| Michael Prokurat, Alexander Golitzin, Michael D. Peterson Скачать epub pdf IRENAEUS OF LYONS IRENAEUS OF LYONS, bishop, St. (ca. 130-ca. 200). Irenaeus was a native speaker of Greek born in Asia Minor (probably in Smyrna) where in his youth, according to Eusebius of Caesarea, he came to know Polycarp (qq.v.). He became bishop of Lyons in Roman Gaul shortly after that church had suffered a severe local persecution. His great and deserved place among the Church Fathers comes chiefly from his defense of the theology of the Great Church against gnosticism (qq.v.), especially in his massive, five-volume work, Adversus Haereses (extant in Latin translation). In Adv. Haer. his description of gnostic thought in volume I is indispensable, if highly colored by the exigencies of polemic, and volume II is a detailed refutation of the thought previously outlined. Volumes III and IV center on what is, in effect, an argument for the Incarnation, which depends on the lex orandi. The Eucharist (q.v.), Irenaeus argues, is a primary witness to the truth about Christ that the Apostles (q.v.) preached from the beginning: “Our opinion [i.e., that Christ is truly God and truly flesh] is in accord with the Eucharist, and the Eucharist in turn sustains our opinion.” Given this, the true presence of Christ in the eucharistic bread and wine, Irenaeus can argue for the reality and goodness of the physical world itself and of its Creator, the one God (q.v.) to whom both the Old and New Testaments bear witness. In response to the gnostics’ claim to a “secret tradition” handed down from a select few of Christ’s Apostles, he replies that no such secrets exist. The preaching and faith of the Church was open and public from the first and may be checked against the preaching found in all churches of apostolic foundation. This is Irenaeus’s-and the original-sense of the phrase, “apostolic succession,” i.e., the succession of the teaching of the apostles carried on preeminently by their successors, the Christian bishops. This teaching is summed up in the “rule of truth” (kanon tes aletheias), by which Irenaeus means the confession of faith in the Father, Son, and Spirit made by every believer at baptism-an ancestor of the later creeds (qq.v.). Irenaeus’s thought served the Cappadocian Fathers later in their correction of Origen (qq.v.). One can find in him at least the adumbrations of virtually the whole of subsequent Orthodox theology, anthropology, ecclesiology, and Christology (qq.v.). The disappearance of his works in the Greek-speaking East probably owes to a later disdain in the Byzantine era for his millennialism (qq.v.). He is known and quoted in the East until at least the 6th c. Читать далее Источник: The A to Z of the Orthodox Church/Michael Prokurat, Alexander Golitzin, Michael D. Peterson - Scarecrow Press, 2010. - 462 p. ISBN 1461664039 Поделиться ссылкой на выделенное |
| Материал из Православной Энциклопедии под редакцией Патриарха Московского и всея Руси Кирилла ДАВИД ВЕЛИКИЙ КОМНИН [αυδ, αβδ Μϒας Κομνηνς] (ок. 1181/83 - 13.12.1212), визант. царевич, младший брат Алексея I Великого Комнина , основателя Трапезундской империи. Внук визант. имп. Андроника I Комнина . После свержения Андроника I (1185) пребывал в изгнании, возможно, в Грузии, при дворе родственницы по отцу царицы Тамары . В 1204 г. возглавил один из отрядов войска, захватившего районы Зап. Понта и Пафлагонии от Синопа до р. Сангарий. Вместе с братом принял эпоним Великого Комнина, но не носил имп. титул и не был соправителем Алексея I, хотя и управлял подконтрольными ему землями. Стремясь к восстановлению Византии, пытался выйти к Пропонтиде и К-полю, захваченному крестоносцами. Однако авангард его армии, к-рым командовал молодой стратиг Андроник Синадин, был разгромлен войсками никейского правителя Феодора I Ласкаря у Никомидии осенью 1205 г. Д. В. К. заключил антиникейский военный союз с имп. Латинской империи Генрихом I , видимо признав себя его вассалом и оказывая ему помощь продовольствием. Когда в кон. 1206 г. Феодор I напал на Пафлагонию и осадил Ираклию Понтийскую, помощь Генриха I вынудила никейского императора к быстрому отступлению. В нач. 1207 г. Д. В. К. перешел в наступление и овладел крепостью Плусиада. Выбранный в Никее в 1208 г. К-польский патриарх Михаил IV Авториан и его клир присягнули в верности никейскому государю, что усилило его позиции, хотя местные церкви Пафлагонии и Понта не признавали юрисдикцию Никеи и оставались верными Великим Комнинам. Осенью 1208 г. Феодор I осадил крепость Ираклию, но не смог ее взять из-за удара во фланг войск Генриха I. Никейский император быстро отступил со значительными потерями, а Д. В. К. перешел к обороне и укреплял стенами и башнями свои главные крепости - Ираклию и Амастриду. Умер Д. В. К., возможно, на Афоне, приняв монашество с именем Даниил. Лит.: Vasiliev A. A. The Foundation of the Empire of Trabizond (1204-1222)//Speculum. 1936. Vol. 2. P. 3-37; Ostrogorsky. Geschichte. S. 351-352, 356; Janssens E. Trébizond et Colchid. Brux., 1969; Kuršanskis M. Autour des sources géorgiennes de la foundation de empire de Trébizonde//ΑΠ. 1970. Τ. 30. Σ. 107-116; Карпов С. П. У истоков полит. идеологии Трапезундской империи//ВВ. 1981. Т. 42. С. 103-105; он же. История Трапезундской империи. СПб., 2006 (в печати); Savvides A. G. C. Byzantium in the Near East: Its Relations with Seljuk Sultanate of Rum in Asia Minor, the Armenians in Cilicia and the Mongols, A. D. C. 1192-1237. Thessal., 1981. P. 67-70; Weiss G. David Komnenos//LexMA. Bd. 3. S. 599; Brand Charles M. David Komnenos//ODB. P. 589-590; Шукуров Р. М. Великие Комнины и Восток (1204-1461). СПб., 2001. С. П. Карпов Рубрики: Ключевые слова: |
| Righteous Philaret the Merciful of Amnia in Asia Minor Commemorated on December 1 Righteous Philaret the Merciful, son of George and Anna, was raised in piety and the fear of God. He lived during the eighth century in the village of Amnia in the Paphlagonian district of Asia Minor. His wife, Theoseba, was from a rich and illustrious family, and they had three children: a son John, and daughters Hypatia and Evanthia. Philaret was a rich and illustrious dignitary, but he did not hoard his wealth. Knowing that many people suffered from poverty, he remembered the words of the Savior about the dread Last Judgment and about “these least ones” (Mt. 25:40); the Apostle Paul’s reminder that we will take nothing with us from this world (1 Tim 6:7); and the assertion of King David that the righteous would not be forsaken (Ps 36/37:25). Philaret, whose name means “lover of virtue,” was famed for his love for the poor. One day Ishmaelites [Arabs] attacked Paphlagonia, devastating the land and plundering the estate of Philaret. There remained only two oxen, a donkey, a cow with her calf, some beehives, and the house. But he also shared them with the poor. His wife reproached him for being heartless and unconcerned for his own family. Mildly, yet firmly he endured the reproaches of his wife and the jeers of his children. “I have hidden away riches and treasure,” he told his family, “so much that it would be enough for you to feed and clothe yourselves, even if you lived a hundred years without working.” The saint’s gifts always brought good to the recipient. Whoever received anything from him found that the gift would multiply, and that person would become rich. Knowing this, a certain man came to Saint Philaret asking for a calf so that he could start a herd. The cow missed its calf and began to bellow. Theoseba said to her husband, “You have no pity on us, you merciless man, but don’t you feel sorry for the cow? You have separated her from her calf.” The saint praised his wife, and agreed that it was not right to separate the cow and the calf. Therefore, he called the poor man to whom he had given the calf and told him to take the cow as well. |
| Santa Claus was Greek. That’s the first thing we need to get straight. Santa Claus was an Orthodox Bishop. Santa Claus came from Asia Minor, not the North Pole. And his real name is Saint Nicholas. What follows is the true story of Saint Nicholas, concluding with the bizarre tale of how the modern world has tried to turn our holy saint into a myth – first into a tiny Norse elf, then into the mysterious wonderful Santa Claus who brought gifts by night, and then into a fat jolly purveyor of Coca Coca, and finally into a used car salesman with a fake beard – and why they won’t get away with it. We’ll get to all that in Part 2. Bishop Nicholas of Myra Let’s begin at the beginning. It is certain that during the early fourth century there was a holy bishop named Nicholas in Myra, a seaport on the south coast of Asia Minor (modern Turkey), who died on December 6 (December 19). How do we know that? Because the Church’s way of honoring holy men and women has always been to celebrate the Divine Liturgy on the day of their death. And in Myra a Bishop Nicholas has always been remembered in that way on December 6, as he is now so honored all over the Orthodox world. Asia Minor was then culturally and linguistically Greek. A substantial Greek Orthodox community remained in Lycia till the 1920s. The stories told about Saint Nicholas’ life are not documented history. They are not like the Gospels which were written during the lifetime of many who knew Jesus personally, so that if there were major errors they would have been corrected. So far as we can tell, no one who knew Bishop Nicholas wrote about him. Written accounts about him first appear centuries after he lived. So don’t take the stories about him for more than they are – or any less than they are, for they speak of the character of this man who left so profound an impression on his people that they remembered him ever after as a saint, as holy. In any event, the most important history of Saint Nicholas took place after he died, for like many saints he has done his best work after his life on earth. We’ll get to that in a moment. But for now, here are some of the stories that came to be told about Saint Nicholas. |
| Virginmartyr Pelagia of Tarsus, in Asia Minor Commemorated May 4 and October 7 Saint Pelagia of Tarsus in Cilicia (southeastern Asia Minor) lived in the third century, during the reign of Diocletian (284-305), and was the daughter of illustrious pagans. When she heard about Jesus Christ from her Christian friends, she believed in Him and desired to preserve her virginity, dedicating her whole life to the Lord. Emperor Diocletian’s heir (a boy he adopted), saw the maiden Pelagia, was captivated by her beauty and wanted her to be his wife. The holy virgin told the youth that she was betrothed to Christ the Immortal Bridegroom, and had renounced earthly marriage. Pelagia’s reply greatly angered the young man, but he decided to leave her in peace for awhile, hoping that she would change her mind. At the same time, Pelagia convinced her mother to let her visit the nurse who had raised her in childhood. She secretly hoped to find Bishop Linus of Tarsus, who had fled to a mountain during a persecution against Christians, and to be baptized by him. She had seen the face of Bishop Linus in a dream, which made a profound impression upon her. The holy bishop told her to be baptized. St Pelagia traveled in a chariot to visit her nurse, dressed in rich clothes and accompanied by a whole retinue of servants, as her mother wished. Along the way St Pelagia, by the grace of God, met Bishop Linus. Pelagia immediately recognized the bishop who had appeared to her in the dream. She fell at his feet, requesting Baptism. At the bishop’s prayer a spring of water flowed from the ground. Bishop Linus made the Sign of the Cross over St Pelagia, and during the Mystery of Baptism, angels appeared and covered the chosen one of God with a bright mantle. After giving the pious virgin Holy Communion, Bishop Linus offered a prayer of thanksgiving to the Lord with her, and then sent her to continue her journey. She then exchanged her expensive clothing for a simple white garment, and distributed her possessions to the poor. Returning to her servants, St Pelagia told them about Christ, and many of them were converted and believed. |
| Hieromartyr Charalampus (Haralambos) the Bishop of Magnesia in Thessaly Commemorated on February 10/23 The Hieromartyr Charalampus, Bishop of Magnesia, the Martyrs Porphyrius and Baptus and Three Women Martyrs suffered in the year 202. Saint Charalampus, Bishop of Magnesia (Asia Minor), successfully spread faith in Christ the Savior, guiding people on the way to salvation. News of his preaching reached Lucian, the governor of the district, and the military commander Lucius. The saint was arrested and brought to trial, where he confessed his faith in Christ and refused to offer sacrifice to idols. Despite the bishop’s advanced age (he was 113 years old), he was subjected to monstrous tortures. They lacerated his body with iron hooks, and scraped all the skin from his body. During this the saint turned to his tormentors, “I thank you, brethren, that you have restored my spirit, which longs to pass over to a new and everlasting life!” Seeing the Elder’s endurance and his complete lack of malice, two soldiers (Porphyrius and Baptus) openly confessed Christ, for which they were immediately beheaded with a sword. Three women who were watching the sufferings of Saint Charalampus also began to glorify Christ, and were quickly martyred. The enraged Lucius seized the instruments of torture and began to torture the holy martyr, but suddenly his forearms were cut off as if by a sword. The governor then spat in the face of the saint, and immediately his head was turned around so that he faced backwards. Then Lucius entreated the saint to show mercy on him, and both torturers were healed through the prayers of Saint Charalampus. During this a multitude of witnesses came to believe in Christ. Among them also was Lucius, who fell at the feet of the holy bishop, asking to be baptized. Lucian reported these events to the emperor Septimus Severus (193-211), who was then at Pisidian Antioch (western Asia Minor). The emperor ordered Saint Charalampus to be brought to him in Antioch. Soldiers twisted the saint’s beard into a rope, wound it around his neck, and used it to drag him along. They also drove an iron nail into his body. The emperor then ordered them to torture the bishop more intensely, and they began to burn him with fire, a little at a time. But God protected the saint, and he remained unharmed. |
| St. Parthenius the Bishop of Lampsacus on the Hellespont Commemorated on February 7/20 Saint Parthenius, Bishop of Lampsacus, was a native of the city of Melitoupolis (in northwestern Asia Minor), where his father Christopher served as deacon. The youth did not receive adequate schooling, but he learned the Holy Scripture by attending church services. He had a good heart, and distributed to the poor the money he earned working as a fisherman. Filled with the grace of God, Saint Parthenius from age eighteen healed the sick in the name of Christ, cast out demons and worked other miracles. Learning of the young man’s virtuous life, Bishop Philetus of Melitoupolis educated him and ordained him presbyter. In 325, during the reign of Constantine the Great, Archbishop Achilles of Cyzicus made him bishop of the city of Lampsacus (Asia Minor). In the city were many pagans, and the saint fervently began to spread the faith in Christ, confirming it through many miracles and by healing the sick. The people began to turn from their pagan beliefs, and the saint went to the emperor Constantine the Great seeking permission to tear down the pagan temple and build a Christian church in its place. The emperor received the saint with honor, gave him a decree authorizing the destruction of the pagan temple, and provided him with the means to build a church. Returning to Lampsacus, Saint Parthenius had the pagan temple torn down, and built a beautiful church of God in the city. In one of the razed temples, he found a large marble slab which he thought would be very suitable as an altar. The saint ordered work to begin on the stone, and to move it to the church. Through the malice of the devil, who became enraged at the removal of the stone from the pagan temple, the cart overturned and killed the driver Eutychian. Saint Parthenius restored him to life by his prayer and shamed the devil, who wanted to frustrate the work of God. The saint was so kind that he refused healing to no one who came to him, or who chanced to meet him by the wayside, whether he suffered from bodily illnesses or was tormented by unclean spirits. People even stopped going to physicians, since Saint Parthenius healed all the sick for free. With the great power of the name of Christ, the saint banished a host of demons from people, from their homes, and from the waters of the sea. |
| The Power of the Sacraments in the Lives of Orthodox Christians Presented by Fr. Nikon of Mount Athos at the Academy of Aikaterini, Greece, 2014 Fr. Nikon of Mount Athos Dear People, Christ Is Risen, In my daily searches of the internet in Greece, I came upon a wonderful video of Fr. Nikon of Philotheou Monastery, Mt. Athos, giving a talk entitled “The Power of the Sacraments in the lives of Orthodox Christians” in Ακατερνη, Greece. He talks about real life experiences dealing with the miraculous through the sacraments of the Orthodox Church. These stories are mind boggling because they speak of a spiritual dimension of Christian life that has been lost in most of the Christians of the West. I was so taken with these stories that I needed to translate them into English for our faithful here in the States. In one of the stories Fr. Nikon refers to the Holy Mother Prousiotissa who is instrumental in directly saving the life of a young Greek soldier who is driving a truck on a mountain road. In looking up Παναγα Προυσιτισσα I found the following historical roots of this particular miracle-working icon of the Holy Mother. According to the tradition of our Church, this icon was in a Church in Prousa, Asia Minor. During the iconoclastic period when icons were being destroyed by heretics of that time this icon was saved from destruction by a leading member of the Orthodox Church. In order to save the icon, in 829 AD he took the icon from the Church. This Church leader had every intention of taking this icon to Greece for its safe-keeping. But when he reached the city of Kallipolis, the icon was lost. The icon then miraculously found its way to the location where it is found today in Prousa, Greece. This miraculous event was disseminated amongst the Orthodox faithful of that time. The man, who had attempted to take the icon to Greece and then lost it, found out about the miracle and proceeded to its location where the icon found its resting place and verified that it was the same icon he attempted to save in Asia Minor. He was so impressed with the miraculous events surrounding the icon’s travels that he dedicated the rest of his life to monasticism. You should also know that there are many miracles attributed to this icon of the Holy Mother over the centuries but we will leave that for another time. We pray that you will enjoy these real life miracles from the lives of ordinary people in the Orthodox Christian Church of Greece. |
| Translation of the relics of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker from Myra to Bari, in 1087 Our beloved holy Father Nicholas is, along with St George (and second to the All-holy Theotokos), probably the best-loved Saint of the Church. His numberless miracles through the ages, on behalf of the countless Christians who have called on him, cannot be told. He was born in Lycia (in Asia Minor) around the end of the third century, to pious Christian parents. Commemorated on May 9 Our beloved holy Father Nicholas is, along with St George (and second to the All-holy Theotokos), probably the best-loved Saint of the Church. His numberless miracles through the ages, on behalf of the countless Christians who have called on him, cannot be told. He was born in Lycia (in Asia Minor) around the end of the third century, to pious Christian parents. His love of virtue, and his zeal for observing the canons of the Church, were evident from his infancy, when he would abstain from his mother’s breast every Wednesday and Friday until the evening. From early youth he was inclined to solitude and silence; in fact, not a single written or spoken word of the Saint has come down to us. Nicholas was taught by his parents to love the Lord with his whole mind, heart, soul, and with ail his strength. When they died he inherited their money. He used this to help the poor, the hungry, and the sick. Whenever he helped anyone he did it secretly, so that only God would know, He did not want praise from people; he wanted his reward to be only in Heaven. After he gave away the money his parents had left him he decided to become a monk. He went to a monastery where he lived and worked and prayed, intending to spend the rest of his life repenting of his sins. But soon it became clear that God wanted him to be a priest, and so he began to study the Law of God. St. Nicholas became the parish priest of a village church after his ordination. He worked very hard, instructing his flock and helping those in need. He also performed all the Divine Services and was a spiritual father to all. |
| Tweet Нравится St. Parthenius of Lampsacus THE MONASTERY OF MAKRIMALI On the northbound road near the port of Chalkis is the little inland town of Psahna, and a few kilometers east in the rolling hills is the women's monastery of Makrimali, a beautiful eight-hundred-year-old foundation, with many outlying metochia. A tranquil site, the monastery has only a few nuns, but it treasures the relics of one of the most noted hierarchs of early Christianity. St. Parthenius was born in Melitopolis in Asia Minor in the late third century. Although his father was a deacon, the family was poor and the boy unschooled. His continual presence in church, however, and an excellent memory gave him a deep understanding of services and Holy Scripture. Even as a youth he was generous, and he gave the money he earned from fishing to the poor. By the time he was eighteen he was so grace-filled that he began working miracles and casting out demons. His virtue came to the attention of Bishop Philip of Melitopolis who undertook his education and ordained him a priest. Shortly after Constantine the Great came to power, Archbishop Achilles of Cyzicus consecrated Parthenius bishop of Lampsacus, a diocese of Asia Minor. The year was 325, and after Parthenius's episcopal consecration he set off to petition the emperor to permit him to raze the pagan temple in Lampsacus and construct a Christian church. The emperor not only agreed but also provided him with funds to build the church. One day, a huge stone intended for the future altar was hauled from the site of the destroyed temple, the wagon on which it was carried overturned and the driver was killed. Understanding that this was the work of the evil on who was angered by the destruction of the temple, St. Parthenius prayed, and the driver returned to life. The saint was known throughout the region as a great healer of both physical and spiritual ailments, particularly for those possessed by demons. One of his early biographers says, " So great was his mercy, so great the people's love for him, that none in that region even knew what a physician was. " His fame as a victor over the power of the evil one increased with his years. In one famous narrative, he expelled a demon from a man afflicted from childhood. The exorcised demon began to bargain with the saint for another place of habitation in exchange for his expulsion. The saint agreed, and opening his mouth, said to the demon, “ Enter and inhabit me. " The demon cried out in anguish, " How shall I enter God's house? " and then disappeared. |
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