A maiden who lived in Alexandria, named Mononia, despite the fact that she was a nun, loved money, collected gold and was distinguished by miserliness. And, despite the fact that she was rich, she never gave anything to the strange, or to the poor, or to widows, or to monasteries. Saint Macarius the presbyter, who lived at that time in Alexandria, a great lover of poverty, wished to bring Monia to reason, and for this he devised the following remedy. In his youth, he was engaged in finishing precious stones, and everyone knew about it. And one day he came to Mononia and said: "They brought to me two very expensive stones; and I do not know whether they were bought or stolen; only they ask for only five hundred pieces of gold, while they are incomparably more expensive." The money-loving Mononia fell at the feet of Macarius and began to beg him to buy her these stones. The Elder said: "Go and see for yourself." But Mononia, as a nun, refused this and handed Macarius five hundred pieces of gold. He distributed this money in favor of the poor. A long time passed. Since Macarius enjoyed extraordinary respect from everyone, Mononia was ashamed to ask him about money on purpose, and she kept waiting for an opportunity when it would be more convenient to talk with the elder. The opportunity finally presented itself. One day Mononia saw St. Macarius in church and asked if he had bought the stones. Macarius said that he had bought them, and invited her to look at them. Mononia gladly agreed and followed the elder. And he, having brought her to an asylum built with her money for the poor, said to her: "Which stone do you want to see, the first or the second?" - "As you please," she answered. Then Macarius brought her to the department, where lame, blind and paralyzed men lived. "Behold," he said, pointing to them, "is the first stone." Then he brought her to the women's department, and, pointing to those who were being taught, said: "Here is the second stone, and this is this: if you want my business, then let it be so, and if you do not wish, then take your money back from me." The heart of the covetous woman was greatly wounded, and although she said nothing to the elder, she was so sad that when she came home, she went to bed and fell cruelly ill. Then the Lord Himself enlightened her. A light-bearing man appeared to her and showed her the places of torment of sinners. Mononia was horrified. Then the one who appeared said to her: "Do not be afraid, the Monk Macarius has delivered you from all these torments, having bought you two precious stones, which you have set up." After this, Mononia recovered and became extraordinarily merciful to the poor.

Thus, Bl. Augustine, that mercy stands before the gates of Gehenna, and does not allow anyone to be thrown into prison" (Discourse 39, question 50). And if even the riches used against their will for the benefit of the poor brought down such God's mercy on the soul of a sinner, then how much more generously will the Lord reward those who, voluntarily, out of love for Him, share their wealth with their needy brethren! Oh, truly, "God, who gives seed to him who sows and bread for food, will give abundance to what you sow, and will multiply the fruits of your righteousness" (2 Corinthians 9:10). And listen to what else (on behalf of the Lord says Blessed Augustine: "I have taken the earth, I will give heaven; I have received the temporal, I will repay the eternal; I have received bread, and I will give it back, but; heavenly and eternal; I received a hotel, I will give the house away; being in sickness, I was visited, I will repay salvation; I have been in prison, and have been visited, and I will give you freedom. (In a treatise on luxury and avarice). Let us not, therefore, forget good deeds and fellowship, remembering that God is pleased with such sacrifices (Heb. 13:16). Amen.

On Non-Condemnation of Neighbors

(Homily of the Holy Father Anastasius of Sinai about a certain father who has passed away, who does not condemn anyone)

Do you wish, brethren, to avoid righteous condemnation for sins at the judgment of God? If you want, then observe one of the main conditions: do not judge anyone.

You will not judge, and the Lord will not condemn you. In this He Himself is a true witness to you. "Judge not," he says, "and ye shall not be judged, neither condemn ye, that ye be not condemned" (Luke 6:37). The Holy Fathers teach the same way. "Do not judge," says St. Demetrius of Rostov, "unless you wish to be condemned" (Op. cit., St. Demetrius, Vol. I, p. 365). And what the Lord said is actually fulfilled for those who do not condemn.

St. Anastasius the Sinaite narrates the following: A certain monk, who had spent his life in negligence and sloth, fell into a grave illness and came close to death. And in the monastery where he lived, it was customary for all the brethren to gather to the dying and not to leave the bed, which had ended until he had breathed his last. According to this custom, the brethren also gathered to the above-mentioned monk, and at the sight of him they were not a little astonished. He died without the slightest fear of death, with gratitude to God and with a cheerful face. They said, "Brother, we know that you have spent your life carelessly; Tell us, then, what makes you so happy and gladest in the hour of death"? The monk answered: "Truly, honorable fathers, I have lived carelessly; but this is what happened to me. I was at the judgment of God, and the angels brought out the handwriting of my sins, read them to me, and asked, "Do you know that these are your sins?" I know, I said, but since I rejected the world and took my vows, I have not condemned anyone and have not held a grudge against anyone, and therefore I pray the Lord to fulfill His words on me: Do not condemn, that you may not be condemned, leave and it will be left to you. And as soon as I said this, the angels immediately tore the handwriting of my sins, and therefore I am now careless, and with joy I depart to the Lord." Having eaten these words, the monk died peacefully. In view of such mercy of God, shown to a brother who did not condemn anyone, let us, brethren, imitate him and turn away our eyes from the sins of others. Instead of looking at the sins of others, let us deepen within ourselves the awareness of our own weaknesses, and from such a consciousness humility will be born, and through humility there will be an approach to God. And when we draw near to God, then we will receive forgiveness for our sins and be vouchsafed to be heirs of the Kingdom of God. Amen.

The happiness of children is not in the wealth that their parents leave them

Parents are most often haunted by the thought: "What will my children be left with after me?" This thought is perhaps a good one, for who, in fact, if not parents, should take care of the happiness for the future of their children? But the same thought becomes sinful and harmful when it transgresses the boundaries. And for many, it often crosses the boundaries. How many people do we see who begin to save money, at first without any special attachment to it, in order to provide for their children, and then this frugality turns into greed, and a person, without noticing it, becomes passionately attached to money, becomes miserly, and money, money alone, fills his whole life. And here there is no time for Christian upbringing: neither the fear of God is instilled in children, nor love for God. And how does it all end? Children who are not brought up in the law of God, for the most part, at a very young age, plunge into only worldly pleasures, and if their father or mother dies, and if they get the money saved for them with such greed, they finally perish with it.

Indeed, have we seen many examples of this lately? With the father, who does not pay attention to the religious and moral education of his son and cares only to leave him as much earthly goods as possible, the latter secretly leads a disorderly life, and after the death of his father, you see, the son unwound all the possessions, and all the wealth accumulated for him with such difficulty went to dust. What is the result of this? That parents should first of all take care not of perishable wealth for their children, but of spiritual wealth, i.e. in order to bring them up in faith and piety; then to try to leave them as an inheritance not money, but an example of their own good deeds, and, finally, to entrust the fate of children for the future not to money, but to God. Then the children will truly be happy, because they will be with God and God will be with them. One of the Holy Fathers teaches about this in the following way. "Why," he asks the miserly father, "do you not give to those who demand? Saying, "My children are before me, and I desire to leave them rich." But if thou hast forsaken all things, then thou hast not set firm guardians. If thou hast forsaken God their sorrower and provident, this is greater than the treasures of gold. Leave the children to God's Providence, Who created for them both soul and life, and opened wealth to all. If thou wilt leave rich children, leave to them God the debtor (distributing to the poor), and they will be rewarded much" (Prologue of March 31).

So, it is clear that it is not money that can make up the happiness of our children, but God alone. And God, as you see, will only become their guardian and sorrower, when we entrust them to Him with deep faith, and strive by works of mercy to win His mercy for our children. Let us leave for the future excessive cares for the worldly happiness of our children, and let us take special care to leave them first of all incorruptible wealth; and for this we will try to grow and strengthen in them a spiritual life, to instill in them from an early age love for God and neighbor, sound concepts of the Orthodox faith, to accustom them to the temple of God, to remove them from bad associations, to serve as a good example for them, and in general to educate them, according to the Apostle, in the discipline and teaching of the Lord (Ephesians 6:4). This will be an unshakable wealth for our children, which will benefit them. Amen.

APRIL

About how salvific is the contrition of the heart and sorrow for sins

(Homily on the Repentance of Sinners)