This is what we, monks, and laymen must always think about and fall down before God with repentance and tears, so that He may forgive us our sins before the end befalls us, and that He may deliver us from these terrible punishments of torment. But if such delusion and blindness reign in the world, at least we will listen attentively to the words of the Gospel, I beseech you, and prepare ourselves so that we may serve before the Lord with fear and trembling, driving away and sweeping away from our souls every evil sinful deed and every evil thought; and let us take into ourselves every good deed and every virtue, and we will acquire a merciful disposition [54] and a compassionate heart towards our brethren. Let us be merciful, sweet-spoken to one another, without hypocrisy or guile, humble, magnanimous and patient. Let us exercise ourselves not only in spiritual feats and pay attention to this, but also in monastic obediences, so that we may go through them without murmuring, realizing that the obedience and service that we perform is not human, but divine. Wherefore I desire that we should have great attention, and through negligence and pride not spoil any work in our hands, so that we may not suffer spiritual harm. And so, while we have time, let us now try to acquire all this and every other good and God-pleasing work, so that, having lived according to the commandments of the Gospel of Christ, we may become heirs of the heavenly kingdom, in Christ Jesus our Lord, to Whom belongeth glory and dominion with the Father and the Holy Spirit. By the Spirit, now and ever, unto the ages of ages. Amen.

HOMILY 44.On Wednesday of Cheese Week. That we must remember God's blessings and always try to please Him

Brothers and Fathers! And so, by the grace and love of God, we have been vouchsafed to reach these days in this summer, which serve as a threshold of the Holy Spirit. Forty days. And therefore we must abandon all laziness and negligence, and with great zeal take up the podvig for our salvation. We have had enough of the time that we have spent in idleness and in pleasing our flesh; there are enough days that we have lived in vain, in carnal neglect and barrenness of the Divine virtues. Let us at least now renew the temple of our soul, imagining in our minds what love and long-suffering the loving Lord has for us. Let us remember the innumerable gifts and blessings that He has created for us and does every day. For what mind or what human tongue can worthily confess God's blessings and gifts? No.

Look, beloved brethren, and see with your soul's eye, that is, with your mind, and then you will know the great love that God has for us, and the great honor with which He has honored the human race. For before He created man, He created the world, and adorned it with such wondrous and wondrous splendor for its enjoyment and service. And after all things He created man himself, and made him king, that he might possess all the animals, earthly, sea, and heavenly, i.e., the air, as the Prophet glorifies Him: "Thou hast subdued all things under his nose" (Psalm 8:7), as if to say: "Thou hast subdued all creation and all creatures, O Lord Lover of mankind, under the power of man." He created us in His own image and likeness, and gave us a natural reason to distinguish good from evil. And we, as ungrateful and foolish, transgressed His holy commandment and departed from Him, but again, as a gracious one, He came to seek us; and not only this, but He also endured a shameful and unrighteous death for us, redeemed us with His precious blood from the enslavement of the devil and from eternal torment, and raised us up to heaven, to our former homeland, that is, to the kingdom of heaven, where He Himself dwells. Oh, what a great grace He has bestowed upon us! He also granted holy baptism, which frees us from all sin, and even more: if anyone defiles it with sins, He gave us repentance and confession to cleanse and enlighten it, as it was before. Finally, for the observance of His commandments, He has prepared for us blessedness, eternal inheritance, ineffable joy, and those blessings which, according to the expression of the Apostle, the eye of man has not seen, nor ear heard, nor mind thought, which God has prepared for those who love Him (1 Corinthians 2:9). Oh, what blessedness Christ vouchsafed man! In addition to all this, let us also ponder with our minds how many times we have been subjected to spiritual and physical calamities, and the Lord Himself delivered us from them. How many times have we obeyed the evil demons, and fulfilled the will of their father the devil, and transgressed the will of God; and again He did not leave us to be mocked by demons, but preserved us from them, nourished and preserved our life, long-suffering and waiting day by day for our repentance and conversion to Him. And most of all, He instilled in us the desire for a monastic image and love for the ascetic life, and prompted our heart to hate the world and its charms, to leave our homeland, relatives, friends, and vouchsafed us to come to the holy retinue of this good brotherhood. Let us also imagine in our minds that although we have done nothing good before God and have even been subjected to an innumerable multitude of sins, He still loves us and protects us from all evil; but if we wish to repent before Him with all our hearts, and labor in spiritual feats in order to please Him, then how many blessings and how many spiritual gifts He will give us, and how He will strengthen us and help us on the path of virtue! Thus, brethren, let us remember this day and night, let us always meditate on God's gifts, blessings and gifts, and let us constantly cry out with the Prophet David, saying: "What is the Lord's recompense for all, which He has given us? (Psalm 115:3) As the other prophet says: "And who am I, my Lord Lord?" And who is my father's house, for thou hast loved me? For when we reflect on this, love for God, Who created us, will kindle in us, and we will compel ourselves to fulfill His holy commandments, so as not to grieve our benefactor God. Then He will give us His grace even more and His help to please Him to the end for the glorification and veneration of His holy Name. For to Him is due all glory, honor, and worship forever. Amen.

HOMILY 45[55] On the Friday of the Cheese Week. On Abstinence and Prayer

Brothers and Fathers! Many times I have praised and still praise the image and order of monastic life; and this I do not out of flattery and deception, but I teach you the truth, and I say that the monastic, or rather the angelic life, is a praiseworthy deed. I do not want to condemn the laity through this, but I want to motivate you to good deeds of true life. For you know what confusion and disorders are taking place in the world even now, what disorderly shouts and shouts and satanic games, drunkenness and rejoicing, and the like; and all these are the works and actions of the devil; and if those who do them do not repent of them, they will be subjected to great torment. But our life does not consist in eating a lot and drinking a lot, jumping and amusing ourselves by throwing a disc [56]; if anyone does this, according to the law, he should not take communion even on the very day of Pascha. And what does it consist of? In singing and glorifying the Lord day and night, but in accordance with the faithful rite and rule that the Holy Fathers bequeathed to us: that is, to pass from psalmody to psalmody, from reading to reading, and from prayer to prayer: then to pay attention to ourselves and guard our minds, so that the devil does not deceive us in any way, and does not sow evil and vile thoughts in our hearts, or evil thoughts, or pride, or fornication, or any other sin, then inwardly learn from the Psalms and other sayings of the Divine Scriptures; sometimes, when time requires, to be silent in one's cell, sometimes to do handicrafts, or to converse for the benefit of one's soul, one must serve one another, each according to his own obedience, which is entrusted to him; we must love one another, and have compassion for each other, as brethren, as one body; for we, according to the expression of the Apostle, are one body and one spirit, in the one hope of our calling (Ephesians 4:4).

Everything is beautiful and according to order. If bodily consolation is also needed for the sake of the feast, then this is not contrary to piety, only it would be according to the order and as befits the monks; for this we have a testimony from the Holy Gospel. Listen to what Christ says to Judas: "What you do, do quickly." And no one understands this from those who sat at the table, to the honest word to him. And when the ark was named Judas, he spent it, as Jesus said to him, "Buy what we demand for the feast, or give alms to the poor" (John 13:27, 28, 29); i.e., as if for this reason Christ said to Judas: "If you do, do quickly." Meanwhile, the Lord told him this about the betrayal that Judas intended to commit. The apostles did not understand why the Lord said this to Judas. You see, brethren, that both the Lord and the Apostles had care for the feast and for the poor, and that we, too, humble, as you know, try to fulfill according to our strength.

Blessed be God, Who vouchsafed us this life, not because of our good deeds done by us, for we have not done a single good deed on earth before God, but only because of His immeasurable goodness. For this reason, each of us, with a contrite and humble heart, must give great thanks to our benefactor God. Thus it happens in monastic life, as we have said, but in the world there is scarcity in such matters; for the laity spend all day and night in worries about wealth and unrighteous acquisition, and in other worldly passions, in fornication, adultery, in kidnapping, unrighteousness, deceit, in shameful speech, oaths and reproaches; one starts a lawsuit with another, one brings another to lawless judgment, and many other evils are in the world; for this reason the Divine Chrysostom says: "Not many of the worldly will be saved." These words are terrible, but they are not true. Therefore we must weep not only for our sins, but also because of this utterance. For are we not the laity brethren one to another? Were we not of the same dust, and were we not baptized in the same holy font? If someone sees an animal going into the abyss, will he not regret it? How much more should we grieve and weep for our Christian brethren? For this reason Blessed Paul also wept over the enemies of the cross of Christ, praying for them with unceasing heartfelt sorrow (Romans 9:2). In like manner the Prophet Jeremiah mourned the destruction of the Jews, and not only mourned for them, but also gave up his lamentation to the Scriptures, and left it to be read. And the God-seer Moses cried out to God, saying: "If you forgive them sin, forgive them; but if not, blot out me also from Thy book (Exodus 32:32). In short, every saint grieved so much for sinners, and prayed to God for them. Thus, if we wish to follow in the footsteps of the saints, let us be concerned not only for our own salvation, but also for the whole world, lamenting for sinners, heretics and other impious pagans who are in the darkness of unbelief, and speak briefly about all people, as the Apostle Paul commands us, saying that we should make supplications and thanksgiving (1 Tim. 2:1). l). And then we will gain more benefit than those for whom we pray and remember, and we will receive cleansing and forgiveness of our sins, and we will inherit eternal life in the heavenly kingdom; in Christ Jesus our Lord, to Whom belongeth glory and dominion with the Father and the Holy Spirit. By the Spirit, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

INSTRUCTION 46[57]. On Cheesefare Week. On fasting and the fact that the true fast of a true novice consists in cutting off one's own will

Brothers and Fathers! Our good God, Who grants us life and leads us from one time to another, has now brought us to the time of holy Lent out of love for mankind, during which each of the ascetics ascetics asceticizes and labors for the salvation of his soul, according to his own will and desire. One, observing abstinence, fasts for two or three days, the other, awake in vigil, reads or prays for a greater or lesser number of hours; and some make genuflections, placing on the pedestal according to his strength a greater or lesser number of prostrations; and another exercises in some other podvig; and someone would look at their great thoroughness and diligence in these days. And a monk who is in obedience and obedience, who is a true novice, bears his podvig not only at a certain time, but throughout his entire life. In what does the podvig of a true novice consist, and what is his great correction and his bright crown, if not to rely on his own reason and not to follow his own will at all; but whatever he does, do with the blessing of the abbot, or his elder and steward? This is the greatest of all monastic feats. In short, obedience with obedience vouchsafes us the crown of martyrdom, if, i.e., someone cuts off his own will and fulfills the will of his superior; it is so valued before God, as if he had shed his blood for Christ. However, we are well aware, my brethren, that during these holy days there is a change in food, an increase in kneeling and prostrations, and an increase in singing and in services, according to the ancient tradition of our Holy Fathers. Let us receive this gift of fasting honestly and with joy; let us not grieve over the suffering and weakening of our body, but let us rejoice in the health and salvation of our souls. Let us spend these holy days in meekness of heart, in gentleness, without condemnation, without anger, without guile, without envy, but even more in peace, in love for one another, in meekness and obedience, filled with mercy and good fruits. When the time of silence comes, let us be silent; when the need for a word arises, let us respond with humility and reverence; let us flee from verbosity, confusion, and disorder, so that we, as servants of Christ, may carry out our obediences peacefully and without confusion; for confusion in the community brings great harm to the unanimity of the brethren. In addition to all this, let us be careful not to open the doors to evil thoughts that come and defile our souls, and not to give place to the devil, just as the Divine Scriptures, teaching us, say: "If the spirit of him that possesses ascends against thee, thou shalt not leave thy place" (Ecclesiastes 10:4); for our enemy, the devil, has no power to force us, but only throws evil thoughts, like a fisherman to bait. And when we deign and accept them, then they rule over us; and when we drive them away by prayer and invocation of the glorious name of our Lord Jesus Christ, then the enemy flees from us in shame. Let us use labor and diligence to keep our soul undefiled and pure from every impure thought and unwounded by its arrows, as the bride of Christ, and we will be vouchsafed to be the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit. And to hear: Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. (Matthew 5:8). And, as the Apostle says, "If this is true, if it is honest and honorable, if it is righteous, if it is most pure and pure, if it is lovely, if it is good, if it is virtue, and if it is praise" (Philippians 4:8). We will do this, and God will be with us. Therefore, brethren, let us flee from gluttony and drunkenness, from which all sins are born; let us eat and drink with reverence and the fear of God, and glorify God, Who has delivered us from the delusion and rebellion of the world. Incidentally, there are monks among us, but in reality they are not monks, who sing satanic songs, i.e., disorderly songs, and amuse themselves like senseless children, which the worldly should not do, and even more so the monks, the chosen ones of God. We find a similar thing in the Old Testament, how God was angry with the Jews, and in one day three thousand of them died, because they ate and drank gray, and rose to play (Exodus 32:6). And if He was angry with the Jews, then what will we, monks, be subjected to, if we do similar things to them?

Therefore, be attentive, brethren, and live as children of God. Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice in Him with trembling (Psalm 2:11). Or do you not see how the earth shakes and the hills shake, while you play, mock and riot? Shall we play with those who stand before the King of heaven and earth? Listen to you, too, who play and sing disorderly! The Scriptures say of the unruly, that their heart is filled with the spirit of demons, and the heart of the one who sings is humbly filled with the Holy Spirit, just as the Apostle says: "If any man are happy, let him sing (James 5:13) wisely, and not drunk." I testify before God and the Holy Angels that if any monk does such lawless deeds, then he will not be worthy to receive communion and receive the antidoron during the entire Forty Days; unless he has a confessor like himself who will forgive him. Therefore, be attentive and observe the traditions and commandments of the Saints, eat and drink in moderation, as children of God; and give to the poor who have not, that they also may be comforted on this holy day. If we do this, then now we will be vouchsafed to reach the days of the Lord's Resurrection, and in the age to come, in the resurrection of the dead, we will receive the heavenly kingdom in Christ Jesus our Lord, to Whom is due glory and dominion with the Father and the Holy Spirit. By the Spirit, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

HOMILY 47[58].On Wednesday of the first week. On Fasting, Impassibility and Purity

Brothers and Fathers! The present days of holy fasting, among other seasons, are likened to a quiet haven, where all flock and find spiritual silence, not only monks, but also laymen, small and great, rulers and subjects, kings and priests; for this time is useful and salvific for all kinds and ages of people.

But Christians who live in the world have teachers, that is, their own bishops and pastors, who instruct and teach them. For just as wrestlers and fighters require excitement, so fasting require the encouragement and consolation of teachers. And since I, too, am among you who are desired in the place of primacy and abbotship, it is my duty to tell you a few words about this soul-saving fast.