Elder Daniel about visions - about spiritual delusion. Prophetic vision of the holy righteous Father John of Kronstadt about the fate of Russia and the world. Vision of the Mother of God to the Solovetsky Hermit

- Blessed be the Lord God! If I die from this cold, then let me die out of my love for Him, but God is able to give me patience to endure this cold.

Having entered one nook, the saint saw a dog lying there and, wanting to warm himself from it, he lay down with it. But, seeing him, the dog got up and left. And Andrei said to himself:

- Oh, how sinful you are, damned one. Not only people, but also dogs neglect you!

When he thus lay there, shivering from the bitter cold and wind, his body frozen and blue, he thought that the time had come for his last breath, and began to pray that the Lord would accept his soul in peace. And then suddenly he felt an inner warmth within himself, and, opening his eyes, he saw a certain beautiful young man, whose face shone like the sun. He held in his hand a branch covered with various flowers. Looking at Andrey, the young man said:

- Andrey, where are you?

Andrey replied:

– Now I am “in darkness, in the abyss” (Ps. 87:7).

Then the young man who appeared lightly touched Andrei’s face with the flowering branch he was holding in his hand and said:

– Get your body revived.

Saint Andrew inhaled the fragrance of those flowers; it penetrated his heart, warmed and enlivened his whole body. Following this, he heard a voice saying:

- Take him so that he can calm down here for a while, and then he will return again.

With these words, a sweet dream came over him, and he saw the ineffable revelations of God, which he himself reported in detail to the aforementioned Nicephorus, in these words:

– I don’t know what happened to me. By Divine will, I remained for two weeks in a sweet vision, like a person who, having slept sweetly all night, wakes up in the morning. I saw myself in a beautiful and wondrous paradise and, marveling at this in my soul, I thought: “What does this mean? I know that I live in Constantinople, but I don’t know how I got here.” And I did not understand, “whether in the body I do not know, or whether outside the body I do not know; God knows” (2 Cor. 12:2). But I saw myself dressed in a light robe, as if woven from lightning, and on my head lay a wreath woven from many flowers; I was girded with a royal belt and rejoiced greatly at the sight of that beauty; I marveled with my mind and heart at the indescribable charm of God's paradise and delighted in walking through it. There were many gardens filled with tall trees, which, swaying with their tops, gladdened my eyes, and a great fragrance emanated from their branches. Some of those trees bloomed incessantly, others were decorated with golden foliage, others had fruit of indescribable beauty; These trees cannot be compared in beauty to any tree on earth, for they were planted not by human hand, but by God. In those gardens there were countless birds with golden, snow-white and multi-colored wings. They sat on the branches of the trees of paradise and sang so beautifully that I could not remember myself from their sweet-sounding singing: my heart was so delighted, and I thought that their singing could be heard even at the very heights of heaven. Those beautiful gardens stood in rows, like how one regiment stands opposite another. When I walked among them with heartfelt joy, I saw a large river flowing through the middle of paradise, which watered those beautiful gardens. Grapes grew on both banks of the river, spreading vines decorated with leaves and golden clusters. There, quiet and fragrant winds blew from all four sides, from the breath of which the gardens swayed, producing a wonderful rustle with their leaves. After this, some kind of horror fell upon me, and it seemed to me that I was standing at the top of the heavenly firmament, and some young man was walking in front of me, with a face as bright as the sun, dressed in a scarlet robe. I thought it was the one who hit me in the face with a flowering branch. When I walked in his footsteps, I saw a large and beautiful Cross, similar in appearance to a rainbow, and around it stood fiery singers, like flames, singing sweet songs, praising the Lord, who was once crucified on the Cross. The young man walking in front of me, approaching the Cross, kissed it, and gave a sign to me that I too should kiss the Cross. Having fallen to the Holy Cross with fear and great joy, I zealously kissed it. Kissing him, I was filled with unspeakable spiritual sweetness and smelled a fragrance stronger than heavenly. Having passed by the Cross, I looked down and saw beneath me, as it were, an abyss of the sea. It seemed to me that I was walking on air; Frightened, I shouted to my guide:

“Sir, I’m afraid I might fall into the depths.”

He turned to me and said:

– Do not be afraid, for we need to rise even higher.

And he gave me his hand. When I grabbed it, we were already above the second firmament. There I saw wonderful men. their repose and the joy of their holiday, indescribable in human language. After this we entered into some wondrous flame, which did not scorch us, but only shone. I began to be horrified and again my guide turned around, gave me his hand and said:

“We should go even higher.”

And after these words we rose above the third heaven, where I saw and heard many heavenly powers singing and praising God. We approached some kind of curtain, shining like lightning, in front of which stood great and strange young men, looking like a fiery flame; their faces shone brighter than the sun, and in their hands they had fiery weapons. Standing with fear, I saw a countless multitude of the heavenly army. And the young man who led me said to me:

– When the curtain is opened, you will see the Lord Christ. Bow down then to the throne of His glory.

Hearing this, I rejoiced and trembled, for horror and inexpressible joy seized me. I stood and watched, waiting for the curtain to open. And then some fiery hand opened the curtain, and I, like the prophet Isaiah, saw my Lord, “sitting on a high throne... The Seraphim stood around Him” (Is. 6: 1-2). He was clothed in a scarlet robe; His face was bright, and His eyes looked at me with love. Seeing this, I fell on my face before Him, worshiping the bright and terrible throne of His glory. What joy overwhelmed me when contemplating His face cannot be expressed in words, even now, when remembering that vision, I am filled with indescribable joy. I lay in awe before my Master, amazed at His mercy that He allowed me, a wicked and sinner, to stand before Him and contemplate His Divine beauty. Reflecting on my unworthiness and contemplating the greatness of my Master, I was moved and repeated to myself the words of the prophet Isaiah: “Woe is me! I'm dead! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people also of unclean lips, and mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts” (Isa. 6:5). And I heard my most merciful Creator, who spoke to me with His sweet and pure lips three Divine words, which so sweetened my heart and kindled it with love that I completely melted away from spiritual warmth, like wax, and the word of David was fulfilled on me: “My heart has become melted like wax in the midst of my insides” (Ps. 21:15). After this, the entire heavenly army sang a wondrous and indescribable song, and then - I myself don’t understand how - I again found myself walking in paradise. And I thought about the fact that I had not seen the Most Pure Lady Theotokos. And then I saw a man, as bright as a cloud, wearing a Cross and saying:

“Did you want to see the Most Serene Queen of Heaven here?” But She is not here. She retired to a troubled world - to help people and console the grieving. I would show you Her holy place, but now there is no time, for you must return again to where you came from: this is what the Master commands you to do.

When he said this, it seemed to me as if I had fallen asleep; then, waking up, I found myself in the same place where I was before, lying in the corner. And I was amazed at where I was at the time of the vision, and at what I was privileged to see. My heart was filled with inexpressible joy, and I thanked my Master, who deigned to show me such grace.

Saint Andrew told this vision to his friend Nicephorus before his death, and took an oath from him not to tell anyone about it until he renounced the bonds of the body. Nicephorus earnestly begged the saint to tell him at least one of the three words that the Lord spoke to him; but the saint did not want to reveal this. So Saint Andrew, delighted, like the Apostle Paul, saw what the mortal eye did not see, heard what the mortal ear did not hear, and enjoyed in revelation such heavenly beauties that the human heart could not even imagine (1 Cor. 2:9 ).

(The Life of Saint Andrew, Christ for the Fool's Sake)

He served the Lord in secret, so that he would be rewarded openly, as indeed it was.

This is how the Lord showed what His servant Euphrosynus deserved.

A certain priest, who lived in the same monastery with Euphrosynus, always prayed to God to show him in a sensory form the future blessings that were in store for those who loved him. And then one night he had such a vision: he imagined that he was standing in paradise, contemplating its indescribable beauty with fear and joy; there he saw the cook of his monastery, Euphrosynus.

Approaching him, the priest asked:

- Brother Euphrosynus, what is this? Is this really heaven?

Euphrosynus replied:

- Yes, father, this is heaven.

The priest asked him again:

- How are you here?

Euphrosynus replied:

“By the great mercy of God, I settled here to live, for this is the abode of God’s chosen ones.

The priest asked:

– Do you have any power over these beauties?

Euphrosynus replied:

“I give as much as I can from what you see.”

The priest said:

“Can’t you give me some of these benefits too?”

Euphrosynus replied:

- By the grace of my God, take what you want.

Then the priest, pointing his hand at the apples, asked for them. Euphrosynus picked three apples and put them in the priest’s handkerchief, saying:

- Take what you asked for and enjoy.

At this time the church bell began to be struck for matins. The priest, waking up and coming to his senses, considered what he had seen to be a dream, but, stretching out his hand to the handkerchief, he found in it those apples that he had received in a vision from Euphrosynus, and felt an indescribable fragrance from them and therefore was in amazement. Getting out of bed and putting apples on it, he went to church and saw Euphrosynus standing there at the morning service. Approaching him, the priest begged him with an oath to reveal to him where he had been that night.

Euphrosynus replied:

“Forgive me, father, this night I was where you saw me.”

The priest said:

“That’s why I swore you to declare the works of God, so that you would not hide the truth.”

Then the humble Euphrosynus said:

“You, father, asked the Lord to show you in a tangible form the rewards of His chosen ones, and the Lord deigned to show this to your reverence through me, bad and unworthy, and now you saw me in the paradise of my God.

The priest asked:

- And what did you give me, father, in heaven, when I asked you?

Euphrosynus replied:

“I gave you three apples - the same ones that you put in your cell on your bed, but forgive me, Father, for I am a worm, and not a man.”

At the end of Matins, the priest gathered the brethren and, showing them three apples of paradise, told them in detail what he had seen. Then everyone felt an indescribable fragrance and spiritual joy from those apples and marveled with emotion at what the priest told them. They went to the kitchen to Euphrosynus in order to worship the servant of God, but they no longer found him, for he left the church and hid, avoiding human glory, and they could not find him.

(Memory of St. Euphrosynus)

While blessed Martha, mother of St. Simeon, who was staying with her youth in a place located in Antioch and called “Cherub”, Simeon had the following vision: he saw the Lord Jesus Christ sitting on a high throne, and many righteous people flocked to Him from all sides; the book of life was opened before the throne, according to which judgment was carried out; in the east was a paradise of sweetness, and in the west was fiery hell. Then the Holy Spirit said to Simeon:

“Listen, boy, and understand everything you see here; try to please God, and then you will be granted the same honor and glory with other saints and receive indescribable benefits prepared for all who love the Lord.

Saint Simeon, descending from there, asked the one who was leading him:

-What did I see?

The same one answered:

“These are the seven heavens to which you were raptured.”

Then the saint saw paradise, and beautiful gardens, and bright and large chambers, and the source of peace flowing there. Here the monk saw no one except Adam and the prudent robber.

When Simeon came to his senses, he told Elder John about everything he had seen. The same one, having listened, said:

- Child! Blessed be God who has given you such grace.

(Life of our venerable father Simeon Divnogorets)

St. John of Kronstadt brings homeless children to the shelter.

The vision of St. Righteous John of Kronstadt (taken from the film "Visions on the Neva") about the last times and the end of the world. “Look,” the elder pointed with his hand, “do you see?!” I see mountains. - No, this mountain of human corpses is all soaked in blood. I crossed myself and asked the elder what does this mean? What kind of corpses are these? - These are monks and nuns, wanderers...

God bless! I am the sinful servant John, priest of Kronstadt, writing this vision. It was written by me and with my hand what I saw, I conveyed in writing.

On the night of January 1, 1908, after evening prayer, I sat down to rest a little at the table. It was twilight in my cell; a lamp was burning in front of the icon of the Mother of God. Less than half an hour had passed, I heard a light noise, someone lightly touched my right shoulder and a quiet, light, gentle voice said to me: “Get up, servant of God Ivan, come with me.” I quickly stood up.

I see standing in front of me: a marvelous, wonderful old man, pale, with gray hair, in a robe, with a rosary in his left hand. He looked at me sternly, but his eyes were gentle and kind. I immediately almost fell from fear, but the wonderful old man supported me - my hands and legs were trembling, I wanted to say something, but my tongue did not turn. The elder crossed me, and I felt light and joyful - I also crossed myself. Then he pointed with his staff to the western side of the wall - there he drew with the same staff: 1913, 1914, 1917, 1922, 1930, 1933, 1934. Suddenly the wall was gone. I walk with the elder across a green field and see a mass of crosses: thousands, millions, different: small and great, wooden, stone, iron, copper, silver and gold. I walked past the crosses, crossed myself and dared to ask the elder what kind of crosses these were? He kindly answered me: these are those who suffered for Christ and the Word of God.

We go further and see: whole rivers of blood flow into the sea, and the sea is red with blood. I was horrified with fear and again asked the wonderful old man: “Why is so much blood shed?” He looked again and said to me: “This is Christian blood.”

Then the elder pointed his hand at the clouds, and I saw a mass of burning, brightly burning lamps. So they began to fall to the ground: one, two, three, five, ten, twenty. Then they began to fall in hundreds, more and more, and everyone was burning. I was very sad why they did not burn clearly, but only fell and went out, turning into dust and ashes. The elder said: look, and I saw only seven lamps on the clouds and asked the elder, what does this mean? He, bowing his head, said: “The lamps that you see falling, which means the Churches will fall into heresy, but seven burning lamps remain - seven Apostolic Cathedral Churches will remain at the end of the world.”

Then the elder pointed out to me, look, and now I see and hear a wonderful vision: The angels sang: “Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord of hosts.” And a large mass of people walked with candles in their hands, with joyful shining faces; there were kings, princes, patriarchs, metropolitans, bishops, archimandrites, abbots, schema-monks, priests, deacons. novices, pilgrims for Christ's sake, laity, young men, youths, infants; cherubim and seraphim accompanied them to the heavenly heavenly abode.

I asked the elder: “What kind of people are these?” The elder, as if knowing my thought, said: “These are all the servants of Christ who suffered for the holy Catholic and Apostolic Church of Christ.” I again dared to ask if I could join them. The elder said: no, it’s too early for you, be patient (wait). I asked again: “Tell me, father, how are the babies?” The elder said: these babies also suffered for Christ from King Herod (14 thousand), and also those babies received crowns from the King of Heaven, who were destroyed in their mother’s womb, and the nameless ones. I crossed myself: “What a great and terrible sin a mother will have—unforgivable.”

Let's go further - we go into a large temple. I wanted to cross myself, but the elder told me: “There is abomination and desolation here.” Now I see a very gloomy and dark temple, a gloomy and dark throne. There is no iconostasis in the middle of the church. Instead of icons, there are some strange portraits with animal faces and sharp caps, and on the throne is not a cross, but a large star and a Gospel with a star, and resin candles are burning, they crack like firewood, and the cup stands, and a strong stench comes from the cup, and from there all sorts of reptiles, toads, scorpions, spiders crawl, it’s scary to look at all this. Prosphora also with a star; in front of the throne stands a priest in a bright red robe and green toads and spiders crawl along the robe; his face is terrible and black as coal, his eyes are red, and smoke comes out of his mouth and his fingers are black, as if in ash.

Wow, Lord, how scary - then some vile, disgusting, ugly black woman jumped onto the throne, all in red with a star on her forehead and spun around on the throne, then shouted like a night owl to the whole temple in a terrible voice: “Freedom” - and began, and people, like madmen, began to run around the throne, rejoicing at something, and shouted, and whistled, and clapped their hands. Then they began to sing some kind of song - at first quietly, then louder, like dogs, then it all turned into an animal growl, then into a roar. Suddenly bright lightning flashed and strong thunder struck, the earth shook and the temple collapsed and fell through the ground.

The throne, the priest, the red woman all mixed up and thundered into the abyss. Lord, save me. Wow, how scary. I crossed myself. Cold sweat broke out on my forehead. I looked around. The elder smiled at me: “Did you see it?” he said. “I saw it, Father. Tell me what it was? Scary and terrible.” The elder answered me: “The temple, the priests and the people are heretics, apostates, atheists who have fallen behind the faith of Christ and from the Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church and have recognized the heretical, life-renewed church, which does not have the Grace of God. You cannot fast in it, neither confess, nor receive communion, nor receive confirmation." “Lord, save me, a sinner, send me repentance - a Christian death,” I whispered, but the elder reassured me: “Don’t grieve,” he said, “pray to God.”

We moved on. I look - there are a lot of people walking, terribly exhausted, everyone has a star on their forehead. When they saw us, they roared: “Pray for us, holy fathers, to God, it is very difficult for us, but we ourselves cannot do it. Our fathers and mothers did not teach us the Law of God and we do not even have a Christian name. We have not received the seal of the gift of the Holy Spirit (and the red banner)".

I cried and followed the elder. “Look,” the elder pointed with his hand, “do you see?!” I see mountains. - No, this mountain of human corpses is all soaked in blood. I crossed myself and asked the elder what does this mean? What kind of corpses are these? - These are monks and nuns, wanderers, wanderers, killed for the Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church, who did not want to accept the seal of the Antichrist, but wanted to accept the crown of martyrdom and die for Christ. I prayed: “Save, Lord, and have mercy on the servants of God and all Christians.” But suddenly the elder turned to the north side and pointed with his hand: “Look.”

I looked and saw: the Tsar’s palace, and all around were animals of different breeds and beasts of different sizes, reptiles, dragons, hissing, roaring and climbing into the palace, and had already climbed onto the throne of the Anointed Nicholas II, - his face is pale, but courageous, he reads Jesus prayer. Suddenly the throne shook, and the crown fell and rolled. The animals roared, fought, and crushed the Anointed One. They tore it apart and trampled on it like demons in hell, and everything disappeared.

Oh, Lord, how scary, save and have mercy from all evil, enemy and adversary. I cried bitterly, suddenly the elder took me by the shoulder, “Don’t cry, it’s the Lord’s will,” and pointed out: “Look,” I see a pale radiance appeared. At first I could not distinguish, but then it became clear - the Anointed One appeared involuntarily, on his head was a crown of green leaves. The face is pale, bloody, with a gold cross on the neck. He quietly whispered a prayer.

Then he said to me with tears: “Pray for me, Father Ivan, and tell all Orthodox Christians that I died as a martyr; firmly and courageously for the Orthodox Faith and for the Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church, and suffered for all Christians; and tell everyone Orthodox Apostolic shepherds, so that they serve a common fraternal memorial service for all the soldiers killed on the battlefield: those who burned in the fire, those who drowned in the sea, and for me, a sinner, who suffered. Do not look for my grave, it is difficult to find. I also ask: pray for me, Father Ivan, and forgive me, good shepherd." Then it all disappeared into the fog. I crossed myself: “O Lord, rest in peace the soul of the departed servant of God Nicholas, eternal memory to him.” God, how scary. My arms and legs were shaking, I was crying.

The elder again told me: “Don’t cry, that’s what God wants, pray to God. Look again.” Here I see a lot of people lying around, dying of hunger, who ate grass, ate the earth, and dogs picked up corpses, everywhere there was a terrible stench, blasphemy. Lord, save us and strengthen us in the holy faith of Christ, we are feeble and weak without faith. So the old man says to me again: “Look there.” And now I see a whole mountain of different books, small and large. Between these books, stinking worms crawl, swarm and spread a terrible stench. I asked: "What kind of books are these. Father?" He replied: “Godless, heretical, who infect all the people of the whole world with worldly blasphemous teachings.” The elder touched these books with the end of his staff, and it all turned into fire, and everything burned to the ground, and the wind scattered the ashes.

Then I see a church, and around it lies a mass of memorials and certificates. I bent down and wanted to pick one up and read it, but the elder said that these are the memorials and letters that have been lying around the church for many years, but the priests have forgotten them and never read them, and the departed souls ask to pray, but there is no one to read and no one to remember. I asked: “Who will be?” “Angels,” said the elder. I crossed myself. Remember, Lord, the souls of Your departed servants in Your kingdom.

We moved on. The elder walked quickly, so I could barely keep up with him. Suddenly he turned around and said: “Look.” Here comes a crowd of people, driven by terrible demons, who mercilessly beat and stabbed people with long lances, pitchforks and hooks. “What kind of people are these?” I asked the elder. “These are those,” the elder answered, “who fell away from the Faith and the Holy Apostolic Catholic Church and accepted the heretical life-renewal.” Here were: bishops, priests, deacons, laymen, monks, nuns who accepted marriage and began to live depravedly. There were atheists, sorcerers, fornicators, drunkards, money lovers, heretics, apostates from the Church, sectarians and others. They have a terrible and terrible appearance: their faces are black, foam and stench came from their mouths, and they screamed terribly, but the demons beat them mercilessly and drove them into a deep abyss. From there came stench, smoke, fire and stench. I crossed myself: “Deliver, Lord, and have mercy, all this I have seen is terrible.”

Then I see: a mass of people are walking; old and small, and all in red clothes and carried a huge red star, five-headed and at each corner 12 demons sat, and in the middle sat Satan himself with terrible horns and crocodile eyes, with a lion's mane and a terrible mouth, with large teeth and its mouth spewed out stinking foam. All the people shouted: “Get up, branded with a curse.” A mass of demons appeared, all red, and branded the people, putting a seal on everyone’s forehead and hand in the form of a star. The elder said that this is the seal of the Antichrist. I was very scared, crossed myself and read the prayer: “May God rise again.” After that everything disappeared like smoke.

I was in a hurry and barely had time to follow the elder, but the elder stopped, pointed his hand to the east and said: “Look.” And I saw a mass of people with joyful faces, and in their hands there were crosses, banners and candles, and in the middle, between the crowd, there was a high throne in the air, a golden royal crown and on it was written in golden letters: “For a little time.” Around the throne stand patriarchs, bishops, priests, monks, hermits and laity. Everyone sings: “Glory to God in the highest and peace on earth.” I crossed myself and thanked God.

Suddenly the Elder waved in the air three times in a cross shape. And now I see a mass of corpses and rivers of blood. Angels flew over the bodies of the murdered and barely had time to bring Christian souls to the Throne of God, and sang “Alleluia.” It was scary to look at all this. I cried bitterly and prayed. The elder took me by the hand and said, “Don’t cry. This is what the Lord God needs for our lack of faith and repentance, this must be so, our Savior Jesus Christ also suffered and shed His most pure blood on the cross. So, there will be many more martyrs for Christ, and These are those who will not accept the seal of the Antichrist, will shed blood and receive the crown of martyrdom."

Then the elder prayed, crossed himself three times to the east and said: “Behold, Daniel’s prophecy has been fulfilled. The abomination of desolation is final.” I saw the Jerusalem Temple, and there was a star on the dome. Millions of people crowd around the temple and try to enter inside the temple. I wanted to cross myself, but the elder stopped my hand and said again: “Here is the abomination of desolation.”

We entered the temple, where there were a lot of people. And then I see a throne in the middle of the temple. Around the throne in three rows, resin candles are burning, and on the throne sits in bright red purple the world ruler-king, and on his head is a gold crown with diamonds, with a star. I asked the elder: “Who is this?” He said, "This is the Antichrist." Tall, eyes like coal, black, a wedge-shaped black beard, a fierce, cunning and cunning face - beast-like, an aquiline nose. Suddenly the Antichrist stood on the throne, straightened up to his full height, raised his head high and extended his right hand to the people - his fingers had claws like a tiger, and growled in his bestial voice: “I am your god, king and ruler. Who will not accept my press - death for them here." Everyone fell to their knees and bowed and accepted the seal on their forehead. But some boldly approached him and loudly exclaimed at once: “We are Christians, we believe in our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Then in an instant the sword of the Antichrist flashed, and the heads of the Christian youths rolled and blood was shed for the faith of Christ. Here they are leading young women, women and small children. Here he became even more furious and shouted like an animal: “Death to them. These Christians are my enemies - death to them.” Instant death followed immediately. Their heads rolled to the floor and Orthodox blood spilled throughout the church.

Then they lead a ten-year-old boy to the Antichrist to worship and say: “Fall on your knees,” but the boy boldly approached the throne of the Antichrist; “I am a Christian and believe in our Lord Jesus Christ, and you are a fiend of hell, a servant of Satan, you are the Antichrist.” “Death,” he roared with a terrible wild roar. Everyone fell to their knees before the Antichrist. Suddenly, thousands of thunders thundered and thousands of heavenly lightnings flew like fiery arrows and struck the servants of the Antichrist. Suddenly the largest arrow, a fiery, cross-shaped one, flew from the sky and hit the Antichrist in the head. He waved his hand and fell, the crown flew off his head and crumbled into dust, and millions of birds flew and pecked at the corpses of the wicked servants of the Antichrist.

So I felt that the elder took me by the shoulder and said: “Let's go on our way.” Here I see again a mass of blood, knee-deep, waist-deep, oh, how much Christian blood has been shed. Then I remembered the word that was said in the Revelation of John the Theologian: “And there will be blood by the bridles of the horses.” Ax, God, save me, a sinner. Great fear came over me. I was neither alive nor dead. I see angels flying around a lot and singing: “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord.” I looked around - the elder was on his knees and praying. Then he stood up and tenderly said: “Do not grieve. Soon, soon the end of the world, pray to the Lord, He is merciful to His servants. There are no longer years left, but hours, and soon, soon the end.”

Then the elder blessed me and pointed his hand to the east and said: “I’m going there.” I fell to my knees, bowed to him and saw that he was quickly leaving the ground. then I asked: “What is your name, wonderful old man?” Then I exclaimed louder. "Holy Father, tell me, what is your holy name?" “Seraphim,” he quietly and softly told me, “write down what you saw and don’t forget it all for Christ’s sake.”

Mystical unity with God is often accompanied or preceded by visions, hearings, and generally the appearance in the consciousness of specific specific images.

St. John of the Cross (Spanish saint of the 16th century) finds that this is the “way of the flesh”: everything that appears in a certain, perceived image, he considers not belonging to the sphere of the Divine, but recognizes that o there are souls that move towards God “through sensory objects" (*). Bl. Suso, well acquainted with this experience and, perhaps, more grasping the fullness of mystical life, says: “Since the soul, due to the weakness of the heavy body, cannot always adhere to the pure Good in free from images, then she must have something an image that would take her there. The best thing for this is an attractive image (das liebreiche Bild) of Jesus Christ; in Him man finds life, He is the highest reward and greatest benefit” (**). All life bl. Suso passed in rapturous communion with the angels, Christ, and the Mother of God; he saw them in beautiful images, heard angelic singing and music. Being a student and follower of M. Eckhart, he is well acquainted with the teachings of negative theology (***). He recognizes that the more supersensual and ugly the vision, the more noble it is: it contains pure truth, direct contemplation of the simple Divine news (Gottheit, according to M. Eckhart). However, he adds that the friends of God are also rewarded with visions,

_____________________

*) Cm . Baruzi, St. Jean de la Croix et le problème de l'expérience mystique, 504 pp., 500, 510 pp., 267, 386, 525.

**)Seuse, Deutsche Schriften, ed. Bihlmeyer, 391.

***) Seuse, Deutsche Schrifften, Büchlein der Wahrheit, ed. E. Diederichs, ed. and from before W. Lehmann, II vol. pp. 117 pp., 129.

full of images. The conversion from an absent-minded life to God took place in him at the age of eighteen after an unexpected contemplation of the fullness of the Divine Superthing: he “saw and heard something inexpressible in language: it was something without form or appearance, but containing joyful pleasure from all forms and types.” “It was the sweetness emanating from eternal life in a present, abiding calm sensation” (*).

After this contemplation, Suso began to zealously strive for “loving union with Eternal Wisdom” (I, II). Sometimes his theopathic state was something between contemplation of the fullness of the Super-What and the vision of images. The content of one of these contemplations was as follows: Wisdom hovered high above him on a throne of clouds, shone like the Morning Star and shone like a brilliant sun, her crown was eternity, her robe was bliss, her words were sweetness, her embrace was the satisfaction of every pleasure; she was far and near, high and low, she was present and yet hidden; She entered into communication and yet it was impossible to touch her. When he thought about Her, “a kind of primary outflow of all goodness penetrated into his soul, in which he spiritually found everything beautiful, worthy of love and desire” (I, 13). - But most often Suso had visions of Christ, angels in certain images (for example, Christ in the form of a six-winged seraphim) and hearing angelic singing and music.

Life of St. Teresa is filled with visions and hearings no less than the life of Bl. Suso. In her youth, during a vain conversation with visitors to the monastery, she saw Christ with a serious face “through the eyes of the soul.” Describing her life, she says that she saw Him “more clearly than with bodily eyes” and, although 26 years have passed since then, she clearly remembers, as if seeing His face (*). As her religious life grew stronger, she had many visions. One day she saw the hands, then the face of Jesus Christ “in supernatural glory and beauty”; finally, she saw the whole of Christ, as He is depicted in the “Resurrection”; His whiteness and brilliance surpassed human imagination, the clarity of the sun in comparison with Him was darkness; however, this brilliance does not blind (XXVIII. ch., pp. 363-369). She visited sometimes

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*) Ibid., Vol. I, p. 10.

**) Theresia von Jesu. Das Leben der heiligen Theresia von Jesu und die besonderen ihr von Gott erheilten gnaden, auf Geheiss, ihrer Beichtväter von ihr selbst beschrieben, von Fr. Aloisius ab Immaculata Conceptione, Priester aus dem Orden der unbeschuhten Karmeliten, 1919, Ch. VII, p. 69.

and visions of the kingdom of evil. Once she saw the devil: he had a disgusting mouth, flames came from his body; he said that Teresa escaped his power, but he would take possession of her again (chap. XXXI, p. 415).

Visions happen not only to great mystics and ascetics. Particularly touching and significant in their consequences for everything Christendom visions of children, e.g. the appearance of Our Lady Bernadette and the transformation of Lourdes into a center of pilgrimage and healing for many people. Even more remarkable, perhaps, is the appearance of the Mother of God on September 19th. 1846 to two shepherd children Pierre Maximin Giraud (11 years old) and Melanie Calvat 15 years old) on a mountain in the “Alpes daufinoises” near the village of Salette. Descending from the mountain, the children suddenly saw fire ball and the radiance that filled the entire valley. When the radiance parted, the children saw the “Belle Dame” sitting on the stones in inconsolable grief, with her elbows on her knees, her face covered with her hands. She stood up and approached the children. She wore a wreath of roses on her head; her dress shone, on her chest, or rather inside her, was a crucifix with tongs and a hammer. She encouraged the children and gave them important messages. Some of them were addressed to both children, some - only to Maximin, the most significant messages - to Melania alone, with the order to publish them only after twelve years. The Mother of God spoke about the sins of the people and about the heavy punishment for them, about the times when there would be famine, the death of children, etc. (*) She said that the time would come when the church and civil authorities would be destroyed, when there would be no love for anyone to the fatherland, not to the family; the new authorities will instill materialism, atheism, and vices; churches will be closed and profaned; many people will fall away from the faith (**).

Our Lady also spoke about the bad life of the modern clergy (“cloaques d’impureté”), about their love of money, etc., and also advised not to trust the “double-minded” Napoleon, etc. Apparently, this part of the message was the reason for the resistance to printing stories of Melania and the suppression of them by the clergy. The full text was published only in 1879 by order of Pope Leo XIII. Most surprising is the circumstance that prompted L. Blois (L. B. l ou ) write a book about this vision “Celle qui pleure” (1908). Our Lady ordered the founding of a new religious order, "Les Apôtres des Derniers Temps"; Pope Leo XIII ordered

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*) Monseigneur J. Giray, l "eveque de Cahors. Les miracles de la Salette, 2 vol., Grenoble 1921.

**) Α . About rent , Le secret complet de la Salette, 1902.

hall in 1878 to introduce the charter of the order in the monastery at Notre Dame de la Salette, but the Bishop of Grenobol, says Blois, did not carry out the order; he died falling to the floor, tormented by a terrible vision *).

We have sufficiently diverse material to now raise the question of the types of visions and their source. Most often, mystics, saints, and spirit seers talk about spiritual seeing and hearing. St. Teresa says that she saw Christ “with the eyes of the soul” (chap. VII, 69); when Christ appeared before her in all his splendor and glory, she described her experience as a “vision in the imagination,” but with the confidence that it was not a subjective creation of her imagination, but the appearance of Christ himself (chap. VII, 69; ch. XXVIII , 365 pp.). Bl. Suso speaks of "inner vision." (*) Swedenborg calls his experiences “inner vision”, “inner hearing”, “inner speech” (**).

Catholic literature on mysticism calls this kind of vision and hearing imaginative (occurring in the imagination) and distinguishes from them sensory visions and intellectual contemplation. In the spirit of the doctrines of perception developed by intuitionism, the difference between sensory and imaginative vision can be defined as follows: in sensory vision, sensory qualities are given as felt, and in imaginative vision, as imagined (for example, as they appear to the subject in memory, and memory considered to focus on the authentic past itself). Intellectual contemplation is carried out without seeing images and hearing words. Yes, St. Teresa once on St. Petra experienced “neither with her eyes nor with her imagination” the clear presence of Christ beside her; the certainty of His presence was complete (chapter XXVII, 345-350). In such contemplations, despite the absence of an image, she knows what individuality she is dealing with - with Jesus Christ, with the Apostle. Peter, Ap. Pavel; she also knows which side of her they are on (***). Also, the perception of the “heavenly language”, the revelation of truth, was sometimes carried out purely “spiritually” - without hearing words, sometimes even without any words at all. “Lovers,” says St. Teresa, “understand each other without signs” - (Chapter XXVII, 350-355). Visions and contemplations of St. Teresa, they usually say about her, was always

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*) L.B l ou, 80.

**) M. Lamm, Swedenborg, trans. On him. language (1922), pp. 148, 232, 236.

***) Delacroix, 100.

Yes, imaginative or intellectual, but not sensory. Only once in her life story does she report that while praying for a person who was planning to commit a sinful act, she heard a whisper with her “bodily ears” that calmed her down (chap. XXXIX, 566). Swedenborg also had some visions of a sensory nature (*).

Mystics describe their imaginative contemplations in the same words (“inner vision”, etc.) as do patients experiencing pseudohallucinations. This term means special kind hallucinations, studied most thoroughly by the Russian psychiatrist V. Kandinsky. In his monograph on pseudohallucinations, Kandinsky gives the following definition of this concept: pseudohallucinations are “very vivid and sensually definite images to the extreme, which, however, sharply differ for the most perceiving consciousness from true hallucinatory images in that they do not have the inherent character of objective reality. but, on the contrary, they are directly recognized as something subjective, but at the same time as something abnormal, new, something very different from the images of memory and fantasy” (**).

In modern psychology, thanks to E. R. Iaensch and his school, research is being carried out that can be used to explain pseudohallucinations. I mean the study of the characteristics of memory in persons whom Iaensch calls eidetics: what is remembered appears in their memories with sensory completeness, equal completeness of perception, so that they, for example, can distinguish and observe in what is remembered what they did not have time to notice at the moment of perception (***).

Every healthy person, in some exceptional conditions, can have such ideas. Thus, a person engaged in any anatomical preparation, for example. by dissecting the muscles of the arm and intensely concentrating attention on this object for several hours in a row, a person who has been examining the preparations under a microscope for a long time experiences, when going home and while resting, the repeated appearance of these objects in the field of vision. Even those objects that were not long-lasting

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*) Lamm, 178.

**) V. X. Kandinsky. About pseudohallucinations. St. Petersburg. 1890, p. 26.

***) See the works of E. R. J ae ns with h, “Ueber den Aufbander Wahrnehmungswelt und ihre Struktur im Jugendalter”, “Die Eidetik und die typologische Forschungsmethode”, etc.

but are fixed, often appearing in consciousness in its entirety if for some reason they strike the imagination. The girl's face, amazed young man its beauty, can appear in this consciousness with such vividness and completeness as at the moment of perception. In the same way, sometimes an aria sounds intrusively in the ear for several days after listening to an opera.

Those who have lost euletics, so common in childhood and adolescence, or have never possessed it to a significant extent, regard such contemplations as abnormal, different from ordinary memories, but without seeing anything pathological in them. An experienced adult does not accept these contemplations as perceptions of existing reality, although they appear in consciousness with some shade of receptivity. This is probably explained by the fact that such memories emerge in consciousness not on the initiative of the subject, but on the basis of the excitation of certain centers of the brain.

Pseudohallucinations can be considered in some cases completely, as eidetic memories, and in other cases, as an imaginary synthesis such eidetically remembered elements. This synthesis can be produced not by the subject himself, but by subordinate substantial figures who are part of the brain centers; Therefore, people suffering from pseudohallucinations in a pathological and obsessive form, although they do not take them for perceptions, still see in them some kind of receptive nature and build hypotheses corresponding to this, for example, they think that these ideas are the result of the influence of persecutors on their consciousness or that they are a kind of revelation from God, etc. (*)

In pseudohallucinations, according to the intuitionistic-realistic interpretation of them, it is given transsubjective material, colors, sounds, etc., not through sensory perception, but through another intentional act, through memory, i.e. kind spiritual visions. Patients clearly see and note this. Kandinsky, an attentive observer who himself was periodically exposed to mental illness, which was accompanied by the experience of many pseudohallucinations and actual hallucinations, in his book especially emphasized, on the basis of introspection, the testimony of other patients and the observations of other psychiatrists, that distinctive feature of pseudohallucinations,

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*) Kandinsky, pp. 36, 38 pp., 129.

which I call their spirituality. A patient, for example, experiencing an auditory pseudohallucination, says that he silently hears the thoughts of other people (9). One of Kandinsky's patients says that he hears internally, and not with the ear, that he sees brightly colored images mentally(28). A recovered doctor describes his visual pseudohallucinations as expressively plastic representation(33). Kandinsky himself, wanting to clarify his observations, exposed himself to opium; At the same time, he experienced both real hallucinations and pseudohallucinations; when he experienced pseudo-hallucinations, for example. the faces of his acquaintances, a yellow rose, etc. appeared in front of him; he saw these objects not with external eyes, but with internal eyes, located somewhere behind the external eyes (41). Patients characterize their experiences as “seeing in the spirit,” “clairvoyance,” “hearing in the spirit,” hearing “inner voices,” “spiritual hearing,” “auditory sensation,” as opposed to mental suggestion, etc. (70-87).

The characteristic words that mark the difference between pseudohallucinations and sensory perception and real hallucinations coincide with the expressions that mystics, saints, and spirit seers use to describe their visions. Therefore, modern researchers usually classify such visions as pseudohallucinations. However, such a solution is a dubious simplification of the question of visions. The term pseudohallucination should be used to designate the spiritual contemplation of an object that does not belong to the composition of reality of either this world or the other world: it is an object composed of transsubjective elements subjected to subjectivism or, in general, mental synthesis that does not create real existence. There are, however, cases of spiritual contemplation of sensory data relating to objects that are part of the real world. Thus, according to intuitionism, any eidetic memory, for example. anatomical specimen, face beautiful girl and so on. there is spiritual contemplation of real objects. Even in normal perception, for example, when we hear only sounds like barking dogs, others like a ringing bells without seeing these objects, we see softness velvet, rigidity metal inkwell, without touching these objects, the presence in the consciousness of these sensory data is their spiritual contemplation, more direct than memory (*). The ability of such

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*) See my theory of perceptions in the article “Intuitionism and the doctrine of transsubjectivity of sensory qualities”, Zap. Russian Scientific Institute in Belgrade, vol. 5, 1931.

spiritual contemplation of sensory data is explained by the coordination of the subject with all objects of the world, the presence of the entire cosmos in the preconscious of the subject and the possibility of cases when the stimulus for their recognition is not irritation of the senses, but some other conditions - sometimes psychophysiological, and sometimes purely mental or spiritual .

Bearing in mind the possibility of spiritual contemplation of sensory objects, one should not rush to equate the imaginative visions of mystics with the pseudo-hallucinations of the mentally ill. Indeed, firstly, great mystics are in no way mentally ill people. The psychiatrist Quercy, in his remarkable study "L" hallucination, proves that St. Teresa's neuropathic conditions in no way undermine her "highly normal mental activity." In her activities, amazing in intensity and variety, she displays a rare combination of high virtues: generosity and humility, courage and modesty, firmness and obedience, the wisdom of the serpent and the meekness of the dove (*). Secondly, the great mystics have a particularly refined ability of self-observation. St. Teresa, for example, distinguishes in her consciousness the “words” emanating from her spirit from the "words" attributed by her to an external cause. If the words in my consciousness come from my own soul, then, she says, the activity of my mind is noticeable, at least to the weakest degree; moreover, these words are not clear, do not cause self-confidence, they can be stopped; if the words come from God, then there is no activity of the human mind, the words are completely clear, they cannot be stopped, they are extremely effective: these words are affairs, they bring with them genuine consolation and reassurance; they have greatness and irresistible persuasiveness, they are unforgettable. They are obtained regardless of our desire: when you want to hear them, you do not receive them; when you don't think about them at all, they appear. Once or twice St. Teresa experienced words from the devil; in content they were kind, but after them, dryness and anxiety remain in the soul. She also says about visual images that some of them come from one’s own imagination, others from evil spirit, the third are from God. The latter surpass the power of human imagination, enrich the soul, strengthen the health of the soul and body, and free one from evil habits and characteristics (**). Thirdly, about many of my visions

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*) G . Quercy, L" hallucination, I, vol. Philosophes et mystiques, (1930), pp. 183, 218.

**) Ch. XXV, pp. 318-325; Ch. XXVIII, pp. 372-375.

mystics say that the presence of God in them has the character of complete certainty.

Is it possible to allow the Lord God himself to enter into human consciousness in a certain, limited image? This question can be answered like this. The super-personal aspect of God does not prevent Him from having at the same time a personal aspect, even from being a trinity of Persons; in the same way, the super-imagery of God does not exclude the availability for Him of an image, or rather, of any images that, of course, have highest degree perfection. Some theologians believe that Christ, while remaining the Supermundane principle, at the same time creates a real one on earth. an object, visible to the person honored with this appearance of Him (*).

According to Christian teachings, The Church is the Body of Christ, she is the perfect aspect of the world, embracing the universe; therefore, the Body of Christ embraces the whole world, it is cosmic body. In the same way, the members of the Kingdom of God, the Mother of God, angels, saints, embracing the whole world with their love, can have nothing other than cosmic bodies; their bodies are individual aspects of the Body of Christ, encompassing the entire universe (**). For such creatures, in their essence, super-spatial, it is quite possible to appear in a particular limited image in a certain place in space, which does not, of course, exhaust their existence, and does not exclude the possibility of their appearance simultaneously in other places in other images. About such multipraesentia, for example, of Christ, the Church speaks in both hymns: “In the carnal tomb, in hell with the soul like God, in paradise with the thief, and on the throne you were, Christ, with the Father and the Spirit, fulfilling all the Indescribable "(***). The vision caused by such a phenomenon of the celestials must be of a sensory nature. Perhaps this was, for example, the appearance of the Mother of God to the children Maximin and Melania near Salette.

Imaginative visions can be interpreted differently. The super-existent God is closer to every existing thing, to every person, to every particle of matter, to an atom, an electron, than they are to themselves (****); He comprehends everything, embraces everything, for everything

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*) Cm . Qu e r su , I 335; theologians Saudreaux, Etats mystiques, 211; Poulain, Grâces d'oraison, 325; Farges, Théologie mystique, II, 51.

**) See my article “On the Resurrection in the Flesh”, “The Way” 1931.

***) Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom. About multipraesentia in the space of super-dimensional beings, see my article: “The intellect of primitive man and the enlightened European,” in “Sovr. Zap.”, 1926, issue. 28.

****) Cm. Seuse, I vol., 82.

influences, being inseparably connected with everything, although not merged. He can therefore appear to a person to a certain extent “from within” in the imagination and, nevertheless, really: in fact, He can influence the human body and cause those changes in it that serve as a stimulus for eidetic memories. Members of the Kingdom of God who participate in Divine life and power can also have an effect on the human body in the same way. In such cases they are clothed in those transsubjective sensory qualities that serve as the subject of memory. They can be embodied in them, really “imagined.” From this it is clear why God and the members of the Kingdom of God appear “according to the soul of the one who receives them,” as W. Lehmann put it in the preface to the works of Suso (*) published by him: they are present in visions through statues, paintings, icons seen by the subject, says Quercy ( **). Otherwise, those who appear would not be recognized by man.

Quercy is very close to the theory I develop of the embodiment of celestial beings in images of the imagination. It is possible that the difference between our views boils down only to the fact that I, as an intuitionist, consider the recalled sensory qualities to be trans-subjective and in this sense give a more real character to the image. Quercy speaks concerning the visions of St. Teresa, that if she had a hypnotist, it was God himself. He explains the visions by saying that God influences the activity of our faculties of memory and refers to the words of John of the Cross: “Deus omnia mo vet secundum modum eorum.” The mechanism of visions, he says, is the same as that of hallucinations; nevertheless, we must decisively distinguish between natural visions (hallucinations), demonic and divine, depending on the reason affecting our body. In the case of vision caused by the influence of God, the mechanism of our process is filled with His presence (***).

Intellectual contemplation can be explained by the direct influence of God or the members of the Kingdom of God on a person, prompting him to focus on the transsubjective Divine world itself, bearing in mind its non-sensory essence or the non-sensory content of truth communicated from this sphere.

From all that has been said, it is clear how one should treat Delacroix’s final conclusion in his valuable study “Etudes d’histoire et de psychologie du mysticisme”.

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*) Page XXXVIII.

**) L "hallucination, pp. 175-179.

***) P. Quercy, pp. 185, 336 pp.

Having looked at the experiences of brilliant mystics with a great breadth of outlook and recognizing their high character, he nevertheless ends, apparently in the spirit of psychologism, with the thought that all the peculiar phenomena in the consciousness of mystics should be explained by the activity of the subconscious (*). That the area of ​​the subconscious plays a significant role here, there can be no doubt. However, where Delacroix stops, it is for the first time that the main and final problem arises: is this a purely subjective activity of the subconscious or is the reason for it the genuine influence of the higher world on a person, and the contemplated content is a higher transsubjective reality. An answer in the spirit of pure psychologism would be untenable. If any phenomenon in consciousness has the character of “given to me,” then it is a manifestation of my self: it comes from some substantial agent. True, this may be an actor of a lower type than the human self, part of the human body, for example, the head of some nerve center. But one has only to recognize this possibility, and it will become clear that the given manifestations of other figures are also possible, standing above the human “I” or on an equal basis with it and who entered into close connection with it only for a short time.

Many visions are symbolic in nature and contain the expression of such truths and aspects of the world or Divine life that cannot be given in an image other than symbolically. It does not follow from this that such images are subjective actions of the human “I”. They can be real symbols, specific symbolic phenomena of the Divine world (**). Bl. Suso, for example, once saw Christ and many people as his members (***). St. Teresa says that through the vision of the humanity of Christ she often comes to comprehend the mysteries of God (****).

Thoughts of remarkable depth were sometimes revealed to Swedenborg under the guise of living, concrete events. So, one day he wondered: how is it possible for the goodness of the Lord to allow demons to remain in hell forever? “As soon as I thought this,” says Swedenborg, “how one of the angels of the right heart fell extremely quickly into the ischial region of the great Satan

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*) Page 405 pp.

**) On real symbolism, see N. Berdyaev “Philosophy of the Free Spirit”, I volume, 101 pp.

***) II, 125.

****) Ch. XXII, 280.

and from there, by inspiration from the Lord, he extracted one of the worst demons in order to bring him heavenly bliss. But it was given to me to see that as the angel ascended to the heavenly spheres, his captive changed the proud expression of his face to a suffering one, and his body turned black; when, despite his resistance, he was drawn into the middle heavens, terrible convulsions occurred to him, with all his appearance and movements he showed that he was experiencing the greatest and unbearable torment; when he approached the heart region of heaven, his tongue came out far out, like that of a very tired and thirsty dog, and his eyes burst, as if from a burning heat. And I felt sorry for him, and I prayed to the Lord to tell the angel to let him go. And when, by the will of the Lord, he was released, he threw himself head down with such swiftness that I could only see his extremely black heels flash. And then it was suggested to me: whether someone is in heaven or hell depends not on the will of God, but on the internal state of the being, and moving by someone else’s will from hell to heaven would be as painful for those being moved as moving from heaven to hell ... And thus I understood that the eternity of hell for those who find their pleasure in it equally corresponds to both the wisdom and the goodness of God” (*). It should be noted, however, that many revelations appeared in Svendenborg’s consciousness in the form of “inner speech” with beings of other kingdoms of the world (**).

So far we have been talking about visions of bodily images, which cannot otherwise be interpreted as single, individual acts of communication of the other world with an individual; they most often provide consolation, reinforcement, and instruction to an individual, but sometimes also through this person revelation to the whole world (for example, through biblical prophets). But in addition to such individual manifestations of corporeality, the members of the Kingdom of God and the very head of it, the Divine Logos, in that aspect in which He is the God-man Jesus Christ, possesses a transfigured spiritual corporeality, which is also significant for the Kingdom of God itself: in this corporeality it has fullness existence and perfect beauty.

Without a doubt, each of us, to the extent of our love for good or need for its revelation, more or less joins the vision of reflections of this Kingdom, for example, in that

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*) Arcena coelestina, girolozh. Memoraliabia.

**) Lamm, 236.

sublime perception of the beauties of nature or the beauty of man, which fills the soul with indestructible confidence in the existence of God and His Kingdom. A particularly in-depth vision of this Kingdom, which clearly leads to the realm of the other world, requires a different psychophysical organization, more or less deviating from that which we consider normal for a person. Indeed, if the stimulus for the perception of the external world is the irritation of ours caused by it nervous system, then it is clear that this system and the whole body must deviate from the general human type in persons who have an increased sensitivity to other worlds, whether it be the higher world, the Kingdom of God, or the lower one, the kingdom of evil. Dostoevsky clearly expressed this idea in the words of Svidrigailov, who joined the kingdom of evil. Svidrigailov reasons as follows: They say: “You are sick, therefore, what seems to you is nothing but non-existent nonsense.” But there is no strict logic here. I agree that ghosts are only sick; but this only proves that ghosts can appear only to the sick, and not that they do not exist on their own.”

A theory of visions, similar to the one developed by me, apparently was outlined in Vl’s mind. Solovyova. This can be seen from the following story about him by his friend, Prince. E. Trubetskoy. “Early in the morning, immediately after his awakening, an oriental man in a turban appeared to him. He uttered extraordinary nonsense about the article Solovyov had just written about Japan (“I was driving along the road; I read about Buddhism; here’s Buddhism for you”) and poked him in the stomach with an unusually long umbrella. The vision disappeared, and Solovyov felt severe pain in the liver, which then lasted for three days.”

“He almost always experienced such pain and other painful phenomena after visions. On this occasion, I once told him: “your visions are simply hallucinations of your illnesses.” He immediately agreed with me. But this agreement cannot be interpreted in the sense that Soloviev denies the reality of his visions. In his mouth, these words meant that illness makes our imagination susceptible to influences from the spiritual world to which healthy people remain completely insensitive. Therefore, in such cases he did not deny the need for treatment. He recognized hallucinations as phenomena of subjective and, moreover, sick imagination. But this did not prevent him from believing in the objective cause of hallucinations, which is in us imagined, embodied through

a means of subjective imagination in external reality.” (*).

Before the war, the most talented young Russian philosopher D.V. began to develop the theory of perception of the Divine world. Boldyrev, who considered himself a follower of intuitionism. He spent the summer of 1914 in the Pyrenees, keeping in mind that apparitions of the Mother of God often occurred there and wanting to get a vivid idea of ​​the nature in whose setting they occurred. He outlined his impressions of this trip and hints about his theory in the article “Fire Font” (in “Russian Thought”, 1915). It is possible that later, as a professor in Perm, he developed his theory in a precise philosophical form and presented it in a manuscript, which was kept after his death in his family in the Far East.

Among people whose consciousness is attached to “other worlds”, there are often people in whom two planes of existence are mixed and confused with each other; they cannot really identify the data of their experience, cannot express it in a meaningful form. Typically, such persons, wishing to expand their philosophical education, are drawn to exotic literature, especially Hindu; reading European philosophical classics, for example, Descartes, which would help discipline their thoughts, turns out to be boring for them. They cannot fit their experiences into any framework, since they cannot find their connection with the rational aspects of existence; therefore philosophically they turn out to be sterile. Some of these individuals still find the strength to express their experiences in literary works, but they contain a strange mixture of great and small, otherworldly and this-worldly. These are, for example, in Russian literature the “revelations” of Anna Schmidt “On the Future”, “The Third Testament”, etc.; By the way, she was inclined to consider herself the embodiment of the Church, and Vl. Solovyov - the incarnation of Christ (**).

In Western European literature, an example of confused mysticism can be Swedenborg's reports of his visits to other planets and his conversations with their inhabitants; Vl. Soloviev considers them “essentially delusional in nature” (***).

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*) Book. E. Trubetskoy, World Outlook Vl. Solovyova, I, p. 20 p.

**) From the manuscripts of Anna Nikolaevna Schmidt, with letters to her from Vl. Solovyov (Moscow 1916), Preface, p. XIV.

***) V. Soloviev, vol. IX, p. 241.

Great mystic philosophers, on the contrary, have increased sensitivity to the rational aspect of existence. They enter the realm of the superrational not only on the basis of mystical intuition, but also because the strict consistency of rational thinking obliges them to ascend to a higher sphere. This is the thinking of Plotinus, Proclus, Ertigen, Anselm of Canterbury, Hugo Victorinian, Richard Victorinian, John Bonaventure, Raymond Lull, Roger Bacon, Nicholas of Cusa, Pascal, Fichte, Schelling, Hegel, Vl. Solovyov, from. P. Florensky.

From the works of such mystics, who know the connection between the superrational and the rational, it is clearly seen that mystical systems of philosophy are not a set of incoherent vague broadcasts: on the contrary, for the first time these systems achieve the greatest consistency and understandability of the world accessible to the human mind, since they eliminate the incoherence and gaps of one-sided rationalism . Hegel says: “The mystical, it is true, is mysterious, but only for the understanding and, moreover, simply because the principle of the understanding is an abstract identity, and the mystical (as equivalent to the speculative) is the concrete unity of those determinations that the understanding considers true only in their separation and opposite." “Thus, everything rational should be designated at the same time as mystical, which, however, only says that it goes beyond the limits of reason, and not at all that it should be considered in general as inaccessible to thought and incomprehensible” (*) .

The passive nature of visions is fraught with danger. The source of their occurrence can be in some cases the lower substantial figures of our own body, in others - creatures of other kingdoms of existence, and, moreover, as different as members of the kingdom of evil, then - members of the Kingdom of God and even the Lord God himself. If there is the slightest stain of evil in a person’s soul, for example, even an insignificant shade of proud recognition of himself as the exclusive chosen one of God, a special instrument of the Holy Spirit, then he almost certainly falls under “delusion,” i.e. will have false visions coming from evil forces. Artificial training of oneself, the deliberate cultivation of passivity in oneself in order to achieve visions, verbal revelations, automatic writing is a particularly dangerous soil on which falsifications of communication with higher world. Mixed-

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*) Hegel, Encycl. I th., Die Logik (1840) VI. B. § 82. Zusatz, p. 159 p. See generally my article: “Hegel as an intuitionist,” Zap. Russian Scientific inst. in Belgrade.

in the last period of his activity the Borg wanted to achieve complete passivity; after one of the visions of Christ, he began to passionately focus on the image of the crucifixion; it is possible that as a result of these exercises he experienced states of doubling of personality. Already in the Middle Ages, the Catholic Church began to develop “spiritual exercises” (exercitia spiritualia), meditations consisting of intense concentration on the suffering of Christ, on various periods of His life, presented with possible sensory specificity. A wonderful system of such exercises was created by Ignatius of Loyola (*). Therefore, perhaps in catholic church There are people who can spend hours contemplating various episodes from the life of Jesus Christ. For example, she became famous for such visions at the beginning of the 19th century. Catherine Emmerich. Clemens Brentano lived with her for several years, recording her contemplations, which resulted in the edifying book “Das bittere Leiden unserer Herrn Jesu Chrsti. Nach den Betrachtungen der gottseligen Anna Katharina Emmerich Augustinerin des Klosters Agnetenberg zu Düllmen nebst dem Latensmris dieser Begnadigten” (**).In our time, Teresa Neumann from Konnerreuth experiences similar experiences ( Konnersreuth ); Her lifestyle (she manages almost completely without food) is also similar to the life of Catherine Emmerich. St. John of the Cross warns against such a life filled with visions: he says that the data of memory can be used by a demon to expose a person to temptation through visions and “revelations.” It is better not to think about the human image of Christ, but to approach Him even closer than in visions by imitating Him (***)

Particularly dangerous is passivity without purification of the soul and aspiration towards God, developed, for example, during spiritualistic sessions with the goal of making oneself an instrument (medium) of beings of another world (automatic writing, spiritualistic phenomena, etc.). At best, we are dealing with the increased activity of the lower figures who control our nerve centers(this is why, as a rule, messages received through automatic writing are colorless and mediocre), at worst, this is the activity of beings from the kingdom of evil taking over our body.

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*) See, for example, the German edition of J. Loyola, Das Exerzitienbuch. Translation. Ferder"a, explanations M. Meschler, S. I., Feb. i Br.

**) Cl.Brentano, Saemmtl. Werne, hrg. von C. Scheddenkopf, 1912, exactly Bd. XIY, I Abth. "Religious Schriften" with the introduction W. Oh ehl" I .

***) In aruzi, 540 pp., 239, 257, 260; cm . Also Qu e r su , 310.

In both cases, we are exposed to the danger of split personality, obsession, hysteria (*).

Some mystics, for example, the quietist Mme Guyon, cultivated in themselves an extreme degree of passivity, considering any manifestation of their will to be evil, and hoping by renouncing their activity to transform themselves into a pure instrument of the will of God. Literature inspired by the extremes of quietism (Fenelon's dispute with Blet and others) correctly points out that evil does not lie in personal activity, but in directing it towards selfish goals. And in fact, if the primordial essence of substantial agents, created in the image and likeness of God, is endowed with creative power, then it is clear that the agents are called to individual creative participation in the Divine plan of the world process. The ideal of communion with the Divine life consists of a harmonious relationship between very heterogeneous processes of creative initiative in goodness, obedient fulfillment of the commands of God and joyful acceptance of the visit of God and members of the Kingdom of God in cases where there is no reason to suspect their authenticity.

The Orthodox Church does not sympathize with artificial exercises that lead to the emergence of visions, but in those cases when they involuntarily arise among holy ascetics, she joyfully notes them; This is, for example, the legend according to which St. Sergius of Radonezh, while performing the liturgy, always saw a concelebrant Angel, whom his disciple Isaac once also saw.

Recognition of the reality of some visions presupposes a transformed physicality and requires an explanation of how light, sound, heat and other sensory qualities are possible where there is no material bodies. To answer this question, you need to realize that even in the material environment, where sound, light, etc. are accompanied by attractions and repulsions of particles of matter or their elements, it is not these repulsions and attractions that are the cause that produces sensory quality. As in all other cases, a new event is a creative act of substantial agents, usually involving a combination of forces of several agents. In the realm of psycho-material being, however, this is not only the unification of several agents for joint activity, but also the exclusion of certain other agents, accompanied by repulsion. These relations of mutual isolation do not strengthen

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*) See about this from. P. Florensky, “The Pillar and Ground of Truth” notes - pp. 697 pp., 706 pp.

They do not improve creative activity, but, on the contrary, weaken it and reduce the value of its results: sound, light, etc., accompanied by processes of repulsion, are sensory qualities containing interruptions, irregularities, chaotic impurities, etc. imperfections that reduce their beauty or even lead to ugliness. In the Kingdom of God, where there are no processes of repulsion, transformed physicality is created by the joint creative acts of many figures without any confrontation or constraint between them; it consists of sensual qualities, pure, perfect, harmoniously related to each other, embodying absolute beauty.

N. Lossky.

Vision of Saint Apostle Paul

When they went down to Troas, Paul had a vision at night: a certain man, a Macedonian, appeared, asking him and saying: “Come to Macedonia and help us.” After this vision, we immediately decided to go to Macedonia, concluding that the Lord had called us to preach the gospel there.”(Acts 16:9,10).

It is impossible, without a special feeling, to imagine the moment when Saint Paul, having reached seashore in Troas, stopped in sight of Europe, and when, for the first time, she appeared to his eyes, on the other side of the blue waves of the Hellespont. Here is the limit of his native Asia; and there is unknown Europe. What should he have felt when he saw the land of the Japhetids in the distance? So he walked around with the lamp of faith front, or adjacent to the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea, Asia and proclaimed the name of Jesus Christ everywhere. Enough, it would seem, of all the dangers he endured and the labors he endured. For another it would be enough to bear the spiritual burden of so many Churches he founded, so many thousands of souls he converted to the living God. But the heart of the apostle expands along with the success of his preaching, zeal grows with the obstacles; Europe is close and attracts him to itself. Beyond the sea, spread out at his feet, he sees Greece, with its brilliant arts and pitiful deities; with the eyes of his mind he sees Rome, this royal city, with the peoples kneeling before it; he embraces the world with the immeasurable gaze of his apostolic aspirations... And so a strange, seemingly unrealizable dream arises in him - to conquer this proud pagan world under the power of Jesus Christ.

“Then,” says St. Luke, at nightfall, Paul had a vision. The man appeared before him and called him and said: “cross the sea and help us.” So, God heeded the apostle’s prayer and sanctified the fiery desire of his heart with His command.”

"Help us!" Such was the cry of the ancient world, the cry of the perishing, the cry of the desperate. So, here is the final word of a brilliant civilization, the centuries-long development of mankind! There were so many thinkers and sages, so many lyceums and academies, so many discussions and studies, so many laws and government agencies, so many revolutions and brilliant writers - and all this only to come, finally, to the need to cry out: “Come and help us.” Doubt torments us, and, the play of all possible waves of human thought, we are finally wrecked and thrown onto the quicksand of bleak doubt. “Help us,” for corruption is consuming us, the infection has penetrated to the marrow of our bones - we no longer know what truth and innocence are; Nature itself trembles before our depravity. “Help us,” because we are all in captivity, all at the feet of the one who deceived and destroyed the first man. “Help us,” because our gods are dead, lame, silent, and our priests laugh at their own rituals and sacrifices. “Come,” we suffer, and for us there is no hope from anywhere. So the apostle, confident in vision, is ready to undertake this extraordinary task - to go to save suffering paganism. The sea that he will have to cross has already been crossed more than once by conquerors with their numerous hordes: Xerxes, Alexander and Caesar; at the sight of their formidable hordes, with unfurled banners and huge carts, they usually said: “The world will soon pass into the hands of another ruler.” Now, from one bank to the other, a fragile boat carries four unknown men: Paul the Tarsian and his disciples: Luke, Silas and Timothy; no one, of course, noticed their swimming, no one knew who they were, where they were sailing and why. However, these people are embarking on a kind of war: they want to conquer the world, establish an undying kingdom. And - a wonderful thing: they achieve their goal - and we, the descendants of the peoples to whom they brought the words of life and salvation, after eighteen centuries, glorify and bless their memory!..

So, let this wonderful page from the history of apostolic times serve for our edification. What happened in Troas is repeated in all ages of the Church and in the events of the life of every Christian. Everyone who can still listen to the voice of faith has heard a similar call, a cry of extremity and need, material or spiritual, and this voice called us and begged for help. Are you listening to this voice? Are you fulfilling your calling? - Questions that the conscience of each of us must answer.

The former Saul, a Jew from the sect of the Pharisees, was moved by the cry of the perishing ancient world, because he was then already an apostle of Jesus Christ, a servant of the One who took pity on the misfortunes of a perishing man and who gave Himself to save him. Paul now sees Jesus Christ as his King. But what is the distinguishing feature of His kingdom? It is all full of love and selflessness. All the kings before Him and after Him had their “exaltation” in mind. He, the King of earth and heaven, alone wanted to “humble Himself.” Everyone thought to themselves: “We must rule.” He alone said: “I came to serve and give My soul for the salvation of the world.” Jesus Christ bowed His gaze from the height of His throne, heard the cries and groans of criminal humanity, and, to save it, descended into the depths of the abyss of our evils and our condemnation.

As the Mentor is, so must the disciples be. Jesus Christ, by His word and example, commanded us to love our neighbors and take care of His least brothers. He constantly mentioned those whom no one seemed to have noticed until then. It is to them that He wants to direct the concern and concern of His disciples. On the last day He will call blessed, and will bring into His glory those who helped the poor, the strange, the sick and the suffering. He puts Himself in their place and becomes, in a way, their representative. Whoever helps them provides help and mercy to Himself. To show the disciples to what extent the service of their lesser brethren should extend, He, preparing to return to heaven, girded himself with ribbon, kneeled before them and washed their feet, thus accepting the very position and duties of the last of the slaves and adding: “What I do, do you also.”

Everywhere in His teaching this commandment of humility and love for the poor is manifested. “When you make lunch or dinner, do not invite your friends, nor your brothers, nor relatives, nor rich neighbors (for fear) lest they invite you someday, and you will not receive reward (fear lest you receive reward !.. How many of us are familiar with this fear?). But when you make a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed because they cannot repay you” (Luke 14:12-14). Suppose the world were to assimilate the spirit of this commandment and become imbued with it, what would then appear before us? We would see that every advantage, whether natural or acquired: wealth, power, talents, genius - imposes on a person the obligation to serve those who do not have these gifts. These forces, from which sin so often makes instruments of self-will and pride, would become instruments of spiritual rebirth and general gradual improvement. Those on high would help those below to ascend to the light and reach their destination. Instead of rare alms, carelessly thrown into the abyss of human needs, instead of a few good deeds performed only to silence our conscience, and with which we soon begin to be burdened, there would be constant care aimed at the benefit of the poor and suffering. We would also see that nations, educated and enlightened by the faith of Christ, instead of making an instrument of self-interest and lust for power out of their mental superiority over peoples still immersed in the abasement of idolatry, would, on the contrary, begin to condescend to them and speak to them in the words of the Savior : come and have lunch(John 21:12). Then the one who possesses science, instead of withdrawing into a noble disdain for everyone, would say to the ignorant: “Come and sit down to the table of knowledge and take your share of it.” And the one who has wealth, instead of considering wealth as a foothold for selfishness and a means of showing pomp that is offensive to others, and which, moreover, does not serve for the benefit, but, on the contrary, to the detriment of his own happiness, would understand that God is handing over to him the true and reasonable guardianship over all those who do not enjoy the benefits of the earth, who are suppressed by daily worries and the burden of continuous labor. Yes, suppose that the whole society is imbued with this spirit and, prompted by its constant and powerful influence, tries to bring light and life and prosperity to its lowest strata - would not the appearance of humanity change, would not the mutual relations of peoples, classes and states? Wouldn't the need to fight with armed force against the cruel disease of universal equality, class hatred, disappear? I am talking about these plagues because they constitute the fundamental evil and danger of modern civilization.

To exterminate this evil, to avert this danger, it is required, first of all, that Christian love dominate in our souls, that, tuned in the spirit of the Divine Teacher, we imitate His example, serve our neighbors with all the powers given to us - so that, like St. Paul, , the suffering and the perishing appeared to us in visions and so that, like him, we were attentive to their voice calling for help.

Is this what we really see? Has it not happened to us sometimes, looking at the general map of all countries and peoples and noticing on it the limited space occupied by the Christian population, to feel deep sadness in our souls? True, many great and heroic things were accomplished by Christian missionaries in Siberia, the Caucasus, Japan, China, Tibet, Syria and Africa. But can these successes satisfy us? Can we be satisfied with them? Isn’t it the same way now that the pagan world turns its eyes to Christianity and says to it: “Come and help us?”

An even larger part globe plunged into darkness. In the smallest part of the world - Europe, we see civilization, with all its splendor, science, convenience of communications, gentleness of morals, refinement of lifestyle, pleasures of all kinds. And there, in most of Asia and Africa, there is wild barbarism, unbridled despotism, peoples gradually dying out from ignorance, rudeness, from hunger, which periodically visits, for example, India and Persia. Wouldn't it be expected that such immense inequality should, year by year, disappear; that the peoples, illuminated and warmed by European Christian education, will unite in a common effort - to give the rest of the peoples a little education, a little justice, a little humanity? And, besides, until now, some educated peoples have used their mental superiority and their strength only in order to oppress and humiliate the weakest and extract benefit from them; the policy of the strong in relation to the weak was, for centuries, only long chain injustices and oppressions, such as in Turkey; and therefore the most natural sense of justice should instill in them the duty of retribution and pacification. We would like this; but do you know what the Christian peoples are now concerned about? They watch one after another, lie in wait for each other, replenish their arsenals, and it is still unknown whether tomorrow they will rush against each other again for mutual destruction? Yes, these people whom you have met in all parts of the world, who shared the same noble labors, were engaged in the same sublime researches in the field of science, admired the same beauties of art and nature, were shocked by the same feelings, - moreover, they bowed their heads before the same God, called on the same Redeemer - these people, on the day of international struggle, met like enemies, exterminated each other like animals. The wounds of these peoples have not yet healed, and they seem to be preparing for a new war, on a new battlefield, on which, perhaps, your only son must fall. This is what we have come to, this is how educated peoples fulfill their purpose in relation to the rest of the world!

Oh, if only the shepherds understood their calling! If only they heard the voice of the suffering and responded to it! Of course, they also work a lot in our time; but is there anything like an energetic, generous impulse here? In the face of these two-thirds of our neighbors, still ossified in paganism, at the sight of the spreading stream of unbelief and error, do we not feel remorse with a shudder? Do we not also hear the voice that shook the soul of St. Paul? When you pass through our big cities and you see this carefree and frivolous crowd, when in passing you come across baseness and vice, sometimes in an elegant, sometimes in a rude form - when shameless atheism nests in the depths of so many souls and despair lurks at the bottom of so many sorrows: do you find that the shepherds of the Church can remain calm and say: “Have we fulfilled our purpose, completed the work that God entrusted to us?” And how can we not grieve in our souls when we think about all the empty disputes and internecine bickering that consume our living forces, our abilities and our time? For such a struggle there will always be food; the first circumstance encountered will be enough to fan the flames of the dispute and distract from their direct duties those who should be doing their immediate work. They will say that it is necessary to defend the truth from attack. Of course, it would be a crime, under the pretext of love for one's neighbor, to preach coldness towards the truths of revelation, of which we should be guardians and preachers. Moreover, by sharing the truth with others, we best express and prove our love for them; and to neglect the truth would be to exhaust the very sources of love for one's neighbor.

Yes, we will defend the truth or, better and more accurately, we will testify to it ourselves with our devotion and respect for it. Let us ourselves, the first, deeply and sincerely believe in it, we will trust its power more than the evidence with which we try to support it; let us explore the depth of its wealth, let us be servants and worshipers of the shrine - more than its guardians; Let us more often be inside the sanctuary, and not near its outer fence. Let us not so much be defenders of the Gospel as doers and witnesses of it; Let us first take care to be faithful to the truth ourselves, and then to triumph over our opponents. Any other victory in polemics is nothing more than a deception, which little satisfies the mind and leaves the conscience in confusion. To bring triumph to the truth, through our passions, our outbursts and ridicule of each other, to descend into the soil of personalities, to enjoy the evil joy brought by the humiliation of our quarrelsome people, means to indulge in a fruitless occupation, to throw seeds in the sand and, even worse, to demean the significance of that a cause for which we wish success, to slander it. There is no doubt that we cannot do without a struggle; but the point is in what spirit we will treat it, and whether our love for God, for our neighbor and even for our enemies will be strong enough to drive out all personal aspirations from our hearts. St. Paul defended Christian truth with the greatest zeal, with irresistible force. But look how he avoids vain arguments and rushes to where he is most needed and where he can win the hearts of people to the Lord!

Introducing Judaism to engage in scholarly debate, he listened to the groans of the pagans and seemed to say to himself: “The time has come, let’s go and bring a new people to God.” And he, a disciple of Gamaliel and a teacher of the law himself, a former Pharisee, a former sectarian, felt within himself a heart capable of embracing the whole world, both Jews and pagans, with its immeasurable love.

They will say, perhaps, that the cry heard by St. Paul is no longer heard around us and that when there is no call, there is nothing to respond to. True, in our time the loudest cry of material need is heard, the cry for bread. But don't you think. that the same thing did not happen under Paul? Don't you think that in Antioch and Athens the conscience of most people was less dulled than in our time? Don’t you think that false silence, carnal carelessness was not then the normal state of sinners? Don’t you think that if Saint Paul had fixed his gaze on the appearance of the Greeks and Romans of that time, on their free morals and self-righteous feasts, then he would have heard the voice that forced him to set out for Europe? Of course not. I heard this voice and guessed and understood his love for his neighbor; the outer covers were torn apart by her, and he heard the cry of the souls of an entire people and saw that they were in a sad and hopeless state. But make no mistake, it's still the same now. Despite the proud claims of a certain kind of learning, despite the calmness of spirit expressed by many people, in every soul that is not yet mired in sensuality and has not yet turned into flesh, like the people of the antediluvians, there is a hidden sorrow that requires consolation - there is an agitated conscience , crying out for peace and tranquility, there are remnants, often, alas, broken and desecrated, but, nevertheless, remnants of the altar that St. Paul saw in Athens and which was dedicated to the “unknown God,” but was assigned to the righteous, living God and the true one, the One who alone can give us forgiveness and pardon.

I have so far spoken of people in general; but there is nothing more fruitless than generalizations. Now I speak to each of you, brethren who have been redeemed by Jesus Christ. Do you hear the voice calling Saint Paul? Have you seen in visions people perishing from ignorance of their Savior?

The visions are yours! Do you know what kind they are? I'll tell you about it; for you too are haunted by visions, even in the silence of the night.

Here is a young and rich person listening or reading my words. What does she see in her dreams? Has she ever dreamed of some of the disasters of this world below? Did she ever think that, at a time when everyone around her is in a hurry to please her desires, prevent them, delight and decorate her life, other, also young, girls are growing up in deprivation, in poverty, perhaps in vice? Did she tell herself that the faith that had shed so much purity and sweet heavenly tranquility on her childhood was unknown in other families or was severely desecrated there? Was she sad about whether she understood her duty and the happiness when she could alleviate such disasters with her participation and consolations? Did she ever imagine that she herself was walking along the harsh but noble path of self-sacrifice out of love for her neighbor? But I would hardly be mistaken if I say that the dreams and dreams of this young lady are turned to the pleasures of the world, to its praises, to its seductions... She sees herself even in her dreams as charming, elegant and graceful; she hears whispers of admiration behind her. If this dream is repeated the next day, if in her dreams this ghost will always beckon and seduce her, if her life will consist in that one happiness that light and the intoxication of light gives, then let them admire her and carry her in their arms, even if those whom God gave her as patrons and leaders, and who were obliged to tell her the truth - let them also mix their flattery with the surprise of the world. But we need to tear through the veil that prevents her from seeing, we need to tell her that in her heart, under all this sweet appearance, there is nothing but selfishness in all its ugliness... What kind of future awaits her? What answer will she give in the last hour? What an inevitable sentence will be the lot of this life without God and without earthly sorrows!

I will note here one opinion, very widespread and beloved in the world. It is often possible to hear that self-sacrifice and charitable deeds can be combined with debauchery and hobbies of an ardent temperament. Many people like to cite the amazing features of some semi-secular women and, with sly gloating, contrast them with the hidden selfishness of those whose lives are not subject to criticism.

It must be admitted that there are often examples of sudden selflessness, unexpected charity, true generosity among people living a very absent-minded and even openly criminal life. It is clear that when the conscience is tormented and the heart is troubled, as a result of insane actions, sometimes a person is struck by fits of good deeds - self-denial and even self-sacrifice; he feels, at times, the need for shelter, for refuge, for something that would calm and pacify the soul at least for a minute. But what is durable and permanent in such impulses? Can they atone for the shame of a meaningless life removed from God? Can the harmful effects of example be destroyed? Besides, do you really believe in the sincerity of such impulses?

Usually people who lead dissolute lives notice the funny side of false piety; but is counterfeit coin found only in the moral realm? Is there not in the world false sensitivity, virtue for show, flattering adherence - pharisaism, in a word? Just because some frivolous woman once decides to do one of those good deeds that a Christian woman views as her most ordinary duties, she is showered with praise, her generosity is extolled to the skies: is this fair? Will a fleeting movement of the soul change this woman's life at its foundation? What if for her the purpose of existence remains, as before, pure pleasure, that is, in fact, selfishness, or the denial of true love for one’s neighbor?

It happens that selfishness is sometimes reconciled with correct beliefs and complete decency in actions. With a very commendable lifestyle, one can be completely unable to sacrifice oneself for others. One can have virtues respected in the world: attachment to family life, respect for one's duty. The consequence of this is aversion from noisy pleasures and a certain conventional sedateness, which inspires self-satisfaction and an internal good opinion of oneself and even respect from friends. Those distinguished by these virtues express horror at the mere thought of indecency or publicity; they do not realize that they do everything for their own interests, out of class pride, out of love for comfort, for wealth; they imagine themselves to be Christians, although they do not subject themselves to concerns about their neighbors, nor to hardships or sacrifices. Secular people notice this very well and laugh to themselves. But I will take away their malicious joy when I tell them: do you know where such excessive blindness comes from? From you. Yes, from you; for if you had not set an example of a distracted and vicious life, then no one would take credit for the fact that he is not depraved, not a thief, not deprived of honor. It is you who lower the moral level - you are the reason that a woman is calm in her conscience and considers herself impeccable, unless she has violated the duties of her wife. If it were not for you, she would have sought a higher ideal for herself, and, instead of imagining herself virtuous simply because she had avoided downfalls, she would have learned that, beyond family responsibilities, there is an endless world of self-denial and charity. If it were not for you, then this egoism, which we do not approve of, would remain without any cover; he would be horrified by himself and his criminal inaction. You are the one putting him to sleep. Let us no longer allow that false wisdom to take root, that the dissipation of secular life does not kill love for one’s neighbor. It, on the contrary, is her most fierce enemy; it takes away her time, and then dries up and eradicates her ability to love and sacrifice herself for others.

Yes, if you pass by the suffering without noticing them, or hear the groans of the needy and do not pay attention to them, then it is because the bustle of the world has clouded your vision, made your heart deaf and is plugging your ears. If the voice of the poor annoys you and the reminder of the stagnation in the affairs of charity seems bothersome to you, it is because the satisfaction of pride, pleasure and all vanity has shamelessly swallowed up the share of those in need of our help. Make no mistake: the issue of eternal life and salvation is being resolved here. The path you take will destroy your soul; you will destroy it, regardless of your Orthodox beliefs, your regular going to church and annual confession, because God requires a person’s heart; yours belongs to the world and vanity; your treasure is on earth, far from God: so your inheritance in eternity will not be with him.

And to your inner eyes, my brother, what are the visions? When you look into the future, what attracts and attracts you in it? Do you think that more than once you may have to stand up for a just and holy cause? Are you preparing for the fight? Do you care about acquiring strength of mind and character to resist evil and to fight everything that keeps us in slavery - and, above all, with the flesh and sin? Do those needy and suffering people pass before your imagination, to whose benefit you will devote your bodily strength and your spiritual abilities? Do you hear voices calling out, as to St. Paul: “Come, help Us”? But who can assure me that you do not dream of vain honors? Maybe your idol is the glory of a writer. Are you dreaming famous name, repeated by thousands of lips, or wealth, with its power and influence, or a high position quickly achieved... Perhaps, above all this, you see science with its noble acquisitions and pure pleasures? Are these your dreams? Talent, wealth, knowledge - these are wonderful means when they are dedicated to the service of God, to the improvement of humanity and to helping it; but, otherwise, they are nothing more than instruments of egoism and shiny idols that distract our worship and our heart from God.

Where, in our time, are the people who see visions like those of St. Paul before their eyes? Where are those whose hearts hear the suffering and needs of their generation and understand that they should help them, at least at the cost of their lives? Saint Paul saw that the ancient world was perishing, and he went to its aid with the preaching of the Gospel. Is this what you do when you magnify St. the apostle as your teacher? Do you think and say that all these generous impulses, concerns for the common good, are nothing more than dreams, dreams, daydreams? But twenty centuries before the birth of Christ, one young shepherd, from the tribe of Abraham, told his brothers his dreams. These dreams foreshadowed extraordinary power and glory for him in the distant future; but the brothers listened to him with a smile of contempt and hatred, and said as he walked towards them: “Here comes the dreamer!” And what? His premonitions came true: his dreams became reality. And about Jesus Christ Himself, even people close to Him said: “he is furious”; and the Pharisees assured: “have a demon”; the unbelieving Pilate only shrugged his shoulders and said: “What is truth?” The ruler of Judea, the Roman military leader Festus, having listened to the wise, rich speech of St. Paul, made one remark: “your great learning, Paul, is driving you to madness” (Acts 26:24). The apostle seemed to the learned Roman, without a doubt, a dreamer. This is how many people today look at the matter scientists."Dreamer!" But this is precisely the accusation against the world, that love for one’s neighbor and self-sacrifice seem to it a dream and the cross is madness!.

"Dream, madness!" Meanwhile, the Gospel has overcome the world with its wise men. If even today Christians are ashamed of the Gospel madness, then the world will reject them like a dying lamp, like strewn salt. Give the Gospel into the hands of worldly sages - they will drop it a thousand times. The so-called world dreamers brought him triumph a thousand times; fools about Christ They gave their lives with joy, they loved Jesus Christ not out of calculation, not out of scientific research, but with all the strength of their souls, to the point of self-denial.

Saint Paul, having received the vision described above, immediately set off on his journey. It is possible even now to be rewarded with the most sublime visions; you can feel a living echo in your heart to the most touching calls; one can experience the thrill of reverence for Christian ideals - and, nevertheless, remain a pathetic egoist, one of the useless creatures whom the Lord will reject on the last day and say to them: we don't know you.

VISIONS OF SAINTS DURING THE LITURGY. Why is the liturgy sometimes called the angelic ministry? Because angels are always present at the Eucharist and help the clergy to celebrate it. According to the testimony of Elder Jacob of Euboea, who more than once received wondrous visions of God, as soon as the priest says the initial exclamation at the liturgy, the Heavenly Forces immediately flock to the altar. Another righteous man, Saint John of Kronstadt, wrote: “At the proskomedia, all the saints, starting with the Mother of God, are called to participate in the service of the liturgy. All the saints and all the angels participate in the service with the priest.” The Monk Euthymius the Great († 473) told some of his disciples that he often saw an angel performing liturgy with him. In 1892, the Monk Anatoly Optinsky (Zertsalov) came to St. Petersburg. Here he met with Righteous John of Kronstadt. Father John invited St. Anatoly to his church in Kronstadt. When the liturgy began, Father John saw that two angels were serving together with the Monk Anatoly. The Sacrament of Holy Communion, celebrated during the liturgy, unites heaven and earth into one union. This unity, invisible to the eyes of ordinary people, appears in all its beauty before the spiritual gaze of the saints. -- “People are blind and do not see what is happening in the church during the Divine Liturgy. Once I served the Liturgy and could not make the great entrance because of what I saw. Suddenly I felt someone pushing me on the shoulder and leading me to the holy altar. I thought it was a psalm-reader. I turn around and see a huge wing placed on my shoulder by the Archangel and leading me to the great entrance. What happens in the altar during the Divine Liturgy! Often I cannot stand it and sit down, at this time the concelebrants think that something is wrong with my health, but they don’t know what I see and hear.” Elder Jacob. — The Monk Seraphim of Sarov was granted a special vision of grace during the Divine Liturgy on Maundy Thursday, which was performed by the rector, Father Pachomius, and Elder Joseph. When, after the troparions, the monk said, “Lord, save the pious,” and, standing at the royal doors, pointed his orar at those praying with the exclamation, “and forever and ever,” suddenly a bright ray overshadowed him. Raising his eyes, the Monk Seraphim saw the Lord Jesus Christ walking through the air from the western doors of the temple, surrounded by the Heavenly Ethereal Forces. Having reached the pulpit. The Lord blessed all those praying and entered the local image to the right of the royal doors. The Monk Seraphim of Sarov, looking at the wondrous phenomenon in spiritual delight, could not utter a word or leave his place. He was led arm in arm into the altar, where he stood for another three hours, his face changing from the great grace that illuminated him. -- In his notes, the abbot of Feodosia (Popov; † 1903) cites his grandmother’s memories of her childhood, when she was seven or eight years old. “In church, I stood at the very pulpit, opposite the Royal Doors, and vigilantly watched all the actions of the priest. The reason for my observations of the priest was that once, on a holiday with my parents at mass, I saw above the throne, a little higher than the head of the priest, right above the holy chalice, a soaring Dove, which was white as snow and motionless, barely noticeably fluttering its wings , stayed in the air. And I saw this not once, and not twice, but several times, which I told my friend about, and she and I always, as soon as we heard the bell ringing, we ran with all our might, wanting to outrun each other, and Let us stand together at the pulpit, waiting for the appearance of the brilliant white Dove. And how we loved Him because He was so white and so handsome! But there were days when we could not wait for this miracle, which took place only during the service of the old priest Rosnitsky. It was only during his service that we always saw our Dove. This did not happen under another priest. When we told our parents about this, and our parents told priest Rosnitsky, since then my friend and I have never seen the wonderful Dove again.” -- The great Athonite ascetic Hieroschemamonk Tikhon († 1968) celebrated the liturgy in his secluded Athonite temple with the help of only one monk-singer. He did this because he wanted to freely indulge in deep prayer in the altar, completely alone. When the Cherubic Song began, Father Tikhon usually plunged into spiritual contemplation for twenty to thirty minutes. Therefore, the monk repeated the Cherubic Song many times until he heard the steps of Father Tikhon walking from the altar to the Great Entrance. Once after the service, the singer asked: “What do you see, elder?” - Cherubim and seraphim praising God. My guardian angel releases me only after half an hour, and then I continue the Divine Liturgy. Sometimes Hieroschemamonk Tikhon performed the liturgy without the help of a singer. However, there was still singing in the temple! One day Theoclitus Dionysiatus visited the elder. Father Tikhon was in the church, and touching singing was heard from there. Theoclitus wanted to go inside, but the door was closed. Not wanting to disturb anyone by knocking on the door, he decided to wait for the end of the service near the temple. Soon the singing died down, and after a while Father Tikhon opened the door. Going inside, Theoclitus found no one there except Father Tikhon. This amazed him, and he realized that angels were singing at the liturgy. — The Valaam schema monk Kyriak had a vision during the liturgy. He stood in the altar, and when the serving priest exclaimed: “Thine from Thine, offered to Thee, for all and for all,” an extraordinary fragrance poured out from the throne. When the priest began to pray for the condescension of the Holy Spirit on the presented Gifts, Cyriacus saw that the altar was filled with cherubim, which surrounded the throne. The priest was engulfed in fire, and as soon as he bowed to the ground before the throne, a white dove flew from above and began to hover over the paten. Then the dove flew to the top of the holy bowl and, clenching its wings, sank into it. And immediately the angels, falling on their faces, bowed to the holy throne. When the priest exclaimed: “Exactly about the Most Holy One,” the Heavenly Powers again bowed to the ground. After singing “It is Worthy to Eat,” they bowed for the third time. Then the angels surrounded the priest, overshadowed his head with a wonderful shroud, and after that they became invisible.