray with thee the choirs of the saints whose life thou didst emulate, O venerable one. With them pray for peace and the good estate of the whole world, that in this age we may live a peaceful and quiet life, and in the future inherit eternal life.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
Being great among fasters, O venerable one, thou didst lead an arduous monastic life in the wilderness, and didst end it in compunctionate prayer. Pray that we be saved!
Most Holy Mother of God, save us.
Thou art our refuge and confirmation, O most pure Theotokos. Beseech thy Son and our God, that He grant us salvation and forgiveness of sins.
Ode V, Irmos: Illumine with Thy divine light, I pray, O Good One, * the souls of those who with love rise early to pray to Thee, * that they may know Thee, O Word of God, * as the true God, * Who recalleth us from the darkness of sin.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Unto all who come to thee thou hast been a true teacher and a great intercessor before the Theotokos. And now, O venerable one, cease not to pray for thy children, for thou hast great boldness.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Let the Christian people now enter into the temple of the Monastery of Sarov, bowing down before thy precious relics, O venerable Seraphim, and, glorifying Christ, let them ask of thee healing and salvation.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
The invisible enemy desired to affright thee when thou wast praying to God at night, O venerable one. But, put to shame by thy prayer, the most wicked one vanished.
Most Holy Mother of God, save us.: O most pure Mary, beseech God Who was born of thee, that He grant forgiveness of transgressions unto thy servants.
Another Irmos: Illumine us O Lord with Thy commandments, * and with Thine arm raised on high * grant us Thy peace, * O Lover of mankind!
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Thou didst glorify the Monastery of Sarov with fasting and unceasing prayer, O venerable one, anointing the infirm with oil from the icon of the Theotokos and granting them healing in abundance. Pray thou now that our souls be saved!
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
O ye hierarchs and priests, rejoice with the monks of Sarov, and ye people, hymn together the blessed father, the calm haven of those who are tempest-tossed by sorrows, the ready healer of infirmities of body and soul.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
Offer up thy prayers, O venerable one, as an acceptable and unblemished sacrifice unto the most holy Trinity, and forget not us who now keep thy memory. Beg mercy for those who hate, wrong and are angered against us, and deliver all from every sorrow.
Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
Guide my mind which is tempest-tossed by many passions, O Sovereign Lady. Save us who have recourse unto thee, O Theotokos, for apart from thee we know none other help, O pure one.
Ode VI, Irmos: Beholding the sea of life surging with the tempest of temptations, * I run to Thy calm haven, and cry to Thee: * Raise up my life from corruption, * O greatly Merciful One.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Thy holy soul was an abode of God, wherein the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit dwelt. Wherefore, we pray thee, O venerable one, dispel the slanders of the enemy from those who honour thee, and grant peace to the suffering land of Russia.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
O venerable Seraphim, we honour thy great struggles and labours in the wilderness and the sweetness of thy teaching, whereby thou hast enlightened many who came to thee, teaching them to hymn the consubstantial Trinity.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Following after Christ the Master in purity of life, thou didst complete the good race, O venerable one. Having ascended to the eternal mansions, thou dost behold there what the angels see. Wherefore, honouring thy memory, we glorify Christ.
Most Holy Mother of God, save us.
I now flee unto thee, O most pure one. Save and preserve me by thy supplications. For whatsoever thou desirest, that thou canst do, in that thou art the Mother of the Almighty.
Another Irmos: I will pour out my prayer unto the Lord, * and to Him will I proclaim my grief; * for my soul is filled with evils, * and my life unto Hades hath drawn nigh, * and like Jonah I pray unto Thee: * Raise me up from corruption, O my God.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
We are all full of sin, but thy prayers, O venerable Seraphim, ascend unto the Lord like fragrant incense. We now pray thee: Calm thou the raging storm of evil impiety in the land of Russia, and entreat the Lord for the salvation of our souls.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Truly blessed wast thou, O venerable Seraphim, having acquired riches through poverty, and through tears, joy, which thou didst abundantly bestow upon those who came to thee. And now emitting rays of miracles, thou dost heal all who have recourse unto thee in faith.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
Having dug with thine own hands a well in the wilderness, O venerable one, thou didst give drink unto the thirsty that came unto thee. And now thou healest the diseases of the sick with the water of this well. Truly, the Master hath shown thee forth unto all as a miraculous intercessor and wonderworker, O venerable one.
Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
We confess thee to be indeed the Mother of God, the true Theotokos, for by thy birthgiving we have been delivered from the curse of corruption, by the tender compassion of God, the Lover of mankind, and have been called to life incorruptible.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit; now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
Kontakion of the Venerable One, Tone II: Having forsaken the beauty of the world and the corruption therein, * thou didst take up thine abode in the Monastery of Sarov. * And having lived there as an angel, thou didst become a path for many to salvation. * Wherefore, Christ hath glorified thee, O father Seraphim, * enriching thee with the gift of healings and miracles. ** Therefore, we cry out to thee: Rejoice, O our venerable father Seraphim!
Ikos: Having forsaken family and friends, and regarding riches as but dust, thou didst take up thine abode in the wilderness of Sarov; and having struggled against the passions like one of the bodiless hosts, thou wast deemed worthy to stand in the angelic choir. Wherefore, having received spiritual knowledge, grant even us, O venerable one, to chant this unto thee with understanding, saying: Rejoice, O blessed Seraphim, heavenly man and earthly angel! Rejoice, emulator of Christ in thy love! Rejoice, abode of the Holy Spirit! Rejoice, great joy of the despondent! Rejoice, source of healing! Rejoice, sweet consolation for sorrowful souls! Rejoice, calm haven for monks and most wise instructor! Rejoice, boast of the land of Russia! Rejoice, O our venerable father Seraphim!
Ode VII, Irmos: An Angel made the furnace bedew the holy Children. * But the command of God consumed the Chaldeans * and prevailed upon the tyrant to cry: * O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Wondrously was thy life shown to be full of the grace of the divine Spirit, O venerable one. Truly thou didst receive the blessed end of the righteous, rejoicing in Christ. And we cry out to Him who hath glorified thee: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Gathering together at thy holy monastery today, a multitude of people doth bow down before thy precious relics, O venerable Seraphim, and we all draw forth healings therefrom, crying out unceasingly: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
This report hath gone out into all the world, that a most glorious wonderworker hath appeared in Sarov, pouring forth a multitude of healings upon all who with faith approach and cry out: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!
Most Holy Mother of God, save us.
O Virgin Theotokos, who ineffably didst give birth unto the Word, thy Creator: With the venerable Seraphim beseech Him to have mercy upon our souls!
Another Irmos: The Children of Judaea, * who of old came to dwell in Babylon, * trampled underfoot the flame of the furnace * through their faith in the Trinity, * as they sang: ‘O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou.’
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Have mercy on us, O Lord, and through the prayers of him who pleased Thee, the venerable Seraphim, preserve us from every soul-corrupting evil, that we may all cry out with compunction: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Who is not astounded, who doth not glorify the unfathomable abyss of Thy tender compassion, O Lord? For Thou hast revealed to the whole world him that pleased Thee, the venerable Seraphim, the fervent intercessor before Thee for us who cry aloud: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
Accept this hymn of thanksgiving which we offer unto thee, O venerable Seraphim, and grant healing unto all of us who keep thy holy memory, and who bow down before the shrine of thy relics and cry aloud: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!
Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
Thou art our refuge and confirmation, O most holy Theotokos. Entreat thy Son and our God to grant us salvation and forgiveness of sins.
Ode VIII, Irmos: Thou didst make flame bedew the holy children, * and didst burn the sacrifice of a righteous man with water. * For Thou alone, O Christ, dost do all as Thou willest, * Thee do we supremely exalt throughout all ages.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Having subdued the passions of the flesh and died to the world, thou didst receive the words of eternal life in thy heart, O blessed one, teaching all who had recourse unto thee to cry aloud: O ye works, praise ye the Lord, and supremely exalt Him throughout all ages!
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
At the glorification of thy precious relics, O venerable one, the Monastery of Sarov was filled with joy. And all the people cried out unto God Who is wondrous in His saints: O ye works, praise ye the Lord, and supremely exalt Him for ever!
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Being filled with the grace of the divine Spirit, O venerable Seraphim, through thy prayers beg forgiveness of sins for the faithful people that keep thy holy memory and cry out: Ye children, bless; ye priests, praise; ye people, and supremely exalt the Lord throughout all ages!
Most Holy Mother of God, save us.
O Theotokos, who hast given birth unto the Saviour and Master of all, thou hast been shown forth to us as the mediatrix of salvation; wherefore, we pray thee: Grant salvation unto all who faithfully hymn thee throughout the ages.
Another Irmos: The King of heaven, * Who is glorified by the hosts of angels, * let us praise and supremely exalt throughout all ages.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
The most evil enemy, hating thy virtuous life, desired to cause thee to falter, O venerable one. But having put him to shame by the grace of God and the prayers of the Theotokos, thou didst glorify God, singing: O ye works, praise ye the Lord and supremely exalt Him throughout all ages!
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
As flashing lightning illumineth the firmament, so have the reports of thy wonders gone forth throughout all the world, O venerable one. And marvelling at thy glory, we cry out: O ye children, bless; ye priests, praise; ye people, supremely exalt the Lord throughout all ages!
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
Heal thou our minds which are disquieted by vain and passionate imaginings, O venerable one; quell thou the waves of evil disbelief in our land, and strengthen our hearts, which are crippled by worldly cares, that we may glorify Christ the Creator throughout all ages.
Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
Rejoice, O fiery throne of the Lord! Rejoice, O ray of immaterial splendour! Rejoice, thou cloud of the radiant Sun of righteousness, Christ our Saviour, Whom we supremely exalt throughout all ages!
Ode IX, Irmos: It is impossible for mankind to see God * upon Whom the orders of Angels dare not gaze; * but through thee, O all-pure one, * did the Word Incarnate become a man * and with the Heavenly Hosts * Him we magnify and thee we call blessed.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Accept, and disdain not, our small tribute, offered unto thee from unworthy lips, O venerable one. Sanctify all who glorify thee, and deliver us from misfortunes, dangers and eternal torments, that we may hymn thee throughout the ages.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Manfully enduring the heat of the day and the cold of night in the solitude of the wilderness, thou wast an abode of the Wisdom of God, and didst hasten toward the unwaning radiance. Pray thou that we be saved!
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
This day is the monastery glorified, wherein thou didst consent to take upon thyself the yoke of Christ; for there didst thou spend thy days in the wilderness; and, enlightening by thy teachings the many who came unto thee, thou didst teach them to be children of the Church of Christ.
Most Holy Mother of God, save us.
Thou art our strength, thou art our boast and joy, our protectress, help, refuge and invincible intercessor. O most pure Theotokos, save thou thy servants!
Another Irmos: Saved by thee, O pure Virgin, * we truly confess thee to be the Theotokos, * and with the choirs of bodiless hosts we magnify thee.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
Emulating the great fathers who of old shone forth in fasting and ascetic struggle, O venerable one, thou didst spend all the days of thy life in prayer, tears and labour, until thou didst attain unto the heavenly mansions. Wherefore as is meet, we bless thee.
Venerable Father, Seraphim, pray to God for us.
With mighty power did Christ God gird thee about and strengthen thee to overcome the wiles of the demons, O venerable one. Wherefore, we now pray thee: Entreat God, the Lover of mankind, to deliver us all from the assaults and temptations of the enemies, and to save our souls.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
In our pain and sorrow, we flee to thee, O venerable one, and cry out from the depths of our souls: Be thou a calm haven and ready healer for the sick, and deliver us from every ill and want, that we may unceasingly magnify thee.
Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
O most pure Virgin, thou didst give birth unto One of the Holy Trinity, the Son and Word, Whom do thou entreat with the saints and the righteous on behalf of thy servants who with faith ask forgiveness of sins.
Troparion, Tone IV: From thy youth didst thou love Christ, O blessed one; * and, aflame with the desire to serve Him alone, * thou didst struggle in the wilderness in unceasing prayer and labour; * and with compunction of heart, having acquired the love of Christ, * thou wast shown to be the beloved favourite of the Mother of God. * Wherefore, we cry unto thee: ** Save us by thy prayers, O our venerable father Seraphim.
Having celebrated the memory of the Holy Great Princess, Olga last Sunday, and St Vladimir’s Day with a lovely Liturgy in Walsingham, on Thursday, it was a joy to celebrate the Baptism of Rus’ today, when we could be together as a community.
Thanks to all who made today’s well-attended Liturgy such a joyful occasion, continuing into such a lovely lunch celebrating not only the feast, but also Margarita’s nameday, yesterday.
Our kliros and oltarniky performed their obediences very ably, and we were blessed to have Father Luke with us, with his assistance with confessions being a tremendous help, given the number of communicants.
It also allowed clergy participation in lunch whilst I celebrated a memorial service for the servant of God, Nikolai, whose anniversary falls at this time, and for whose repose we ask your prayers. Memory Eternal! Вѣчная память!
As those in church are aware, we are trying to slow down Holy Communion, so that those communing have consumed the Holy Gifts before their mouths are wiped and they kiss the chalice.
None of us should be consuming the Holy Gifts whilst moving away from the chalice, but we often do so, having formed bad habits in crowded Liturgies, where we are not given sufficient time to consume the Gifts and are ushered on. We have no need to rush in St John’s and will not be doing so, since this is our meeting with the Saviour, who offers Himself to us in the Holy Mysteries and comes to dwell in us.
Again. May I remind all who have communicated that they should not leave the body of the church until the thanksgiving prayers are complete, unless their obediences require them to do so.
Our ‘holiday’ from catechesis continues, but we look forward to forthcoming baptisms, when James will be baptised in honour of St James the Faster and Tracey with the name Mary, for the Mother of God, whose Dormition we will be celebrating at the time of the baptism. We also look forward to Thomas’s baptism around the feast of the Protecting Veil of the Mother of God – a wonderful and beautiful feast.
May I ask those wishing to confess, on Friday to email me by Wednesday evening, and thanks to all who have been so prompt in their requests: otetzmark@hotmail.com
I wish you all a happy feast of St Seraphim, tomorrow, and encourage you all to pray the canons or akathist in his honour! We also celebrate other important feasts in the week ahead:
Tuesday – the Holy and Glorious Prophet Elias
Wednesday – the Holy and Glorious Prophet Ezekiel and St. Symeon of Emesa, the fool-for-Christ
Thursday – the Holy Myrrh-bearer and Equal-to-the-Apostles, Mary Magdalene
Friday – the Icons of the Most Holy Theotokos of Pochaev and “The Joy of All Who Sorrow” (with coins) of St. Petersburg
Saturday – the Holy Martyrs and Passion-bearers Boris and Gleb
Having enjoyed tea and pirozhky with Father Luke, on returning home, I will now settle down with a cup of tea and enjoy ‘Wimbledon in a cake’, as one of the desserts was described.
Thank you all for your constant labours and many kindnesses.
As we celebrate the feast of the Holy Great-Martyr, Margarita of Antioch (Marina), we send our greetings to our Margaritas in Cheltenham and Warminster, wishing them both a happy nameday and praying that God will grant them many, blessed years! Многая и благая лтѣа!
The Holy Great Martyr Marina was born in Asia Minor, in the city of Antioch of Pisidia (southern Asia Minor), into the family of a pagan priest. In infancy she lost her mother, and her father gave her into the care of a nursemaid, who raised Marina in the Orthodox Faith. Upon learning that his daughter had become a Christian, the father angrily disowned her. During the time of the persecution against Christians under the emperor Diocletian (284-305), when she was fifteen years old, Saint Marina was arrested and locked up in prison. With firm trust in the will of God and His help, the young prisoner prepared for her impending fate.
The governor Olymbrios, charmed with the beautiful girl, tried to persuade her to renounce the Christian Faith and become his wife. But the saint, unswayed, refused his offers. The vexed governor gave the holy martyr over to torture. Having beaten her fiercely, they fastened the saint with nails to a board and tore at her body with tridents. The governor himself, unable to bear the horror of these tortures, hid his face in his hands. But the holy martyr remained unyielding. Thrown for the night into prison, she was granted heavenly aid and healed of her wounds. They stripped her and tied her to a tree, then burned the martyr with fire. Barely alive, the martyr prayed: “Lord, You have granted me to go through fire for Your Name, grant me also to go through the water of holy Baptism.”
Hearing the word “water”, the governor gave orders to drown the saint in a large cauldron. The martyr besought the Lord that this manner of execution should become for her holy Baptism. When they plunged her into the water, there suddenly shone a light, and a snow-white dove came down from Heaven, bearing in its beak a golden crown. The fetters put upon Saint Marina came apart by themselves. The martyr stood up in the fount of Baptism glorifying the Holy Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Saint Marina emerged from the fount completely healed, without any trace of burns. Amazed at this miracle, the people glorified the True God, and many came to believe. This brought the governor into a rage, and he gave orders to kill anyone who might confess the Name of Christ. 15,000 Christians perished there, and the holy Martyr Marina was beheaded. The sufferings of the Great Martyr Marina were described by an eyewitness of the event, named Theotimos.
Up until the taking of Constantinople by Western crusaders in the year 1204, the relics of the Great Martyr Marina were in the Panteponteia monastery. According to other sources, they were located in Antioch until the year 908 and from there transferred to Italy. Now they are in Athens, in a church dedicated to the holy Virgin Martyr. Her venerable hand was transferred to Mount Athos, to the Vatopedi monastery.
Troparion, Tone 4: Thy ewe-lamb Marina crieth out to Thee with a loud voice, O Jesus:/ “I love Thee, O my Bridegroom,/ and, seeking Thee, I pass through many struggles:/ I am crucified and buried with Thee in Thy baptism,/ and suffer for Thy sake, that I may reign with Thee;/ I die for Thee that I might live with Thee./ As an unblemished sacrifice accept me,/ who sacrifice myself with love for Thee// By her supplications save Thou our souls, in that Thou art merciful.
Kontakion, Tone 3: Arrayed in the beauties of virginity, O Virgin Marina,/ thou wast crowned with imperishable crowns;/ and stained with the blood of thy martyrdom, O martyr,/ thou hast received the trophy of victory for thy suffering,// piously shining forth miracles of healing.
Though I have never seen photographs, some of the elders within our diocese recall the apse that was started in Walsingham, remaining incomplete – never to be part of an Orthodox Chapel that was conceived and planned to adjoin the south aisle of the Anglican shrine church, in the garden of St Augustine’s, where the confessional rooms now stand.
The ground had been blessed by Metropolitan Seraphim of the Russian Church in Exile (as our ROCOR was then called), though I am still searching in ‘Our Lady’s Mirror’ from the 1930’s to find when.
It would be wonderful to see drawings and plans of the intended chapel, whose construction was prevented by the outbreak of war.
The ‘temporary’ chapel within the shrine church – in which we are still celebrating – adjoins the proposed site, and has been in use since 1941, when it was used by both Eastern European prisoners of war from a nearby camp, and the Free-Polish armed forces.
It was consecrated by Archbishop Sava of Grodno on Trinity-Pentecost 1945) not 1944 as incorrectly repeated on the internet), and St Nikolaj Velimirovic served in this little chapel during his Walsingham convalescence, after the Second World War.
The original dedication of the chapel was in honour of the icon of ‘The Mother of God, of Perpetual Succour’, as can be seen on the foundation document. It was much later that the dedication was changed to the ‘Life-Giving Spring’, and this seems to have had no canonical sanction or official status.
Having celebrated the feast of the Holy Equal to the Apostles, St Vladimir in the ‘temporary’ chapel, yesterday, on the very hand-drawn antimension that was placed on the Holy Table on that day, we are aware of how blessed Orthodox pilgrims are to be continuing as part of the ‘Orthodox story’ of Walsingham, treading where holy men have gone before them.
In the ‘pilgrim language’ of Walsingham, I have just made my ‘last visit’ of the day to the Holy House, which is at the centre of prayer and devotion in the Anglican Shrine, in which the Orthodox have maintained a chapel and spiritual presence since 1941 (having being involved in Walsingham pilgrim life since 1931), with the chapel being consecrated on Troitsa 1945.
I have previously written of the origin of the Holy House, and will simply quote from a past posting:
“The Mother of God appeared to Richeldis (Rychold), Lady of the Manor of Walsingham in the 11th century, commanding her to build a replica of the original Holy House of Nazareth, later dismantled and rebuilt in Loreto, in Italy, after the Islamic conquest of the Holy Land.
The great shrine and priory, which developed around the chapel of the Holy House was endowed through royal patronage and was renowned throughout Europe, but despite its sanctity and fame it fell victim to the ravages of the reformation and the destruction of the holy places by King Henry VIII and his henchmen.
The 20th century saw the restoration of Anglican religious life around a newly built Holy House and shrine complex.”
The current Holy House, to which the image of Our Lady of Walsingham was translated in 1931, is a very plain structure, echoing the humble simplicity of the Holy House of Loreto, and the mediaeval recreation in the priory a few hundred metres from the current site.
It stands within the Anglican Shrine Church, just inside the ‘west’ door, towards which it is liturgically oriented. The chapel of the Annunciation and shrine of St Vincent of Saragossa are located behind it, between the Holy House and the door and, to its ‘liturgical north’, a Saxon well is accessed by north-south steps (not the original Holy Well, but nevertheless a constant source of healing and blessing from the Mother of God).
The second day of the consecration of the extended church, in 1938, saw the celebration of the Hierarchical Liturgy on the high altar by Archbishop Nestor of Kamchatka, and the memorials of the Walsingham ‘greats’ who welcomed him and the Orthodox pilgrims stand near the Holy House and the west door.
Above the well, in the north aisle of the church, the effigy of Fr Alfred Hope Paten (1885-1958), a great friend and benefactor of the Orthodox Church in Britain reposes, tomb-like.
Immediately next to the Holy House, a similar memorial to the sometime Bishop of Acra, Mowbray Stephen O’Rorke (1869-1953) – another friend and supporter of exiled Russian Orthodox Christians is to be found, with a figure of the Lady Richeldis kneeling on the west wall of the Holy House, just above the feet of his effigy. Thanks to Dr David Woolf, for pointing out that Bishop O’Rorke’s mortal remains rest beneath this stately memorial.
Lamps and candles burn in the Holy House day and night, for the intentions of parishes, families, pilgrims and their many intentions, and intercessory prayers are offered there every day of the year. Small paper shields, like zapisky, proclaim the intentions, and give the names of parishes and associations for which lamps burn, both inside and outside the Holy House.
Pilgrims pass through its doors from morning till night, and are struck by the peace and prayerfulness of this very special place in which the pilgrim feels the merciful care and loving solicitude of the Mother of God, ‘Our Lady of Walsingham,’ in its profound and hushed peace, amidst the flames of candles and lamps, gently flickering, blue and red.
Most Holy Mother of God, Our Lady of Walsingham, pray to God for us!
As the next week will be such a busy and itinerant one, I am writing my weekly message now, not so many hours before our Sunday Liturgy.
Today, the feast of St Anthony, the founder of the Kiev Caves Monastery, saw Deacon Mark and I travel to West Wales for our first pastoral visit to Ukrainian refugees accommodated in the Urdd residential youth centre at Llangrannog, on the Cardigan Coast.
Just over two hundred displaced Ukrainians are currently living at the centre, though the Orthodox are a small minority amongst mainly Greek Catholics.
Already well accustomed to travelling to serve the faithful in Cheltenham, with our ‘mobile church’ we arrived with the things needed for Liturgy, making a room overlooking the refectory into a temporary chapel for the morning, confessing the faithful and celebrating the Liturgy surrounded by green hills and overlooking the sea
It was a quiet Liturgy with only a dozen people, but it was a blessing to celebrate the feast of St Anthony Pechersky in such a beautiful and scenic setting, and to be able to see Nataliya from Newquay (and meet her parents), having not been together for such a long time.
We were blessed to have the assistance of Reader Bohdan, a graduate of the Moscow Theological Academy and native of Kiev, who visited us for Pascha in St Mary, Butetown, and who will hopefully become a regular part of our parish life.
Tomorrow, of course, sees the feast of St Olga, and I know that the morning will be a particular challenge with confessions, but we will make it work, somehow.
I would like to remind parishioners that this week will see me undertaking one of my other obediences on behalf of our diocese, visiting Walsingham and serving in the Shrine, with which our diocese has had an association for close to a century. I look forward to days of prayer and reading, and celebrating the feast of Holy Great Prince, St Vladimir, the Equal of the Apostles.
I shall return on Thursday and, given that this will be a long and tiring day with Liturgy, trapeza and the journey home from Norfolk, I need to have requests for Friday confessions by Wednesday evening, with 22:00 as the cut off point. I will not be accessing parish emails on Thursday, so anyone emailing after this deadline will not be able to confess. Please recognise that the clergy have good reason for giving deadlines, as plans need to be made, and fitting some pastoral activities into the time available is sometimes an almost impossible challenge.
So, confessions will be heard in the Church of St Mary, Butetown, on Friday, with the schedule sent out after the Wednesday 22:00 deadline.
Saturday sees James’s baptism in Chippenham, and we ask you to keep him in your prayers, and Sunday’s 11:00 Liturgy will see the celebration of the Baptism of Rus, closely following tomorrow’s celebration of St Olga, and Thursday’s celebration of St Vladimir.
I am particularly looking forward to this feast, given its message of the common baptismal waters of the East Slavic peoples, who should rejoice and be united in the shared legacy of the Holy Equals of the Apostles, Vladimir and Olga.
Greetings, as we celebrate the Appearance of the Kazan Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos in 1579, when, after the devastating fire which destroyed much of the city, the Most Holy Mother of God revealed the location of her wondrous icon in the ashes of a ruined house.
We should rejoice in the fact that the All-Merciful Lord chose a child to be the herald of the good-tidings of the Wonder-Working Icon; that the Mother of God revealed the treasure of her icon not to a cleric, a monastic, a state officer, or an educated or respected dignitary, but rather to a nine-year-old, whose mind was not filled with worldly ‘learning’, facts, knowledge and theories; but, a girl blessed with a child’s simplicity and trust, and a heart and soul overflowing with faith and the fear of God.
This reminds us that spiritual encounter and true gnosis is not simply dependent on learning and education – important though they may be – but that knowledge and faith begin with God in Divine Revelation, and that faith is the gift of God, not the achievement of man.
For the young Matrona, Faith was learned from Church services; from the readings and hymns of the seasons of the year, with its feasts and fasts; from the sacred icons, and the stories narrated and saints memorialised in them; from hearing the lives of the saints which even the illiterate knew by heart; by experiencing, listening and seeing; in short by PARTICIPATION and EXPERIENCE.
But, in addition to this, this feast reminds us of the importance of REVELATION and Matrona’s part in the events of this feast is solely because God and the Mother of God freely chose her, to be the recipient.
“God is the Lord, and has revealed Himself to us.” We believe this, but we so often take such an anthropocentric approach to faith that we forget that God is the source of both faith and knowledge. We begin to see the process starting with us, with our bookshelves, reading, study and catechism classes, and the revelatory aspect of faith fades. Put simply, we begin to understand faith back-to-front. Faith begins with revelation, so faith and knowledge necessarily begin with God.
In our daily services we pray: “Blessed are Thou, O Lord, teach me Thy statutes. Blessed are Thou, O Master, grant me understanding of Thy statutes. Blessed are Thou, O Holy One, grant me understanding of Thy statutes.”
This is nothing less than a prayer for Divine Revelation, and for God to grant us the gift of understanding what He has revealed to us.
This revelation is part of our personal relationship with the Living God, and though we may read and study dogmatics and theological treatises, spiritual-understanding is ultimately a gift from God – Who, if He so wishes can totally bypass all of the usual channels and mechanics of learning.
We read and hear the stories of God-Bearing ascetics whom others presumed to be highly educated, as they ably expounded the teachings of the dogmatic and ascetical Fathers, and great swathes of the Philokalia. Those who knew the ascetics explained the truth – that these men had not been schooled, were sometimes illiterate, and had never possessed, let alone read a book. Rather, through asceticism and pure prayer, they acquired the Mind of Christ, and in that Mind and through the Divine Encounter, Truth was opened and revealed to them.
What do we sing in the Beatitudes, the third antiphon of the Liturgy? “Blessed are the pure in heart; for they shall see God”… the pure in heart, not the learned, educated and knowledgeable.
God does not need university degrees and accolades of higher education, but purity and openness to faith. This is how the fishermen were made most-wise, and became theologians who knew (rather than knew about) the Incarnate-God, who revealed Himself to them in the purity of their hearts and minds.
The Lord reveals Himself to the pure in heart, and no matter how educated we are, without striving for that purity we can have no experiential knowledge of God: no personal encounter, but can only know about Him, rather than knowing Him. For those of great sanctity, their purity is enough, and within it, God may reveal all things.
As we celebrate Divine Revelation in this feast, how ironic it was that the authorities scoffed at the child chosen by the Mother of God, so that Matrona and her mother had to dig themselves to find the sacred treasure; how those in authority looked down on a mere child, refusing to believe her and dismissing her claim; and how they insulted God in not considering the possibility that He might chose a mere child as the herald of revelation.
But through all of this, God and the Theotokos teach us a salutary lesson by choosing a child.
What does Christ tell us? “Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.”
This is the upside-down-ness of the Gospel at work, yet so many people are still far from grasping this.
The example of the child, Matrona should encourage us to struggle to preserve child-like innocence and trust in God in our Christian lives; recognising that God is the source of knowledge and Faith, no matter how much or how hard we read and study, and that although it is important for us to deepen our knowledge of Faith, true knowledge and understanding are ultimately a gift of God, and not the fruit of learning.
Revelation does not depend upon our intellectual abilities, depth of learning or theological knowledge. We remain powerless and reliant on God, the Source of all wisdom, knowledge and understanding.
For our catechumens, still learning and perhaps with gaps in knowledge; for our newly baptised, at the beginning of the journey of Faith; for those who feel that others are for more knowledgeable or educated than them – this feast is a challenge and an encouragement.
Trust in God as the source of knowledge and Truth, and work with Him to acquire true knowledge. Be active in seeking to learn His statutes, but by trusting in Him and not in your own ability.
And as we strive for the understanding of the Law of God, let us heed the Paschal Canon’s words, “Let us purify our senses and we shall behold Christ, radiant with inaccessible light of the Resurrection, and shall hear Him saying clearly, “Rejoice!” As we sing the triumphant hymns!”
Let us – with our busy, complicated, worrisome and temptation-clouded lives – strive for child-like purity, simplicity and trust, so that we may not only seek Him, but have Him reveal His truth unto us, and by becoming like little children, enter into the Kingdom of heaven.
On this feast of the Holy New-Martyrs, the Grand Duchess Elizabeth and Nun Barbara, we send our greetings to Archpriest Paul and his parish, dedicated to St Elizabeth, in Wallasey – congratulating matushka Elizabeth and daughter Lizzie.
Congratulations, also, to Sian-Elizabeth in Porthcawl and to matushka Katy-Elizabeth in Mettingham.
Finally, how can we celebrate this feast without thinking of the Convent of St Elizabeth, in Minsk, congratulating the Mothers and Sisters on this feast of their heavenly patron and protector?
We wish them all a blessed and joyful Feast!
Troparion, Tone 4: Causing meekness, humility and love to dwell in thy soul, thou didst earnestly serve the suffering, O holy passion-bearer Princess Elizabeth; wherefore, with faith thou didst endure sufferings and death for Christ, with the martyr Barbara. With her pray for all who honor your with love.
Kontakion, Tone IV: Taking up the Cross of Christ, thou didst pass from royal glory to the glory of heaven, praying for thine enemies, O holy martyred Princess Elizabeth; and with the martyr Barbara thou didst find everlasting joy. Therefore, pray ye in behalf of our souls.
Life of the Holy New Martyr Grand Duchess Elizabeth by Metropolitan Anastassy (‡1965)
Not every generation is destined to meet along its path such a blessed gift from heaven as was the Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna for her time, for she was a rare combination of exalted Christian spirit, moral nobility, enlightened mind, gentle heart, and refined taste. She possessed an extremely delicate and multifaceted spiritual composition and her outward appearance reflected the beauty and greatness of her spirit. Upon her brow lay the seal of an inborn, elevated dignity which set her apart from those around her. Under the cover of modesty, she often strove, though in vain, to conceal herself from the gaze of others, but one could not mistake her for another. Wherever she appeared, one would always ask: “Who is she who looketh forth as the morning, clear as the sun” (Song of Solomon 6:10)? Wherever she would go she emanated the pure fragrance of the lily. Perhaps it was for this reason that she loved the color white—it was the reflection of her heart. All of her spiritual qualities were strictly balanced, one against another, never giving an impression of one-sidedness. Femininity was joined in her to a courageous character; her goodness never led to weakness and blind, unconditional trust of people. Even in her finest heartfelt inspirations she exhibited that gift of discernment which has always been so highly esteemed by Christian ascetics. These characteristics were perhaps in part due to her upbringing, which she received under the guidance of her maternal grandmother, Victoria, Queen of England and Empress of India. An unmistakable English stamp was placed on all her tastes and habits and English was closer to her than her native German.
The grand duchess herself acknowledged that a great influence on the formation of the inner, purely spiritual side of her character was the example of a paternal ancestor, Elizabeth Turingen of Hungary, who through her daughter Sophia was one of the founders of the House of Hesse. A contemporary of the Crusades, this remarkable woman reflected the spirit of her age. Deep piety was united in her together with self-sacrificing love for her neighbor, but her spouse considered her great beneficence squanderous and at times persecuted her for it. Her early widowhood compelled her to lead a life of wandering and need. Later she was again able to help the poor and suffering and completely dedicate herself to works of charity. The great reverence which this royal struggler enjoyed even during her lifetime moved the Roman Catholic Church in the thirteenth century to number her among its saints. The impressionable soul of the grand duchess was captivated in childhood by the happy memory of her honored ancestor and made a deep impression on her.
Her rich natural gifts were refined by an extensive and wide education which not only satisfied her mental and esthetic needs but also enriched her with knowledge of a purely practical nature, essential for every woman with household duties. “Together with Her Majesty (i.e., Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, her younger sister) we were instructed during our childhood in everything,” she once said in answer to how she became acquainted with all the details of housekeeping.
Chosen as the future wife of the Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich, the grand duchess arrived in Russia during the period when the country, under the firm rule of Alexander III, attained the blossoming of its might in a purely national spirit. With her moral sensitivity and inborn love for knowledge, the young grand duchess began an intense study of the national characteristics of the Russian people and especially of their faith which places a deep mark on both their national character and upon all of their culture. Soon Orthodoxy won her over by its beauty and inner richness which she often would contrast with the spiritual poverty of Protestantism.
Of her experiences in the Roman Catholic world, the grand duchess sometimes recalled a trip to Rome which she had taken together with the late grand duke soon after the jubilee of Pope Leo the XIII. The latter knew well the unshakable firmness of Sergei Alexandrovich’s Orthodox convictions and regarded him highly, having first made his acquaintance when the grand duke, still a child, was visiting Rome. This long-standing acquaintance allowed them to converse informally. Between them there even arose an argument about how many popes were named Sergius. Neither of these exalted disputants wanted to give way to the other and the pope had to withdraw into his library to check. He returned a bit upset. “Forgive me,” said Leo XIII, smiling, “although they say the pope is infallible, this time he fell into error.”
The grand duchess, of her own volition decided to unite herself to the Orthodox Church. When she made the announcement to her spouse, according to the account of one of the servants, tears involuntarily poured from his eyes. The Emperor Alexander III himself was deeply touched by her decision. Her husband blessed her after Holy Chrismation with a precious icon of the Savior, “Not Made by Hands” (a copy of the miraculous icon in the Chapel of the Savior), which she treasured greatly throughout the remaining course of her life. Having been joined to the Faith in this manner, and thereby to all that makes up the soul of a Russian, the grand duchess could now with every right say to her spouse in the words of the Moabite Ruth, “Your people have become my people, and your God my God” (Ruth 1:16). The grand duke’s extended tenure of office as Governor-General of Moscow, the true heart of Russia, where he and his wife were in living contact with the ancient, holy shrines and the immemorial Russian national way of life, must have bound the grand duchess even more to her new homeland.
Even during these years she dedicated much time to philanthropic activities, though this was considered one of the main obligations of her high position and therefore did not earn for her much public merit. As part of her social obligations the grand duchess was forced to participate in social life which was already beginning to oppress her because of its frivolity. The terrible death of the grand duke Sergei Alexandrovich, who was torn apart by a bomb in the holy Kremlin itself (near the Nicholas Palace where the grand duke had moved after he left his position as Governor-General), began a decisive moral change in the soul of his spouse which caused her to forsake her former life once and for all. The greatness of spirit with which she endured her trial evoked for her the deserved admiration of everyone. She even found in herself the moral strength to visit Kaliev, the murderer of her husband, in the hope of softening and healing his heart by meekness and complete forgiveness. These Christian feelings she also expressed, through the person of the slaughtered grand duke, by having the following touching words of the Gospel inscribed upon the memorial cross, erected according to the plans of Vasnetsov, at the site of his death, ”Father, forgive them for they know not what they do…”
However, not everyone was capable of understanding the change which had taken place in her. One had to live through such a staggering catastrophe as this, in order to be convinced of the frailty and illusory nature of wealth, glory and the things of this world, and about which for so many centuries we have been warned by the Gospel. For the society of that time, the decision of the grand duchess to dismiss her court in order to leave the world and dedicate herself to serving God and neighbor, seemed as scandal and madness. Despising both the tears of friends, gossip and mockings of the world, she courageously set out on her new path. Having earlier chosen for herself the path of the perfect, i.e. the path of ascetic struggle, she began with wisely measured steps to ascend the ladder of Christian virtues.
The advice of wise instructors was not foreign to her, guiding those starting out on the path of Christian activity to learn from others the way of life so as “not to teach oneself, not to go without a guide along a path which one had never traveled and hence quickly lose one’s way; not to travel more or less correctly, nor become exhausted from too swift a run or to fall asleep while resting” (Jerome, A Letter to the Monk Rusticus). Therefore she strove to understand nothing without the direction of spiritually experienced elders, especially the elders of the Zosima Hermitage under whom she placed herself in total obedience. As her heavenly guides and protectors she chose St. Sergius and St. Alexis of Moscow. She was entrusted to their special protection by her late spouse whose remains she buried at the Chudov Monastery in a magnificent tomb, styled after those in the ancient Roman catacombs. The extended period of mourning for the grand duke, during which she retired into her interior world and was continually in church, was the first real break to separate her from what up until then had been her normal everyday life. The move from the palace to the building she acquired at Ordinka, where she allotted only two very modest rooms for herself, signaled a full break with the past and the beginning of a new period in her life.
From now on her main task became the building of a sisterhood in which inner service to God would be integrated with active service to one’s neighbor in the name of Christ. This was a completely new form of organized charitable Church activity, and consequently drew general attention to itself. At its foundation was placed a deep and immutable idea: no one could give to another more than he himself already possessed. We all draw upon God and therefore only in Him can we love our neighbor. Natural love so-called or humanism quickly evaporates, replaced by coldness and disappointment, but one who lives in Christ can rise to the heights of complete self-denial and lay down his life for his friends. The grand duchess not only wanted to impart to charitable activities the spirit of the Gospel but to place them under the protection of the Church. Thus she hoped to attract gradually to the Church, those levels of Russian society, which up until that time had remained largely indifferent to the Faith. Highly significant was the very name the grand duchess bestowed upon the institution she established—the Martha and Mary Convent, which name contains within itself the mission, the life of its holy patrons.
The community was intended to be like the home of Lazarus which the Savior so often visited. The sisters of the convent were called to unite both the high lot of Mary, attending to the eternal word of life, and the service of Martha, to that degree in which they found Christ in the person of His less fortunate brethren. In justifying and explaining her thought, the ever-memorable foundress of the convent said that Christ the Savior could not judge Martha for showing Him hospitality, since the latter was sign of her love for Him. He only cautioned Martha, and in her all women in general, against that excessive fussing and triviality which draw them away from the higher needs of the spirit. To be not of this world, and at the same time live and act in the world in order to transform it—this was the foundation upon which she desired to establish her convent.
Striving to be an obedient daughter of the Orthodox Church in all things the grand duchess did not desire to make use of the advantages of her position fearing lest even in the smallest way she take liberties and depart from obedience, from the rules or specific statutes established for everyone by the Church Authority. On the contrary, she fulfilled with complete readiness the slightest desire of the latter even if it did not coincide with her personal views. At one time, for example, she seriously thought about reviving the ancient institution of deaconess, in which she was zealously supported by Metroplitan Vladimir of Moscow. Bishop Germogen (at this time of Saratov, later of Tobolsk where he was martyred), because of a misunderstanding, stood up against this idea, accusing the grand duchess without any foundation, of Protestant tendencies (of which he later repented), and counseled her to abandon her cherished dream. Having been misunderstood in the best of her strivings, the grand duchess did not stifle her spirit because of this trying disappointment, but rather put her whole heart into her beloved Martha and Mary Convent. It is not surprising that the convent quickly blossomed and attracted many sisters from the aristocracy as well as the common people. Nearly monastic order reigned within the inner life of the community and both within and without the convent her activities consisted in the care of those who visited the sick who were lodged in the convent, in the material and moral help given to the poor, and in the almshouse for those orphans and abandoned children found in every large city. The grand duchess paid special attention to the unfortunate children who bore within themselves the curse of their fathers’ sins, the children born in the turbid slums of Moscow only to wither before they had a chance to blossom. Many of them were taken into the orphanage built for them where they were quickly revived spiritually and physically. For others, constant supervision at their place of residence was established. The spirit of initiative and moral sensitivity which accompanied the grand duchess in all her activities, inspired and impelled her to search out new paths and forms of philanthropic activity, which sometimes reflected the influence of her first, western homeland, and its advanced organizations for social improvement and mutual aid. And so she created a cooperative of messenger boys with a well built dormitory, and apartments for the girls who took part in this activity. Not all of these establishments were directly connected with the convent, but they were all like rays of light from the sun united in the person of their abbess, who embraced them with her care and protection. Having chosen as her mission not only to serve one’s neighbor in general, but also the spiritual re-education of contemporary Russian society, the grand duchess wanted to speak to the latter in a closer, more understandable language about Church art and Orthodox liturgical beauty. All the churches founded by her, especially the main church of the convent, built in the Novgorod-Pskov style by the famous architect Shchusev and painted by Nesterov, were distinguished by their austere style and the artistic unity of the interior and exterior ornamentation. The crypt located under the arches of the convent church also evoked general admiration for its peaceful warmth. The church services in the convent were always outstandingly well performed, thanks to the exceptionally capable spiritual father chosen by the abbess. From time to time she attracted other fine pastoral strength from Moscow and all parts of Russia to serve and preach. Like bees gathering nectar from all flowers, according to the words of Gogol, for her, as a true Christian, there was no ultimate course of study and she remained a conscientious humble student all her life.
All the external decor of the Martha and Mary Convent as well the internal structure, and in general all the material creations of the grand duchess were stamped with elegance and culture. This was not because she conveyed to it some sort of self-satisfying significance, but because this was the spontaneous action of her creative spirit. Having concentrated her activity around the convent, the grand duchess did not sever her ties with those other social organizations and institutions of a charitable or spiritually enlightening nature with which she had been bound by close moral ties ever since her first years in Moscow. Among these, the Palestine Society occupied the first place, so close to her because it called to life the deep Russian Orthodox feeling of her spouse, Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich, for the Holy Land. Having inherited from him the chairmanship of this society, she imitated him in holy zeal for Sion and in tireless concern over Russian pilgrims heading for the Holy Land. Her cherished dream was to go with them, though she already had earlier visited the holy places together with the late grand duke. The unbroken chain of activity and responsibilities, becoming more complicated with every year, prevented her for a long time from leaving Russia for the Holy City. Alas! No one then foresaw that she would arrive in Jerusalem only after her repose, in order to find there a place for eternal rest.
Her mind was always in harmony with her heart, and in the Palestine work she exhibited not only love and zeal for the Holy Land but a great working knowledge, as if she directly controlled all the institutions of the Society. During the last years before the war she was occupied with plans for the construction of a metochion to St. Nicholas, in Bari, with a church worthy of the Russian name. The project and model of the building, executed by Shchusev in the ancient Russian style, was permanently exhibited in her reception room. Countless papers and callers, the examination of various types of petitions and entreaties which were presented to her from all parts of Russia, as well as other affairs, usually filled her whole day and frequently brought her to the point of total exhaustion. This did not hamper her from spending the night at the bedside of suffering patients or from attending services in the Kremlin and at the greatly loved churches and monasteries in all parts of Moscow. The spirit strengthened the weakened body (her only rest was pilgrimages to various parts of Russia for prayer. However, even here the people took away the possibility of her finding seclusion and quiet. Greatly honoring her royal birth and great piety, the people ecstatically met her everywhere. The trips of the grand duchess to various cities of Russia, against her will turned into triumphant marches).
Concealing her struggles, she always appeared before people with a bright, smiling face. Only when she was alone or with a few close people, her face and especially her eyes reflected hidden sorrow—the mark of a great soul languishing in this world. Having detached herself from almost all earthly things, she even more brightly radiated an inner light, especially by her love and tenderness. No one could do an act of kindness more delicately—to each according to his need or spiritual temperament. She was not only capable of weeping with the sorrowful but of rejoicing with those who rejoice, which is usually the more difficult. Though not a nun in the strict sense, better than any nun she observed the great law of St. Nilus of Sinai: “Blessed is the monk who honors every man as (a) god after God.” Find the best in every man and, “Have mercy on the fallen,” was the continual striving of her heart. A meek spirit did not prevent her from blazing with holy wrath before injustice. Even more strictly she judged herself if she made some mistake, however involuntarily. Allow me to present a fact which witnesses to this facet of her character, as well as how her sincerity won out against an inborn reserve and the demands of social etiquette. Once during the time I was vicar bishop of Moscow she offered me the chairmanship of a purely secular organization, not having any activities connected with the Church. I was involuntarily embarrassed, not knowing how to answer her. Understanding my position, she immediately said decisively, “Forgive me, I made a foolish suggestion,” and thus led me out of a difficult situation.
The high position of the grand duchess along with her openness attracted many and various organizations and individual petitioners to her for her help, protection, or authoritative influence in the higher echelons of both local Moscovite and the central authority. She carefully replied to all petitions except for those which bore political overtones. The latter she decisively rejected, considering dealings with politics to be incompatible with her new calling. She paid special attention to all institutions of Church, charitable or artistic and scientific character. She also zealously worked to preserve the more important daily customs and traditions which made life so rich in old, beloved Moscow. The anniversary holiday of 1912 gave her an unexpected chance to exhibit her zeal in this direction.
Here are the circumstances of this activity, hitherto known only to a few people, including even those who had direct connection with this work. During the elaboration of the program for the celebration of the hundredth anniversary of the War for the Homeland, there arose in the special committee organized in Moscow a heated debate over how to celebrate the Thirtieth of August, the final day of the anniversary festival in Moscow, where the emperor, according to ceremony was supposed to arrive from Borodino. The representative of the ministry of the court offered to place at the center of the festival day a visit by the emperor to the Zemsky Kustarny Museum, which had absolutely nothing to do with the historical recollection of 1812.
Others supported my proposed offer that this memorial for Russia, St. Alexander Nevsky’s Day, be noted with a festive service of thanksgiving on Red Square. The ceremonial officialdom refused to put aside its plan, protecting itself with the impenetrable iron plating of “imperial order,” a being whose existence no one, of course, could verify. As for me, a representative of the clerical department, and those who were of like mind, all we could do was submit to the inescapable. At my meeting with the grand duchess I told her all about the conflict that had come to pass. Having heard out my tale in much distress she said, “I will try to write about it to the emperor. It’s true,” she added with a reserved smile, ‘for us women, all is permitted.” Within a week, she informed me that the emperor had changed the program according to our desires.
When the Thirtieth of August arrived it presented a magnificent picture of a genuinely national, Church and patriotic festivity which will never be forgotten by the participants. For this fete Moscow was indebted to the intercessions of the grand duchess who exhibited in the present circumstance not only her devotion to the Church but a deeply historical, purely Russian devotion.
At the beginning of the war she gave herself over with complete self-sacrifice to the service of the sick and wounded soldiers whom she visited not only in the hospitals and sanitoriums of Moscow but also at the front. Like the empress, she was not spared the slander which accused them of excessive sympathy for wounded Germans, and the grand duchess bore this unwarranted, bitter offense with her usual magnanimity. When the revolutionary storm broke out she met it with amazing self-control and calm. It seemed that she stood on a high, unshakable cliff, and from there fearlessly looked out at the waves storming around her and raised her spiritual vision to eternity.
She did not harbor even a shadow of ill feelings against the madness of the agitated masses. “The people are children, innocent of what is transpiring,” she remarked quietly. “They are led into deception by the enemies of Russia.” Nor was she depressed by the great suffering and humiliation that befell the royal family who were so close to her: “This will serve for their moral purification and bring them nearer to God,” she noted once with radiant gentleness. She suffered deeply for the royal family only when the thorns of grievous slander were woven around them especially during the war. In order not to give impetus to new evil gossip, the grand duchess tried to avoid conversations on the subject. If it so happened that because of idle people’s tasteless curiosity the subject was broached in her presence, she immediately killed it by her expressive silence. Only once after returning from Tsarskoe Selo, she forgot herself and remarked, “That terrible man (i.e., Rasputin) wants to separate me from them but, thank God, he will not succeed.”
The charm of her whole temperament was so great that it automatically attracted even the revolutionaries when they first arrived to examine the Martha and Mary Convent. One of them, apparently a student, even praised the life of the sisters, saying that no luxuries were noticeable, and that cleanliness and good order were the rule, which was in no way blameworthy. Seeing his sincerity, the grand duchess struck up a conversation with him about the outstanding qualities of socialist and Christian ideals. “Who knows,” remarked her unknown conversationalist as if influenced by her arguments, “perhaps we are headed for the same goal, only by different paths,” and with these words left the convent.
“Obviously we are still unworthy of a martyr’s crown,” the abbess replied to the sisters’ congratulating her for such a successful end to the first encounter with the Bolsheviks. But that crown was not far from her. During the course of the last months of 1917 and the beginning of 1918, the Soviet power to everyone’s amazement granted the Martha and Mary Convent and its abbess complete freedom to live as they wished and even supported them by supplying essentials. This made the blow even heavier and unexpected for them when on Pascha the grand duchess was suddenly arrested and transported to Ekaterinburg. His Holiness Patriarch Tikhon attempted with the help of Church organizations to take a part in her liberation, but was unsuccessful. Her exile was at first accompanied by some comforts. She was quartered in a convent where all the sisters were sincerely involved. A special comfort for her was that she was not hampered from attending services. Her position became more difficult after her transfer to Alapaevsk where she was imprisoned in one of the city schools together with her ever-faithful companion, Sister Barbara, and several grand dukes who shared her fate.
Nevertheless she did not lose her abiding firmness of spirit and occasionally would send words of encouragement and comfort to the sisters of her convent who were deeply grieving over her. And so it continued until the fateful night of 5/18 July. On this night together with the other royal captives striving with her and her valiant fellow-struggler Barbara in Alapaevsk, she was suddenly taken in an automobile outside the city and apparently buried alive with them in one of the local mine shafts. The results of later excavation there has shown that she strived until the last moment to serve the grand dukes who were severely injured by the fall. Some local peasants who carried out the sentence on these people whom they did not know, reported that for a long time there was heard a mysterious singing from below the earth.
This was the great-passion-bearer, singing funeral hymns to herself and the others until the silver chain was loosed and the golden bowl was broken (cf. Eccles. 12:6) and until the songs of heaven began to resound for her. Thus the longed-for martyr’s crown was placed on her head and she was united to the hosts of those of whom John, the seer of mysteries, speaks: “after this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;…And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb” (Rev. 7:9, 14). Like a wondrous vision she passed over the earth, leaving behind radiant traces. Together with all the other sufferers for the Russian land, she appeared simultaneously as a redeemer for Russia and as a foundation for that Russia of the future which is being raised up on the bones of the new martyrs. Such images have a timeless significance; their memory is eternal on earth and in heaven. Not in vain did the voice of the people declare her a saint during her lifetime. (It is noteworthy that soon after the birth of the grand duchess, her mother, the Princess Alice, a woman with a great and meek spirit, wrote to Queen Victoria about the name given to her daughter. “We liked Elizabeth since St. Elizabeth is an ancestress of the Hessian, as well as of the Saxon House.” The late grand duchess had kept this name after being united to the Orthodox Church and chose for her heavenly protectress, St. Elizabeth—5 September.)
As though in reward for her earthly struggles and special love for the Holy Land, her martyred remains, which according to eyewitnesses were found in the mine shaft completely untouched by corruption, were destined to rest at the same place where the Savior suffered and rose from the dead. Exhumed on the orders of Admiral Kolchak, together with the bodies of other members of the royal house killed at the same time (the Grand Duke Sergei Michailovich, the Princes John, Igor, and Konstantine Konstantinovich, and the son of the Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich, Prince Paley), their remains and the bodies of the grand duchess and Sister Barbara were taken first to Irkutsk and then to Peking where they remained for a long time m the cemetery church of the Russian Ecclesiastical Mission. From there, through the concern of her sister, Princess Victoria, the Marchioness of Milford-Haven, to whom she was closely bound during life, her coffin and Sister Barbara’s were transferred from Shanghai and sent to Palestine.
On the 15th of January, 1920, the bodies of both sufferers were triumphantly met in Jerusalem by the English authorities, the Greek and Russian clergy, as well as crowds of the large Russian colony and local inhabitants. Their burial took place the next day and was served by the head of the Church of Jerusalem, the Blessed Patriarch Damianos, together with a host of clergy. As if destined for the purpose, the crypt below the lower vault of the Russian church of St. Mary Magdalene was adapted as a sepulchre for the grand duchess. This church, built in memory of the Empress Maria Alexandrovna by her august children, was not strange to the deceased, for together with the Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich she had been present at its consecration in 1888. Located on a picturesque slope of the Mount of Olives, it is the best-styled and most graceful of all the churches one finds in Palestine, attracting one’s gaze even from a distance by its colorful and purely Russian lines. The martyr herself could not have chosen a better resting place even if, having foreseen that she would have to repose for a time outside her convent, she had earlier prepared a grave for herself.
Here, everything reflects her spirit: the golden domes of the church, sparkling in the sun amidst green olive trees and cypresses; the artistic interior furnishings, stamped with the inspiration of Vereshchagin, and the very character of the holy images, pierced through by the rays of Christ s Resurrection. Even closer and dearer to her heart is the fragrance of the holy places, which breathes upon her sepulchre from all sides. Below, beneath the tomb stretches out a unique view of the Holy City with the great cupola of the Life-Giving Tomb rising on high; at the foot of her tomb, the Garden of Gethsemane where in agony the Divine Sufferer prayed until drops of blood appeared. Further on, Gethsemane itself, the place of the Mother of God’s burial and to the left one can discern half-concealed by the folds of mountains, Bethany, that true Convent of Martha and Mary, the sister of Lazarus, whom the Lord called forth from the grave; and above, the Church of St. Mary Magdalene joyously crowns Mt. Olivet, whence the risen Savior rose gloriously to heaven in order to crown from there all those who amid temptations remained faithful to Him until death (see Rev. 111:5, 21).
This article riginally appeared in Orthodox Life, vol. 31, no. 5 (Sept.-Oct., 1981), pp. 3-14.
I would like to remind parishioners that this week will see me undertaking one of my other obediences on behalf of our diocese, visiting Walsingham and serving in the Shrine, with which our diocese has had an association for close to a century. I look forward to days of prayer and reading, and celebrating the feast of Holy Great Prince, St Vladimir, the Equal of the Apostles. 