St. Gregory of Sinaite - Teacher of "Mental Work"

St. Gregory of Sinai not only teaches about obstacles in "mental work," but, most importantly, also indicates ways to overcome obstacles, means of spiritual healing.Just as the beginning of thoughts lies in the weakening of the "primitive memory" of God and even the loss of it, so the beginning of the struggle against them lies in the return of the "primordial" simplicity, in the healing of memory. Memory is cured by "uninterrupted and strengthened prayer remembrance of God, which, having dissolved with the spirit, is directed from natural objects to supernatural ones." "When the mind is disturbed by the incessant mental crying... then he should be given a little rest, freeing him from the constraint of silence into the expanse of psalmody." But standing at the psalmody should not be prolonged ("a short prayer is standing at the psalmody"), for it behooves the mind to dwell "all day" in mental prayer. Even if despondency overwhelms you, you should read "two or three psalms and touching troparia without singing, because, as Climacus says, they do not sing." In order to arouse greater zeal, the Psalms should be changed daily, "so that the mind does not lose the pleasure of this monotonous singing." But St. Gregory notes that in the teaching of the Holy Fathers there is no single view on the order and duration of psalmody. Some say that one should sing many psalms, others - little, and still others - "one should not sing at all". What does St. Gregory recommend? "You," he says, "in order to avoid confusion, do not sing often, nor give up singing at all, because of the subsequent weakness and carelessness, but imitate those who sing a little, because measure in everything is the best." It is appropriate to sing a lot for those who go through an "active life" and do not know contemplation. But this is not characteristic of the silent, "who have enough strength to be in God alone and, praying to Him with their hearts, to refrain from thoughts." Those who do not know the contemplative life need prolonged psalmody; others, who have come to know it to some extent, need a little mental rest in the singing of the Psalms; For those who have an "active mind" and struggle with the admixture of thoughts, St. Gregory recommends reading the works of the Holy Fathers of a predominantly ascetic nature. "Being active," he writes, "read active writings... Always read about silence and prayer in the Ladder, in St. John, in St. Maximus, in the New Theologian, in his disciple Stephatus, in Hesychius, in Philotheus of Sinai, and in those who [wrote] about the same thing." It is necessary to read with reverence, calmly, distinctly, judiciously - spiritually, without vanity or "sound pleasure". And again, St. Gregory, as in the psalmody, calls for moderation in reading: "Let not thy reading be insatiable, for measure is the best in everything." This virtue destroys the passions: disobedience, contradiction, self-gratification, self-justification and fatal self-conceit. Conquering these passions, obedience leads to a "small ladder" - the shortest path to the heavenly Royal Palaces. "Who is the first (disobedience. - K. S.) conquers by obedience, he cuts off the rest with one blow and quickly rises to heaven." The whole sea of passions can be crossed unconditionally by non-acquisitiveness and abstinence, which St. Gregory calls a light and swift ship. "Thanks to it, man, always seeing himself as an instrument of the Divine power, accomplishes with its help the amazing works of God." True humility is alien to ostentatious humble speeches, humble self-reproaches, a humble appearance... There are two true humilities: 1) to consider oneself the most sinful, the most disgusting, the inferior of all, and 2) to assimilate all one's good deeds to God. "The first is the beginning, the second is the end (of humility)." And there are seven ways leading to humility, which are born of each other and mutually enter. These are: "Silence, humility, humility, humble clothing, self-abasement, contrition of spirit and attribution of oneself (everywhere) to the latter." People "without humility are like those who build a house in winter or without cement."In order not to fall into delusion, one needs prudence, one must understand inner work - not to quickly and frivolously accept anything sensual and even spiritual "outside or inside" oneself. Before accepting the good and rejecting the evil, one must consider and spiritually evaluate one and the other. "When, while doing a deed," teaches the monk, "outside or within yourself you see light, or fire, or some image – whether of Christ, or an Angel, or someone else, do not accept it, lest you suffer harm. Do not concentrate your attention on what you yourself imagine figuratively, and do not allow it to be depicted by the mind. All this is from the outside - inappropriate and imaginary leads to spiritual temptation."Signs of the true state of the ascetic are unshakable love for God, joy in the heart, silence, joy, warmth of heart. "Warmth does not come from the right or left side, but flows into the heart like a spring of water from the Life-Giving Spirit." If instead of warmth there is an "uneven burning", instead of heartfelt joy – pleasure, self-conceit, vanity, if the heart doubts what is coming – one should not accept it – all this is not from God. "And if you notice your mind being drawn by some invisible force to the external or upward, do not believe it, and do not allow the mind to be carried away, but immediately compel it to your work. "That which appears from God," said St. Isaac, "comes by itself, and at what time, you do not know... Spiritual taste clearly and unmistakably shows everything as it is." Demons change, they can take on the appearance of various saints, but they cannot arouse anything good: meekness, affability, humility, cessation of passions. Their actions are determined: pride, arrogance, fear, all evil. By these actions it is discerned whether the light shining in the soul is from God, or from the power of evil. "If you see the impurities of insidious spirits, – teaches the monk, – do not be amazed, do not dwell on them... but... In the name of Jesus, strike your enemies, for there is no stronger weapon in heaven or on earth." It is impossible to study the science of virtues on your own. Those who tried to achieve this themselves usually fell into self-conceit, into self-deception. If the Son does nothing of Himself, but as the Father taught Him, so He does (John 5:19-20), and the Spirit will not speak of Himself (John 16:13), that is, who has reached such a great height of virtues, at which he would not need to be secretly led by someone else?" asks St. Gregory. But this "outsider" may not be everyone. The right to guide others is possessed only by those "who have been given Divine discernment," "discernment of spirits," "spiritual discernment," who themselves have experienced "labors in active virtue" and are not mistaken "neither in words, nor in deeds, nor in thoughts." St. Gregory confesses that it is "no small effort" to find such a leader. But he who "earnestly strives in silence to attain pure prayer" must find it and go to the goal "by asking" it "in great trembling," completely subordinate his will and under his guidance observe strict fasting, abstinence, vigilance, kneeling, motionless standing, unceasing prayer, true humility, "wise silence, as if seasoned with salt, and patience in everything." Without the grace of God, without God's help, it is impossible not only to expel passions, but also to "restrain oneself with one's mind [from distraction]." None of the novices will ever cast out thoughts unless God removes them. Only those who are strong in spirit can reject thoughts, but they also achieve this "not of their own accord, but move to resist them with God, as clothed in His full armor." St. Gregory considers the absence of grace in a person to be spiritual death. Separated from grace, the soul "becomes widowed and now and in the next age becomes the abode of the passions, not to say [stronger] - a den of demons." Even virtues without grace are dead. "And those who appear to have virtues in perfection and exercise them [often] have only the shadow and phantom of the beautiful, and not the image of the truth." And with the help of God's grace, great things are accomplished. Its effects are manifold: purification of the soul, warming it, strengthening it "in joy and gladness", mortification of bodily movements... A person who has been cleansed of sinful thoughts and passions, having rejected delusion, having submitted his will to experienced spiritual leaders, who has embarked on the path of salvation with constant prayer and the help of God's grace, "will receive again what he seeks, especially if he seeks it with humility."

Biography

St. Ambrose, Bishop of Milan [1]

The modern biographer of St. Ambrose has the following materials: the works of the saint (especially his letters) and two ancient biographies - of Paulinus and of an unknown author. The works of St. Ambrose provide only material of a sporadic, accidental nature in relation to his life, and therefore the reader cannot draw a complete picture of the saint's activity on their basis. In this respect, the biography of Pavlinus differs favorably. The latter undertook the work at the request of Blessed Augustine, who wished to know better the life of his teacher. Paulinus tries to briefly summarize what he himself knew as the secretary of St. Ambrose and what he was told by trustworthy persons: the sister of St. Ambrose Marcellina and witnesses of many miraculous apparitions of the saint after his death. Peacock asks the reader to trust his report, assuring him of the complete impartiality of his work... The author and the time of origin of the second life remain unknown. It is assumed that it appeared in the East. In favor of this are the Greek text of the original, the reports in it, mainly, of events that took place in the East, and especially a detailed description of the relations of St. Ambrose with the emperor Theodosius the Great. This monument is of little importance for the characterization of St. Ambrose, since it is very dependent on the Church history of Blessed Theodoret (almost a literal transcription). Saint Ambrose was born in about the year 340 [2] in the city of Trier into a noble Christian family - his father, who died soon after the birth of Ambrose, was governor of Gaul. The orphaned family (a mother with three children) moved to Rome. Here began his years of schooling: St. Ambrose studied Greek and Latin literature, ancient philosophy, and oratory. Already in these years he showed a deep interest in the truths of the Christian faith and piety. Upon completion of his education, Saint Ambrose first became a lawyer, and then was appointed by Emperor Valentinian I (364-375) as ruler of northern Italy with residence in Milan (Mediolanum). Like other of his contemporaries, he postponed Baptism to a later period of his life, but was forced to be baptized when he was unexpectedly elected bishop of Milan. The legend says about this election as follows. When during the election to replace the deceased Arian bishop Auxentius, the people's assembly was divided in opinion, the voice of a child was heard in the church: "Ambrose bishop!" Ambrose was baptized and in seven days passed through all the degrees of the priesthood. Having become a bishop in the year 374, Saint Ambrose devoted the rest of his life to serving the Church of God. He used his property for charitable deeds and, observing the strictest abstinence, spent his days and nights in prayer and work. He saw the main duty of a bishop in teaching, and therefore with exemplary diligence he studied Christian theology and soon became an excellent preacher. Crowds of people came to listen to his sermons. They also had a strong effect on the then young Blessed Augustine. The picture of the everyday life of St. Ambrose was beautifully described by Farrar, relying on the testimony of Blessed Augustine. "First of all, in the morning," he writes, "after his private prayers, he used to celebrate the daily divine services and the Holy Eucharist. Having done this, he sat down to read at the table in his room, zealously studying the Holy Scriptures with the help of Greek interpreters, especially Origen and Hippolytus, and his contemporaries - Didymus and Basil the Great. He also read with sincere delight the works of Plato. The doors of his room were always open, and his time generally belonged to his flock. Everyone could see him and everyone could consult with him. When anyone came to him with a request for help, he immediately stopped reading, devoted all his attention to the work of the petitioner, and then again devoted himself to scientific studies, not in the least embarrassed by the fact that many of his visitors remained near his room and followed him with idle curiosity in his work. With the exception of two days a week, he fasted daily until evening. At the end of his meal, he sat down to write sermons and essays, but, unlike most of his contemporaries, he wrote everything with his own hand, since he did not consider it right to tire others by staying awake during the long hours of the night" (Life and Works of the Holy Fathers, Vol. 2, p. 103). Saint Ambrose successfully defended the Christian faith, speaking out against paganism, which still had many followers among the Roman aristocracy, and courageously fought against the Arian party, headed by the mother of the emperor Valentinian II (375-393) Justina. When the latter demanded that Saint Ambrose cede the Milan basilica for the divine services of the Arian Goths, who served in the mercenary Roman troops, he flatly refused. His answer was justified by the fact that the property of God is not subject to the orders of the emperor. "They say that everything is allowed to the sovereign, that everything is his," the saint writes. "I answer: do not trouble, Emperor, to think that in the affairs of God you have the imperial right; but if you want to reign longer, be subject to God. It is written: O God, Caesar's things are Caesar's. The emperor owns palaces, the bishop of the church." St. Ambrose showed extraordinary courage during the events in Thessalonica. The inhabitants of this city rebelled against the increase in taxes. Emperor Theodosius (379-395) dealt cruelly with the rebels - almost the entire population of the city with children and the elderly was driven into a circus and exterminated. The dignitaries of the empire congratulated Theodosius on his "victory", and the Senate even gave him the title of "father of the people". The saint acted differently: he immediately wrote a letter to the emperor with an insistent appeal to repent. (There is a legend that St. Ambrose did not allow the emperor to enter the church until he repented.) Theodosius yielded to the demands of the saint – he appeared to bring repentance to the entrance to the church without imperial clothes. This event was of great importance in the formation of relations between the Church and secular power in the West. The most important concern of the saint was the spiritual condition of the flock. Constantly rotating among her, he did not ignore all her dark sides. He was especially concerned about the then widespread vices - greed and greed. Saint Ambrose died on April 4, 397, on the day of Great Saturday, and, according to the testimony of his biographer – his contemporary Deacon Paulinus of Milan – he was mourned not only by Christians, but also by pagans. ^On the basis of the fact that in one of his letters (No 59) St. Ambrose speaks of himself as having 53 years of age, the year of birth is considered to be 333 or 340, depending on how the war of Theodosius with the pretenders to the throne of the Western Roman Empire, mentioned in the same letter, is understood - with Maximus in 387-388, or with Eugene in 393-394 ^

Creation

Saint Ambrose, Bishop of Milan

The literary activity of St. Ambrose is closely connected with the church cathedra. Most of his works were composed of sermons recorded by his listeners. Some of them remained in this record. Others were revised by him and brought into the form of separate treatises and books. All his works can be divided according to form into treatises, words (speeches), letters and hymns. Treatises. In the latest printed editions of the works of St. Ambrose, the work Hexaemeron (Six Days) stands in the first place. This is due to the motifs of logical sequence: Hexaemeron is an explanation of the biblical account of the creation of the world and the origin of man, and thus touches upon the first verses of the book of Genesis, while other exegetical works are devoted to the further chapters of this and other sacred books. The earliest in time of origin is considered to be the creation of De Paradiso (On Paradise). It is devoted to the interpretation of the biblical testimony about paradise, about the settlement of man in it, about the naming of animals, about the creation of woman, about the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, about the tempter and temptation, about the consequences of the Fall. De Noah (About Noah) - retells the story of the righteous Noah with a detailed description and explanation of Noah's Ark, speaks about the Flood, about the conclusion of the covenant with God and the subsequent fate of the patriarch. This creation opens up a number of other works about the postdiluvian patriarchs and is closely connected with them (for example, about Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, etc.). Of the dogmatic works, De fide (On Faith) should be noted. This work contains the Orthodox teaching on the Person of Christ the Saviour, contrary to Arianism, and in general expounds the teaching on the Most Holy Trinity. De Spiritu Sancto (On the Holy Spirit) expounds the doctrine of the Holy Spirit, His participation in creation, providence, and redemption. De Incarnationis Dominitsa Sacramento (On the Mystery of the Lord's Incarnation) is directed against Arianism, Apollinarianism and expounds the doctrine of the Holy Trinity, the Son of God and the mystery of the Incarnation. The opening words - an appeal to the listeners - speak of the origin of this creation from a sermon. The moral and ascetic work of St. Ambrose "On the Offices of the Clergy of the Church of Christ", which is a popular guide for pastors and contains discourses on moral topics, enjoys great fame and distribution. A pastor of the Church in the understanding of the saint is mainly a fighter for the truth. "In all matters concerning the clergy," writes the saint, "the most complete justice and impartiality must reign" [p. 182]. A number of works by St. Ambrose are devoted to the doctrine of virginity, a theme to which many ancient Christian writers, beginning with Tertullian, turned to the disclosure. The most famous work of St. Ambrose of this kind is "On the Virgins". It was compiled at the request of the virgin Marcellina's sister from sermons delivered in the first years of his episcopal ministry. In this work, St. Ambrose praises virginity, presenting examples of it (St. Mts. Agnes, Thecla, disciple of the Apostle Paul, patroness of Mediolanum); glorifies the Mother of God - in Her life shows the rules and the way of behavior for virgins. In conclusion, St. Ambrose glorifies those virgins who preferred death to the insult of innocence. This work has been highly valued by Christians since ancient times... Close to it in content is another work: "On Widows", written on the occasion of the intention of a widow to remarry. St. Ambrose tries to divert her from this intention. In this regard, he depicts the height and moral value of widowhood, mainly in comparison with married life, indicates the virtues with which Christian widows should be adorned, using biblical examples for this purpose. "However," remarks the saint, "we express this in the form of advice and do not prescribe it as a commandment; we (rather) persuade the widow than bind her... I will say more, we do not prevent a second marriage, but we do not approve of their frequent repetition" (Chapter II, § 68)... The work "On Virginity" was written in response to the reproaches addressed to St. Ambrose, as if he exalted virginity too much over married life. Refuting them, the saint again praises virginity and notes its advantages... "On the Upbringing of the Virgin and the Ever-Virginity of St. Mary" – here the speech of St. Ambrose at the tonsure of Ambrose is recounted, and the heresy of Bonoz, who rejected the ever-virginity of the Mother of God, is refuted... The "Exhortation to Celibacy" is a speech delivered by the saint on the occasion of the consecration of a church built by a widow, who devoted her life to God, and brought her children to the same... An essay on the same topic: "On the Fall of the Consecrated Virgin" belongs to the category of doubtful. In addition to St. Ambrose, it is attributed to Blessed Augustine, Blessed Jerome, St. John Chrysostom and St. Nicetas of Remesian. The fact that this work belonged to St. Ambrose is evidenced by the similarity of its content in some places with other treatises of the saint on virginity. Thus, like the latter, it ends with a hymn sung by the fallen and risen virgin. It should also be added that this hymn is reminiscent of other enthusiastic hymns of the saint. There are no sharp discrepancies in the composition with the original ones in style. In his work "Two Books on Repentance," St. Ambrose refutes the opinion of the Novatians, who assert that grave criminals cannot be forgiven, and proves that life is promised not only to those who always keep the commandments of the Lord, "but also to those who after the fall will also keep them" [p. 26]. The saint exhorts not to postpone repentance: "The Lord Himself sufficiently exhorted those who postpone repentance, saying: Repent, draw near the Kingdom of Heaven. We do not know at what hour the thief will come, we do not know whether it is not this night that our soul will be sought" [p. 73]. The words of St. Ambrose are diverse in their content. For example: On the Cross of Our Lord Jesus Christ; On the Sacrament of Baptism and to the catechumens; About Him Who Is Sick in the Kingdom of Heaven; About the pea grain; About precious beads; On the Benefits of Fasting; to the Apostle's words: "If you eat, if you drink, if you do anything else, do it all to the glory of God" (1 Corinthians 10:31); on the Twelve Great Feasts, the Days of the Great Saints, etc. (See Selected Instructive Words of St. Ambrose). Two of the words were pronounced over the grave of the brother Satyr, dearly loved by the saint and inseparable from him. In the first homily (On the Repose of His Brother Satyrus), spoken at the burial, Saint Ambrose grieves over the death of his brother, depicts his Christian virtues and thanks God for "having had such a brother... Who will not be amazed at a husband who is of average age between brother and sister, and equal in generosity, who has fulfilled the two greatest titles: for he had both the purity of a sister and the holiness of a brother, not in rank, but in virtue. Thus, when lust and anger give rise to other vices, then, of course, purity and mercy produce certain virtues." In the second homily – On the Hope of the Resurrection – the saint "came to the tomb of Satyr on the seventh day" after his death, seeking consolation in the Christian faith in the resurrection and eternal life... Two more funeral orations are very famous: "On the Death of the Younger Emperor Valentinian," delivered in Milan at the burial of Valentinian, and "On the Death of Theodosius the Great," delivered on the fortieth day after his death before the transfer of his body from Milan to Constantinople. Both speeches are not only an example of oratory, but also an important historical source... It is also necessary to note the Sermon on the mutual love of Christians (see "Christian Reading", 1837, IV, pp. 28-34). Touching upon the life of the early Christian community, St. Ambrose continues: "Those who professed one faith, had communion with each other in life, that is, those who had one faith, they had one property, and those who had Christ in common, they had common expenses. For pious men considered it a crime not to make a partaker in their property of one who shared with them in grace, and therefore they, as brothers, enjoyed all things together." Turning to the days of his time, the saint says: "Do we find anything of the kind at the present time? Of course, Christ is the same with us. The same Christ, but not the same heart. The same faith among the people, but there is no more generosity"... All the zeal of Saint Ambrose, directed towards the eradication of the evil of people's insensitivity and callousness, which was widespread in his time, was manifested in his Discourse on Ahab and Naboth (see "Christian Reading", 1838, III, pp. 33-38). Recalling the pages of history about the above-mentioned persons, St. Ambrose says: "The history of Naboth is ancient in time, in fact daily. For who among the rich does not daily covet the things of others? What rich man's soul is not inflamed by the property of his neighbor? No, Ahab is not alone; He is born every day and never dies. The poor man Naboth does not perish alone; but the poor man is killed daily... How long will you, who are rich, enlarge your foolish lusts? Or do you live alone on earth? Why do you drive away from it the companion of your nature? Nature does not know the rich; she gives birth to all poor, she puts into the world naked; the earth also perceives the naked." A separate collection of words consists of a sequential explanation of the Gospel history and teaching, the Expositio of the Gospel to Luke. A similar collection is an explanation of the 118th Psalm. A special group in the works of St. Ambrose is his letters. According to the Benedictine edition, there are 91 of them. In terms of content, only a few of them have a private, personal character, while the greater part, as caused by the ecclesiastical and administrative activity of the saint, has historical significance (information is given about the councils of which he was a participant), dogmatic (the denial of the ever-virginity of the Mother of God, the humiliation of virginity by Jovinian is criticized, Arian opinions are criticized), moral (instructions are given), pastoral (perplexities in church practice are resolved), exegetical (difficult passages are explained From this it is clear that the letters of St. Ambrose are a valuable source for the knowledge of a Christian. As for the hymns of St. Ambrose, tradition has preserved many of them under the name of Ambrosian. But since the name Ambrosian was used in the early period not only in the sense of authorship by the Bishop of Milan, but also in the sense of imitating his hymns, the name alone was not sufficient to solve the question of authenticity. Up to 30 hymns were attributed to St. Ambrose, but only 12 of them, with more probability, belong to him (some bring up to 18). The authorship of the well-known hymn to Thee, O God we praise, is also questioned, although there is a legend that it was sung by St. Ambrose together with Blessed Augustine at the Baptism of the latter. Until the eighth century there are no traces of this legend, and this hymn was not attributed to St. Ambrose, although it was known without his name in the West from the first half of the sixth century and is mentioned in the monastic rule of St. Benedict of Nursia. In terms of content, the hymns of St. Ambrose are distinguished by their church-wide character. These are hymns of confession of the Christian faith, expounding the essence of Christian teaching. They speak of the incarnation of the Redeemer (of the birth of the Virgin, of the two natures, of the descent into hell), of the doctrine of the Cross of Christ (of the destruction of the kingdom of death and the bestowal of grace), or of the faithful being called to spiritual vigilance and the salvific fruits of such vigilance are depicted, and so on. St. Ambrose introduced antiphonal singing in the Western Church on the model of the East, which was called the Ambrosian chant. There are many works that for a long time were attributed to St. Ambrose, but are now recognized as inauthentic. These are mainly commentaries on the Holy Scriptures of the New Testament. The inauthentic works of the saint are usually called the works of Ambrosiastes. A number of works by St. Ambrose have not survived to our time.

Theology

Saint Ambrose, Bishop of Milan

St. Ambrose does not go into the study of metaphysical subtleties, but is more concerned with solving problems of a practical nature. He was not a theologian-theoretician, an armchair scientist engaged in research for the sake of research, and did not study the subject comprehensively and in detail. His main concern was to defend the purity of the Church's teaching and the inviolability of its possessions, to extend the influence of the Church to various aspects of life. This determines the general character of his theology. In the works of St. Ambrose, the moral and edifying element predominates. In this regard, he reveals the rarest art - he finds something instructive in everything.

His instructions give vivid sketches of the everyday aspects of that time, as a result of which they contain a lot of material for characterizing Christian society and therefore have an enduring historical interest. St. Ambrose also touches upon dogmatic questions, but they arise for the most part by chance and are regarded as something completely independent, isolated. The narration of the Bishop of Milan is sometimes too lengthy, but in moments of the saint's spiritual uplift, the speech becomes fascinating, lively, and impressive. He often uses metaphors, personifications and comparisons.

Teaching on the Holy Trinity

Saint Ambrose, Bishop of Milan