XV. Saint Basil the Great and Saint Gregory the Theologian Second Ecumenical CouncilIn the history of the struggle of the Church against Arianism, Basil the Great acts as a strong defender of Orthodoxy at a time when Saint Athanasius of Alexandria was already leaving his field, and is

Ninth century: St. Photius the Great Theology Blessed Augustine(but not his doctrine of grace) first began to be disputed in the East later, in the 9th century, in connection with the well-known dispute about the Filioque (the doctrine of the procession of the Holy Spirit also "from the Son", and not from the Father alone, as always

Saint Macarius the Great, Egyptian (390-391) February 1 (January 19, O.S.) Saint Macarius the Great, Egyptian, was born in the village of Ptinapor in Lower Egypt. At the request of his parents, he married, but soon became a widow. After burying his wife, Macarius said to himself: “Pay attention, Macarius,

Rev. Macarius the Great, Egyptian (On Prayer for the Dead) I. Today, the memory of one of the great ascetics of the Egyptian deserts, Ven. Macarius of Egypt, who lived in the 4th century A.D. Once, although in the wilderness, St. Macarius saw a dry human on the ground

Macarius the Great (+391) Macarius the Great (Macarius the Egyptian; c. 300, Ptinapor - 391) - a Christian saint, a hermit, revered as a saint, the author of spiritual conversations. After the death of his parents, he left

They were named after the ancient holy forefathers - Abraham and Sarah, for the father of the Monk Macarius was called Abraham (he was a presbyter), while the mother of Macarius bore the name Sarah. Since the marriage of Macarius' parents was barren, they decided to lead a chaste life, however, not parting from each other, but living together. So, for many years the parents of Macarius lived, united by spiritual cohabitation, and not carnal. They adorned their lives with abstinence and fasting, frequent prayers, unremitting vigil, generous distribution of alms, hospitality and many other virtues. At that time, by Divine will, barbarians attacked Egypt, who plundered all the property of the inhabitants of Egypt. Together with others, Macarius' parents also lost all their property, which is why they even wanted to leave their fatherland for some other country.

But one night, when the father of Macarius - Abraham was sleeping, the Holy Patriarch Abraham appeared to him in a dream, in the form of a venerable, gray-haired, old man in brilliant clothes. The holy patriarch who appeared consoled Abraham in his misfortune, commanding him to trust in the Lord and not leave the Egyptian borders, but move to the village of Ptinapor, located in the same country. At the same time, Patriarch Abraham predicted to Macarius' parent that God would soon bless him with the birth of a son, just as He once blessed the Patriarch Abraham himself when he was a stranger in the land of Canaan, giving him a son in old age (Gen. 21:2). Upon awakening from his sleep, Presbyter Abraham recounted his vision to his wife Sarah, and they both gave praise to God. Immediately after this, Abraham and Sarah moved to the indicated village of Ptinapor, which was not far from the Nitrian desert. All this happened according to Divine will, so that the son who had been born from them - the Monk Macarius - would love the wilderness life more strongly, to which he surrendered, as we will see later, with all his soul. During the residence of the parents of Macarius in the village of Ptinapor, it happened that the father of Macarius, Abraham, became so ill that he was close to death. One night, when he was lying on the bed of illness, he saw, in a dreamy vision, that the angel of the Lord came out of the altar in the temple where Abraham served, and, approaching him, said:

Abraham, Abraham! get up from your bed.

Abraham answered the angel:

I am sick, sir, and therefore I cannot get up.

Then the angel, taking the patient by the hand, said to him with meekness:

God has mercy on you, Abraham: He heals you of your illness and grants you His favor, for your wife Sarah will give birth to a son named blessedness. He will be the home of the Holy Spirit, for in the form of an angel he will live on earth and lead many to God.

Upon awakening from this vision, Abraham felt perfectly well; filled with fear and joy, he immediately told his wife Sarah all that he had seen in the vision and what the angel had told him. The truth of this vision was confirmed by his sudden healing from a serious illness. And both of them, Abraham and Sarah, gave thanks to the most merciful Lord God. Soon after this, Sarah conceived in old age, and after a certain time, a male child was born to her, who was named Macarius, which means "blessed", and enlightened him with holy baptism.

When the youth Macarius reached adulthood and learned to understand the Holy Scriptures, his parents, as if forgetting what the angel who appeared in a vision to Abraham had predicted about him, wished Macarius to enter into marriage, although Macarius himself had no desire for this. On the contrary, he resisted with all his might the persuasion of his parents, wishing to be engaged to a single imperishable bride - a pure and immaculate virgin life. However, obeying the will of his parents, Macarius obeyed them, putting himself entirely into the hands of the Lord and hoping that He would show him the future path of life. After the wedding feast, when the newlyweds were brought into the wedding room, Macarius pretended to be sick and did not touch his bride, from the depths of his heart praying to the one true God and placing their hope in Him, so that the Lord would soon grant him to leave worldly life and become a monk. A few days later, it happened to one of the relatives of Macarius to go to the Nitrian mountain to bring saltpeter from there, which was there in huge quantities, from which the mountain itself was called "Nitrian". At the request of his parents, Macarius went with him. Arriving on the way there, to Lake Nitria, Macarius stepped aside from his companions, wanting to rest a little from the journey, and fell asleep. And so, in a dreamy vision, a wondrous man appeared before him, shining with light, who said to Macarius:

Macarius! Look at these desert places and consider them carefully, for you are destined to settle here.

Awakening from sleep, Macarius began to think about what was said to him in the vision, and was at a loss as to what would happen to him. At that time, no one had yet settled in the desert, except for Anthony the Great and the unknown hermit Paul of Thebes, who labored somewhere in the inner desert and was seen only by Antony. When, after a three-day journey to the Nitrian mountain, Macarius and his companions returned home, he found his wife suffering from such a severe fever that she was already dying. Soon she died in front of Macarius, an immaculate virgin, departing into eternal life. Macarius thanked God that He had granted him to see the death of his wife and, as a warning to himself, he thought about his death in this way:

Pay attention to yourself, Macarius, - he said, - and take care of your soul, for you too will soon have to leave this earthly life.

And from that time on, Macarius no longer cared about anything earthly, incessantly staying in the temple of the Lord and reading the Holy Scriptures. Macarius's parents, seeing the way of life he was leading, did not dare to mention even a woman's name in his presence, but they were very happy about such a chaste life. Meanwhile, Abraham, the father of Macarius, had already entered advanced years and became very ill, so that from old age and illness he lost his sight. Blessed Macarius cared for his elderly and sick father with love and zeal. Soon the elder went to the Lord, and six months after his death, Sarah, the mother of Macarius, also died in the Lord. The Monk Macarius buried his parents with an ordinary Christian burial, and became completely free from the bonds of the flesh, distributing after their burial all his property to the poor in remembrance of the souls of the deceased. Macarius had great sadness in his heart that now he no longer had anyone to whom he could reveal his secret and receive good advice for a God-pleasing life. Therefore, he earnestly began to pray to God that He would send him a good mentor who would guide him on the path to salvation.

Some time later, the Day of commemoration of the memory of one saint came, in whose honor, according to the custom of his parents, Macarius also wished to arrange a holiday. In view of this, he prepared a dinner, destining it not so much for his neighbors, but for the poor and wretched. Being present on this Day at the church service, Macarius saw one venerable old man - a monk who entered the temple. This monk had long gray hair and a beard that reached almost to the waist; his face was pale from prolonged fasting; his whole appearance was magnificent, for his inner spiritual image was also adorned with the beauty of virtues. This elder lived not far from the village of Ptinapor in a deserted place, where he had a hermit's cell. He never showed himself to anyone from the people, and only on the present day, according to the Divine dispensation, did he come to the church located in the village to partake of the Most Pure Mysteries of Christ. At the end of the Divine Liturgy, Macarius begged this monk to come to his house for a common meal. After the meal, when all those invited by Macarius had gone home, Macarius detained the monk and, taking him to a secluded place, fell at the feet of the elder and said to him:

Father! let me come to you tomorrow morning, for I want to ask your experienced advice about my future life!

Come, child, - answered the elder, - whenever you wish - and with these words he left Macarius.

The next Day, early in the morning, Macarius came to the elder and revealed to him the secret of his heart, that he wanted to work for the Lord with all his strength, and together he earnestly asked the elder to teach him what he should do for the salvation of his soul. With heartfelt conversations, the elder kept Macarius at his place for a whole day, and when the sun went down, they ate some bread and salt, and the elder ordered Macarius to go to bed. The elder himself began to pray, directing his mind to grief; at the onset of deep night, he came into an enthusiastic state and saw the cathedral of monks dressed in white clothes and having wings. They walked around the sleeping Macarius and said:

Get up, Macarius, and begin the ministry indicated to you by God; do not postpone it for another time, for the lazy one acts imprudently, and the unlazy one earns his wages.

In the morning, the Holy Elder told Macarius this vision of his own and, letting him go, gave him the following instruction:

Child! whatever you intend to do, do it quickly, because God is calling you for the salvation of many. Therefore, from now on, do not be lazy in charitable deeds!

After teaching Macarius instructions on prayer, vigils, and fasting, the elder let him go in peace. Returning home from the elder, blessed Macarius distributed all his property to the poor, leaving nothing for himself even for basic needs. Having thus been freed from all worldly concerns and having himself become, as it were, a beggar, Macarius again came to the elder, in order to completely surrender to the service of the Lord he had long desired. The elder lovingly received the humble young man, showed him the beginnings of a silent monastic life and taught him the usual monastic needlework - basket weaving. At the same time, the elder arranged for Macarius a separate cell not far from his own, for he himself loved to serve the Lord in solitude. He took his new disciple to the newly arranged cell, again giving him the necessary instructions about prayer, food and needlework. So blessed Macarius, with the help of God, began to undergo a difficult monastic service and day by day he succeeded in monastic deeds. Some time later, the bishop of that country happened to come to the village of Ptinapor, and, having learned from the inhabitants of the village about the exploits of blessed Macarius, he called him to himself and, against his desire, appointed him a cleric of the local church, although Macarius was still young. But St. Macarius, burdened by the position of a clergyman, which disturbed his silent life, a few days later, fled from there and settled in a deserted place near another village. One reverent man of a simple rank came to him here, and he began to serve Macarius, selling his handicrafts and buying food for him with the proceeds. The hater of all goodness - the devil, seeing how he is defeated by a young monk, conceived a battle against him and began to fight intensely with him, building various intrigues against him, sometimes inspiring him with sinful thoughts, sometimes attacking him in the form of various monsters. When Macarius was awake at night, standing at prayer, the devil shook his cell to the very foundations, and sometimes, turning into a snake, crawled along the ground and rushed furiously at the saint. But blessed Macarius, guarding himself with prayer and sign of the cross, for no reason considered the intrigues of the devil, exclaiming, as once David:

- "Thou shalt not be afraid of terrors in the night, of an arrow that flies by day, of a plague that walks in darkness."(Ps. 91:5).

Then the devil, not being able to defeat the invincible, invented a new trick against him. One of the inhabitants of the village near which Macarius labored, had a daughter - a maiden, whom a young man who also lived in this village asked to be his wife. But since the young man was very poor and, moreover, of a simple rank, the girl's parents did not agree to give their daughter in marriage to him, although the girl herself loved that young man. After some time, the girl turned out to be not idle. When she began to ask the young man what answer she should give to her parents, the latter, taught by the teacher of malice - the devil, told her:

Tell me what a hermit who lives near us did this to you.

The girl listened to the insidious advice, and sharpened her tongue against the innocent monk, like a snake. And so, when the parents noticed that the girl should be a mother, they began to ask her with beatings who was responsible for her fall. The girl then replied:

This is the fault of your hermit, whom you consider a saint. Once, when I was outside the village and approached the place where he lives, the hermit met me on the road and did violence to me, and out of fear and shame I have not told anyone about this until now.

Wounded by these words, the girls, as if with arrows, her parents and relatives all together rushed to the saint's dwelling with loud cries and swear words. Pulling Macarius out of his cell, they beat him for a long time, and then brought him with them to the village. Here, having collected many broken vessels and shards and tied them with a rope, they hung the saint around his neck and, in this form, led him throughout the village, outrageously abused him, beating him, pushing him, tormenting him by the hair and kicking him. At the same time they exclaimed:

This monk defiled our girl, beat him all!

It happened at that time to pass by a prudent person. Seeing what was happening, he said to the beaters of the saint:

How long will you beat an innocent wandering monk without knowing for sure whether the accusation against him is just? I think the devil is tempting you.

But they, not listening to the words of this man, continued to torture the saint. Meanwhile, the man who, for the sake of God, served Macarius by selling his handicrafts, walked at a distance from the saint and wept bitterly, not being able to prevent the saint from being beaten and to free Macarius from the hands of those who " how the dogs surrounded him"(Ps. 21:17). And those who beat the saint, turning around, rushed with abuse, and threats to this person.

That's what he did, - they shouted, - the hermit whom you serve! - and continued to beat Macarius with sticks until they satisfied their rage and anger; and Macarius remained half dead on the road. The girl's parents did not want to leave him even now, but said:

We will not let him in until he provides us with guarantors that he will feed our daughter, whom he has dishonored.

Barely taking a breath, Macarius asked the man who served him;

Friend! be my guarantor.

The latter, ready even to die for the saint, vouched for him, and, taking Macarius, completely exhausted from his wounds, with great effort led him to his cell. Having somewhat recovered from his wounds, Macarius began to work harder on his needlework, saying to himself this:

You now, Macarius, have a wife and children, and therefore you need to work day and night in order to provide them with the necessary food.

Making baskets, he sold them through the specified person, and sent the proceeds to feed the girl. When the time came for her to give birth, the righteous judgment of God overtook her because she slandered an innocent saint. For a long time she could not be relieved of the burden and suffered for many days and nights, crying bitterly from very severe pain. At the sight of her such torment, her parents also suffered with her and asked her in bewilderment:

What happened to you?

Then the girl, although she strongly did not want it, was forced to reveal the truth. With loud cries she said:

Oh, woe to me accursed! I am worthy of a terrible punishment for having slandered the righteous man, saying that he is the cause of my fall. He is not the culprit of this, but the young man who wanted to marry me.

Hearing the cries of the girl, her parents and relatives who were near her were greatly struck by her words; and a strong fear fell upon them, and they were very ashamed that they dared to insult the innocent monk, the servant of the Lord, in such a way. In fear they cried out: "Woe to us!" Meanwhile, the news of what had happened spread throughout that village, and all its inhabitants, from young to old, flocked to the house where the maiden lived. Hearing the cries of the maiden there that the hermit was innocent of her disgrace, the inhabitants strongly reproached themselves and grieved greatly that without mercy they all beat the saint. After consulting with the girl's parents, they all decided to go to the Monk Macarius and weep at his feet, asking for forgiveness, so that the wrath of God would not befall them for offending an innocent person. Having learned such a decision of theirs, the servant of Macarius, the husband who vouched for him, quickly ran to him, and joyfully said to him:

Rejoice, Father Macarius! - happy and joyful is this day for us, for today God has changed your former reproach and dishonor into glorification. And I no longer need to be a guarantor for you, for you turned out to be an impassive, righteous and glorious innocent sufferer. Today the judgment of God has befallen the one who unjustly accused you and slandered you innocent. She cannot be relieved of the burden, and confessed that you are not the cause of her fall, but one young man. Now all the inhabitants of the village, young and old, want to come to you with repentance in order to glorify God for your chastity and patience and ask your forgiveness so that they do not suffer any punishment from the Lord for having unjustly offended you.

With regret, the humble Macarius listened to the words of this man: he did not want honor and glory from people, for it was much more pleasant for him to accept dishonor from people than honor; therefore, at nightfall, he got up and departed from those places, going first of all to Mount Nitria, where he once had a vision in a dream. After living there for three years in one cave, he went to Anthony the Great, who was fasting in the Faran desert, for Macarius had long heard of him, even when he lived in the world, and greatly desired to see him. Received with love by the Monk Anthony, Macarius became his most sincere disciple and lived with him for a long time, receiving instructions for a perfect virtuous life and trying in everything to imitate his father. Then, on the advice of the Monk Anthony, Macarius withdrew for a solitary life to the skete desert, where he so shone with deeds and succeeded in monastic life so much that he surpassed many brethren and received from them the title "young old man", because, despite his youth, discovered quite old life. Here Macarius had to fight with demons day and night. Sometimes demons, obviously, having turned into various monsters, rushed with fury at the monk, sometimes in the form of armed warriors sitting on horses and galloping to battle; with a great cry, a terrible cry and noise, they rushed at the saint, as if about to kill him. Sometimes the demons raised an invisible battle against the saint, instilling in him various passionate and impure thoughts, trying in various cunning ways to shake this solid wall built by Christ and destroy it. However, they could not at all overcome this courageous fighter of truth, who had God as his helpers and, like David, exclaimed:

- "Some with chariots (with weapons), others with horses, but I boast in the name of the Lord our God: they staggered and fell, with God I will show strength" (Ps. 19: 8-9; 59: 14) and He will destroy all my enemies - demons, so fiercely attacking me.

One night, the sleeping Macarius was surrounded by many demons who woke him up and said:

Get up, Macarius, and sing with us, and don't sleep.

The monk, realizing that this was a demonic temptation, did not get up, but, lying down, said to the demons:

- "Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for your father the devil."(Matthew 25:41) and you.

But they said:

Why do you insult us, Macarius, blaspheming us with such words?

Is it possible, the monk objected, that one of the demons would awaken someone to pray and glorify God, or instruct someone in a virtuous life?

But the demons continued to call him to prayer, and for a long time they could not do this. Then, filled with rage and unable to bear the neglect of Macarius, they rushed at him in multitudes and began to beat him. The saint cried out to the Lord:

Help me, Christ my God, and " you surround me with the joys of deliverance, for the dogs have surrounded me, have opened their mouths against me"(Ps.31:7; 21:14,17-18).

And suddenly all the multitude of demons disappeared with a great noise.

On another occasion it happened that Macarius picked up many palm branches in the desert for weaving baskets and carried them to his cell. On the way he was met by a devil with a sickle and wanted to hit the saint, but could not. Then he said to Macarius:

Macarius! Because of you, I suffer great sorrow, because I am not able to defeat you. Here I am, everything you do, I do. You fast, I eat nothing at all; you are awake and I never sleep. However, there is one thing in which you are superior to me.

What it is? the reverend asked him.

Your humility, - answered the devil, - that is why I cannot fight with you.

When the Monk Macarius was forty years old, he received from God the gift of miracles, prophecy, and power over unclean spirits. At the same time, he was ordained a priest and made rector (abba) of the monks living in the skete. About his food and drink, that is, about how he fasted, it is not necessary to say much, because even the weakest of the brothers of his skete could not be reproached either for overeating, or for eating any exquisite food. Although this happened partly due to the lack of any refined food in those places, but mainly for the sake of the competition of the monks staying there, who tried not only to imitate one another in fasting, but also to surpass each other. About other exploits of Macarius, this heavenly man, there are various legends among the fathers. They say that the monk constantly ascended with his mind to the heavenly and most of his time directed his mind to God, rather than to the objects of this world. Macarius often visited his teacher Anthony the Great and received many instructions from him, having spiritual conversations with him. Together with two other disciples of the Monk Anthony and Macarius, he was honored to be present at his blessed death and, as a kind of rich inheritance, he received Anthony's staff, with which he supported his feeble body on the road, dejected by old age and fasting deeds. Together with this staff of Anthony, the Monk Macarius received the purely spirit of Anthony the Great, as the prophet Elisha once perceived such after Elijah the prophet (2 Kings 2:9). By the power of this spirit, Macarius created many marvelous miracles, to the story of which we now turn.

One wicked Egyptian was inflamed with impure love for a married woman. beautiful woman, but could not persuade her to betray her husband, for she was chaste, virtuous and loved her husband. Strongly desiring to take possession of her, this Egyptian went to a certain sorcerer with a request that he, by means of his magic spells, arrange so that this woman would love him, or that her husband would hate her and drive her away from him. The magician, having received rich gifts from that Egyptian, used his usual magic, trying to seduce a chaste woman to an evil deed by the power of magic spells. Not being able to incline the unshakable soul of a woman to sin, the sorcerer enchanted the eyes of everyone who looked at the woman, arranging it so that she seemed to everyone not to be a woman with a human appearance, but an animal that had the appearance of a horse. The husband of that woman, having come home, was horrified to see a horse instead of his wife and was very surprised that an animal was lying on his bed. He addressed her with words, but received no answer, only noticed that she was becoming furious. Knowing that it was supposed to be his wife, he realized that this was done out of someone's malice; wherefore he was greatly grieved, and shed tears. Then he called the elders to his house and showed them his wife. But they could not understand that before them was a man, and not an animal, since their eyes were also fascinated, and they saw an animal. It has been three days since this woman began to seem like a horse to everyone. During this time, she did not take food, because she could not eat hay, like an animal, or bread, like a person. Then her husband remembered the Monk Macarius, and decided to take her to the desert to the saint. Putting a bridle on her, as if on an animal, he went to the dwelling of Macarius, leading his wife, who looked like a horse. When he approached the cell of the monk, the monks who stood near the cell were indignant at him, why did he want to enter the monastery with a horse. But he told them:

I came here so that this animal, through the prayers of Saint Macarius, would receive mercy from the Lord.

What bad thing happened to her? - asked the monks.

This animal you see, the man answered them, is my wife. How she turned into a horse, I do not know. But now three days have passed since the time when this happened, and all this time she has not eaten any food.

After listening to his story, the brethren immediately hurried to the Monk Macarius to tell him about this, but he already had a revelation from God, and he prayed for the woman. When the monks told the saint what had happened and pointed him to the brought animal, the saint said to them:

You yourselves are like animals, because your eyes see a bestial image. She, as created by a woman, remains her, and has not changed her human nature, but only seems animal to your eyes, seduced by magical spells.

Then the monk blessed the water and with a prayer poured it on the woman brought in, and immediately she took on her usual human form, so that everyone, looking at her, saw a woman with a human face. Having commanded to give her food, the Saint made her completely healthy. Then both the husband and the wife and all those who saw this wonderful miracle thanked God. Macarius instructed the healed woman to go to the temple of God as often as possible and partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ.

This happened to you, - said the monk, - because five weeks have already passed since you did not partake of the Divine Mysteries.

Having instructed the husband and wife, the Saint let them go in peace.

Macarius healed in a similar way a maiden, whom a magician had turned into a donkey, and who, in this form, was brought to the saint by her parents. The other girl, all rotten from wounds and scabs and teeming with worms, he made completely healthy, anointing her with holy oil.

A lot of different people came to Saint Macarius - some asked for his prayers, blessings and fatherly guidance, others to be healed of their ailments. Because of the multitude of people who came to him, Macarius had little time to indulge in meditation in solitude. Therefore, the monk dug a deep cave under his cell, about half a stadia long, where he hid from those who constantly came to him and violated his Divine thought and prayer.

The Monk Macarius received from God such grace-filled power that he could even resurrect the dead. And so, one heretic named Jerakites, who taught that there would be no resurrection of the dead, came from Egypt into the wilderness and confused the minds of the brethren who lived there. Then he came to the Monk Macarius and, in the presence of numerous brethren, competed with him about the faith. Being himself skilled in words, he mocked at the simplicity of the reverend's speeches. The Monk Macarius, noticing that the brethren began to waver in faith from the speeches of this heretic, said to him:

Of what use is it to us to quarrel with words, more for the hesitation of those who listen to our dispute than for confirmation in the faith? Let us go to the graves of our brethren who died in the Lord, and to which of us the Lord grants to raise the dead, then everyone will be convinced that his faith is right and is testified by God Himself.

The brethren approved these words of the monk, and they all went to the cemetery. There, the Monk Macarius told Jerakite to call from the tomb one of the deceased from the brethren. But Hierakith said to Macarius:

First you do it, because you yourself appointed such a test.

Then the Monk Macarius prostrated himself in prayer to the Lord and, after a long prayer, raised his eyes to the mountain and called out to the Lord:

God! You yourself reveal now which of the two of us believes (in You) more correctly, reveal this, arranging it so that one of the dead lying here rises from the tomb.

Having prayed thus, the monk named by name one recently buried monk, and the dead man immediately answered his voice from the tomb. Then the monks hurriedly dug up the grave and found their brother resurrected in it. Untying the bandages that were on him, they brought him alive from the grave. At the sight of such a marvelous miracle, Ierakit was so horrified that he fled. All the monks drove him away, as they drive away enemies, and drove him far beyond the borders of that land.

On another occasion, the Monk Macarius also resurrected another deceased, as Abba Sisoy narrates.

I was, - he says, - with the Monk Macarius in the skete. It was time for the harvest of grain. Seven of the brethren were hired for the harvest. During it, one widow picked up ears of corn for us and at the same time cried all the time. The Monk Macarius, calling the owner of the field, asked him:

What is it that happened to this woman, and why is she crying incessantly?

The owner of the field told the monk that the husband of that woman, having taken money from one person for safekeeping, suddenly died without having time to reveal to his wife where he had put what he had taken. Therefore, the lender wants to take this woman with her children into slavery. Then Macarius said to him:

Tell the woman to come to our place where we rest at noon.

When she fulfilled the words of the monk and came to him, the Monk Macarius asked her:

Why are you crying all the time, woman?

Because, - the widow answered, - my husband died suddenly, and shortly before his death he took gold from one person for safekeeping and did not tell me where he put the taken gold.

Show us where your husband is buried,” Macarius said.

Taking the brethren with him, the monk went to the indicated place. Approaching the grave of that widow's husband, the monk said to her:

Go home, woman!

Then, having prayed, Macarius called out to the dead man, asking him where he had put the gold he had taken. Then the dead answered from the grave:

I hid it in my house at the feet under my bed.

Rest again, - Abba Macarius told him, - until the day of the general resurrection!

The brethren, seeing such a miracle, from great fear fell at the feet of the monk. The elder, for the edification of the brethren, said:

All this happened not for my sake, for I am nothing, but for the sake of this widow and her children, God created this miracle. Know, then, that God is pleased with a sinless soul, and whatever she asks from Him, she receives.

Then the monk went to the widow and showed her where the gold taken by her husband was hidden. She took the hidden treasure and gave it to its owner, and thus delivered both herself and her children from slavery. Hearing about such a wondrous miracle, everyone glorified God.

Having finished the story of the life of the monk, let us glorify the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, the One God, glorified in His saints, forever. Amen.

Macarius the Great was born around 300 in Lower Egypt in the village of Ptinapor. IN early age At the request of his parents, he married, but was widowed early. After the death of his wife Macarius delved into the study of the Holy Scriptures. After burying his parents, Macarius retired to the desert closest to the village and became a novice with the hermit elder living there. The local bishop, passing through Ptinapor, ordained Macarius as one of the junior clerics of the local church, but Macarius, burdened by the received dignity, left the village and retired all alone into the desert.

Having lived for several years alone in the Faran Desert, Macarius went to Anthony the Great and became his disciple, having lived for a long time in the monastery he founded in the Thebadian Desert. On the advice of Anthony, Macarius withdrew to the Skete desert.

At the age of 40, Macarius was ordained a priest and appointed rector of the monks who lived in the Skete desert. At the same age, according to church tradition, he received the gift of miracles and became famous for many miracles, including the resurrection of the dead. So, according to legend, the saint resurrected the dead in order to convince a heretic who denied the possibility of resurrection. From later testimonies about the life of Macarius, it is known that he could appeal to the dead in such a way that they could speak aloud. There is a known case when the dead testified to justify the innocent, another deceased told where the things were hidden, which saved his family from slavery.

Around 360, Macarius founded a monastery in the Nitrian desert, which later received the name - Monastery of Macarius the Great.

Coptic Monastery of St. Macarius the Great

Macarius the Great, together with Macarius of Alexandria, suffered during the reign of the Arian emperor Valens. They were exiled to a desert island inhabited by pagans, but, according to legend, through the healing of the priest's daughter, Macarius converted the inhabitants of the island to Christianity. After this became known to the Arian bishop, who sent Macarius into exile, he allowed both elders to return to their deserts.

The monk lived to be 97 years old, shortly before his death, the Monks Anthony and Pachomius appeared to him, reporting the joyful news of his imminent transition to the blessed Heavenly cloisters. Having given instructions to his disciples and blessed them, the Monk Macarius took leave of everyone and rested with the words: Into Your hands, O Lord, I commit my spirit". Macarius passed away in 391 in the monastery he founded.

Monastery of St. Macarius the Great

The relics of three Macarius in the Egyptian monastery of Macarius the Great: Macarius the Great, Macarius of Alexandria and Macarius the Bishop

The relics of Macarius the Great are in Italy, in the city of Amalfi and in Egypt in the monastery of Macarius the Great.

literary heritage

The theological heritage of Macarius the Great consists of fifty words (conversations), seven instructions and two epistles. The main theme of the writings is the spiritual life of a Christian in the form of ascetic solitude. In a number of his writings, Macarius interprets the Bible allegorically (for example, the Discourse on the Vision of Ezekiel).

The idea that the highest good and goal of man is the union of the soul with God is the main one in the works of St. Macarius. Talking about ways to achieve sacred unity, the monk based himself on the experience of the great teachers of Egyptian monasticism and on his own. The path to God and the experience of communion with God by the holy ascetics is open to every believing heart. That is why the Holy Church included in the commonly used evening and morning prayers the ascetic prayers of St. Macarius the Great.

Earthly life, according to the teachings of St. Macarius, with all its labors, has only a relative significance: to prepare the soul, to make it capable of perceiving the Kingdom of Heaven, to cultivate in the soul an affinity with the Heavenly Fatherland. " The soul that truly believes in Christ must be shifted and changed from the current vicious state into another state, good, and from the current lowly nature into another, Divine nature, and be changed into a new one - through the power of the Holy Spirit". This can be achieved if "we truly believe and love God and turn in all His holy commandments." If, however, the soul, betrothed to Christ in holy Baptism, does not itself cooperate with the grace of the Holy Spirit bestowed upon it, then it will be subject to “excommunication from life”, as having turned out to be unseemly and incapable of communion with Christ. In the teaching of St. Macarius, the question of the unity of God's Love and God's Truth is experimentally resolved. The inner achievement of a Christian determines the extent to which he perceives this unity. Each of us acquires salvation by grace and the Divine gift of the Holy Spirit, but to achieve the perfect measure of virtue necessary for the soul to assimilate this Divine gift is possible only "by faith and love with the effort of free will." Then "as much as in grace, so much in righteousness" the Christian inherits eternal life. Salvation is a work of the God-man: we achieve complete spiritual success “not only by Divine power and grace, but also by bringing our own labors”, on the other hand, we come to the “measure of freedom and purity” not only by our own diligence, but not without “assistance from above by God's hand ". The fate of a person is determined by the actual state of his soul, his self-determination to good or evil. " If the soul in this world does not receive the sanctity of the Spirit for much faith and prayers, and does not become a partaker of the Divine nature, then it is unsuitable for the Kingdom of Heaven.«.

Troparion to Saint Macarius the Great, tone 1
A desert dweller, and in the flesh an Angel, / and a miracle worker appeared to you, our God-bearing Father Macarius, / with fasting, vigil, prayer, heavenly gifts, / heal the sick and the souls of those who come by faith. / Glory to Him Who gave you a fortress, / Glory to Him Who crowned you, // Glory to Him who acts by you, healing all.

Kontakion to the Monk Macarius the Great, Tone 1
Having ended a blessed life in life with martyr faces, / worthy of settling in the land of the meek, God-bearing Macarius, / and the desert, like a city, inhabiting, you received grace from the God of miracles, / we honor you the same.