High is the virtue of love. It is a gift of God (2:277), but in order to receive and assimilate this gift, a person must direct all his efforts to cleanse his soul from sinful defilement, for love, in the words of St. Tikhon, dwells in the heart, which "by true repentance, contrition and desire is defecated from evil addictions and sinful customs, and is purified and prepared to receive that heavenly gift" (4:354). Consequently, in order to acquire love, it is necessary to be cleansed of sinful corruption, to cease to be guided by one's limited mind, but to be guided in everything only by the light of the word of God, to renounce one's sinful will and to live and act according to the will of God, to completely captivate oneself into the obedience of Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5), in other words, it is necessary that all thoughts, feelings, intentions and all the activities of a Christian correspond to the will of God. "The love of God cannot be preserved otherwise" (2:267).

Since love is a grace-filled gift from above, a Christian must constantly pray to God, the Giver of all blessings, that He Himself kindle the spark of His love in the heart and help preserve and increase this precious treasure (2:24). This prayer in itself has the property of inducing a Christian to love, mercy and compassion. Praying to God for mercy and salvation, the believer is aware of the need to show mercy to his neighbors on his part. That is why he who prays to God and asks Him for mercy himself shows mercy and love to his neighbors, for he knows that everything he does in the name of God to his neighbor, he also does for himself (2:349).

Thus, love as a union of perfection is directly connected with the grace-filled organization of the spiritual life of man, with all the virtues, which, developing and perfecting, in turn, end in love. And a believer must devote his whole life to this kindling of the gift of love, and only thanks to this can he certainly unite with the Source of love and with Love Itself – Christ in grace-filled eternity.

3. Mercy

Christian mercy is a special feeling that has its source in God and which is expressed in kindness, benevolence, compassion for neighbors, in long-suffering towards sinners and forgiveness of offenses to enemies. This virtue invariably accompanies love, like warmth to fire (2:355). And if any Christian does not have mercy in himself, then he is not only devoid of love, but also of the Christian spirit (3:366), which means that he dwells in the darkness of sin (4:379). According to the thought of the Zadonsk ascetic, if love is above all virtues, and mercy is an expression of love, then it alone (mercy) intercedes before God and asks Him for mercy for the benefactor (5:181). God is more pleasing not to the person who exercises only in prayer, but to the one who has acquired mercy in his heart, because prayer without alms is like a voice crying in the wilderness, or a tree without fruit (5:121). And whatever mercy a Christian shows to his neighbor, the Lord accepts it as shown to Himself. This virtue will be of particular importance at the Last Judgment of Christ, when the fate of a person will be determined depending on whether he had mercy in his soul – this fruit of love – or not (2:343). If even the pagans, moved by the natural law, show mercy to the needy, then the Christian should be moved to this not only by natural kinship, since all have one forefather Adam, but also by spiritual kinship, and most of all by the Name of Christ (2:348). It is quite natural, the saint notes, that if someone wants to be loved, not offended, and helped in earthly life, then let him first fulfill all this himself. Then he will certainly be rewarded not only a hundredfold on earth, but also in heaven (1:57; 2:336). In this mood is the whole of "Christian Science. This is a fair amount of art. A student of this philosophy is a true lover of wisdom," and a Christian should study this science "from infancy to the end of life" (4:214).

Urging a follower of Christ to mercy, St. Tikhon reminds us that no one can take material values with him into eternal life: just as a person comes naked into this world, so he leaves it naked. On the contrary, works of mercy for Christ's sake are a pledge of eternal, endless blessings (2:349), and charity is useful and brings great good only when it is performed by a Christian throughout his life, and not only at the end of it. Naturally, the saint notes, none of the people will treat guests to the remnants of their meal, much less humiliating and even sinful to incline God to mercy with the remnants of their lives, besides, it is not known when the moment will come that opens eternity.

Therefore, it is necessary to put aside all thoughts that distract from love for one's neighbor and bind the heart with avarice and love of money (2:351), and strive to do good constantly and without sloth. How can a Christian turn to his Creator with the prayer: "Hear me, O Lord," when "he himself does not hear the poor, or even more so Christ Himself crying out in the poor?" "With what hope," says the saint, "will you stretch out your hands to your Creator, when you yourself turn away the one who stretches out his hand like himself? God is merciful, and bows down with natural mercy to prayer, but to the prayer of the merciful, for by such sacrifices, that is, by love of strangers and promises, God is pleased, saith the Apostle" (2:348).

The virtue of mercy should not be understood in a narrow sense, as only the provision of material assistance to the needy; It also includes the spiritual support of one's neighbor, for a person consists of two parts: soul and body. Consequently, the mercy shown to him must also be twofold: spiritual and bodily. Works of mercy related to bodily life are expressed in feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, healing the sick, helping a person in need, labors and circumstances dangerous to life and health, etc. [However, St. Tikhon does not include in the category of needy those persons who can work themselves, but through their laziness distance themselves from this and even spend the help they receive on drunkenness. thieves and predators and says that such people will not be comforted beyond the grave, but the judgment of God, if they do not bring true repentance for this (2:359)]. And the works of spiritual alms can be manifested in guiding the erring to the path of truth, distracting a person from sin, correcting the vicious, strengthening the wavering in the midst of temptations, comforting the afflicted, condescending to the weaknesses of the weak, but without indulging passions and vices, forgiving insults, offenses, praying for salvation (1:169).

Although both types of mercy – bodily and spiritual – are of the greatest importance for the salvation of a Christian, the Holy Father gives preference to the latter, pointing out that just as the soul is greater than the body, so the spiritual mercy shown to one's neighbor, and with it love for him, are more valuable in the eyes of God. "For Christ loves human souls very much, so that He deigned to die for them. And therefore nothing can be more pleasing to Him than human salvation; and no one can love Him more than he who seeks the salvation of his neighbor" (2:345).

Such active love of a Christian for his neighbor likens him to a merciful God (1:169) and contributes to the fulfillment of Christ's commandment: "Be merciful, as your Father also is merciful" (Luke 6:36). "Whoever gives alms to his neighbor imitates Him (God), and thus offers Him a sacrifice better than any sacrifice" (5:120).

As St. Tikhon emphasizes, Christian mercy must be unfeigned and constant, especially in relation to brothers in faith, for all believers in Christ are, as it were, one organism, members of one body (5:116). In his work "On True Christianity", comparing the actions of Christians with the interaction of the members of the body, the Holy Father explains in detail how they should care for and help each other. "In the material body," he says, "if one soul suffers, all other souls also sympathize with it: so in the spiritual body Christians must sympathize with each other and have compassion. When one Christian is in distress and suffering, other Christians must also be moved by his misfortune and suffering. For if any Christian does not move over the misfortune of his brother with mercy, he testifies of himself that he does not have the Christian spirit... For a Christian cannot be without faith, faith without love, love without mercy" (3:366). Just as in the human organism the members try to help each other and thereby serve each other diligently and protect the whole body of man, so Christians should show mercy to one another, helping by word, advice, prayer, or deed itself (3:367). And this mutual assistance in the matter of salvation is of great importance, since all Christians, constituting on earth a militant Church, a single fraternal union, like warriors, must wage war against the spirits of evil. Since "the devil and his angels with one accord arm themselves against Christians and seek their destruction," then "Christians (must) with God's help stand against them and urge one another" (2:345). Just as in a living organism, if a member does not live a common life with the whole body, then it gradually dies and falls away or is cut off, so a person who does not have mercy for people moves away from the Church of Christ and, consequently, dies spiritually.

Knowing all this, a Christian throughout his life is obliged to constantly exercise the virtue of mercy and to be like a good doctor who cares for another person even to the point of self-sacrifice. And this, in turn, will make his heart compassionate to every person in need (2:345, 347). Moreover, those who have acquired this virtue will not only be pardoned by God (Matt. 5:7), but will also stand at His right hand in the Kingdom of Heaven (Matt. 25:34), while those who have not done mercy will be judged without mercy (Matt. 25:41) (1:170; 2:347).

Deepening the thought of Christian mercy and its significance in the matter of human salvation, the saint says that good must be done without expecting benefit or praise from it, and moreover it must be done with zeal and heartfelt disposition (2:354). In showing mercy to people, a Christian must in every possible way beware of self-conceit, vanity and arrogance, because these passions can devalue this virtue in the eyes of God, and then, instead of praise and reward from God, a person can incur His wrath and condemnation (2:356).

Thus, the virtue of mercy provides the most essential help in the matter of human salvation and intercedes before the throne of the Most High not only for absolution of sins and pardon, but also for blessed eternity together with the heavenly dwellers.