XV. Saint Basil the Great and Saint Gregory the Theologian of the Second Ecumenical Council In the history of the Church's struggle against Arianism, Basil the Great acts as a strong defender of Orthodoxy at a time when Saint Athanasius of Alexandria was already leaving his field, and is

Ninth century: Saint Photius the Great Theology of Blessed Augustine (but not his doctrine of grace) first began to be disputed in the East later, in the 9th century, in connection with the famous controversy about the Filioque (the doctrine of the procession of the Holy Spirit also "from the Son" and not from one Father, as always

The Monk Macarius the Great of Egypt (390–391) February 1 (January 19, O.S.) The Monk Macarius the Great of Egypt was born in the village of Ptinapor in Lower Egypt. At the request of his parents, he married, but soon became a widow. Having buried his wife, Macarius said to himself: “Listen, Macarius,

Venerable Macarius the Great of Egypt (On Prayer for the Dead) I. Today the memory of one of the great ascetics of the Egyptian deserts, St. Macarius of Egypt, who lived in the 4th century A.D. Once, although in the wilderness, St. Macarius saw a dry human on earth

Macarius the Great (+391) Macarius the Great (Macarius of Egypt; c. 300, Ptinapor - 391) was a Christian saint, a hermit, venerated in the face of a saint, the author of spiritual conversations. He was early widowed, after the death of his wife he began to study the Holy Scriptures. After the death of his parents, he left

The Monk Macarius of Egypt was born about 301 in Egypt. The monk's father was a presbyter and was called Abraham, while his mother bore the name Sarah. Since the marriage of Macarius's parents was barren, they agreed to live in spiritual coexistence, and not carnal, adorning their lives with many virtues. At that time, barbarians attacked Egypt, who plundered all the property of the inhabitants of Egypt, including Abraham and Sarah. Once, when Father Macarius was sleeping, the holy patriarch Abraham appeared to him in a dream, who began to console him in misfortune and at the same time predicted that God would soon bless him with the birth of a son. It was then that the parents of Macarius moved to the village of Ptinapor in Lower Egypt. After some time, the presbyter Abraham became very ill. But in a dream an angel appeared to him and said: “God has mercy on you, Abraham. He heals you from illness and bestows upon you His grace, for your wife Sarah will give birth to a son named after bliss. He will be the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit, living on earth in the form of an angel, and he will lead many to God. ” Soon after, Sarah conceived in her old age, and after a certain time, she had a son, who was named Macarius, which means "blessed."

When the youth Macarius reached the perfect age and learned to understand the Holy Scriptures, he wanted to lead a monastic life. But his parents, forgetting about the proverb, persuaded him to enter into marriage. Macarius obeyed, but after the wedding he did not touch his bride. A few days later, it happened that one of Macarius's relatives went to the Nitrian mountain. Macarius went with him. The Nitrian Desert bordered Libya and Ethiopia and got its name from the neighboring mountain, where there were many nitra, or saltpeter, in the lakes. In Nitria, in a dreamy vision, a wondrous man, shining with light, appeared before the saint, who said: “Macarius! Take a good look at these desolate places, for you are destined to settle here. " Having awakened from sleep, Macarius began to reflect on what was said to him in the vision. At that time, no one yet settled in the desert, except for Anthony the Great and the unknown hermit Paul of Thebes.

Immediately upon the return of the blessed, his wife died, having departed blameless into eternal life. Macarius thanked God, thinking at the same time: "Pay attention to yourself, Macarius, and take care of your soul, for you too will soon have to leave this earthly life." And from that time on, Macarius no longer began to worry about anything earthly, constantly staying in the temple of the Lord and reading the Holy Scriptures. Meanwhile, Abraham, the father of Macarius, lost his sight from old age and illness. Blessed Macarius looked after his father with love and zeal. Soon the elder departed to the Lord, and six months later Sarah, the mother of Macarius, also died. The Monk Macarius buried his parents, and then distributed all his property in commemoration of the souls of the deceased.

Having thus freed himself from all everyday worries, Macarius came to an experienced elder, who lovingly received the humble young man, showed him the rudiments of a silent monastic life and taught him the usual monastic handicraft - weaving baskets. He also arranged a separate cell for Macarius not far from his own. Some time later, the bishop of that country came to the village of Ptinapor and, having learned from the inhabitants of the village about the exploits of Blessed Macarius, he summoned him to himself, making him a cleric of the local church, although Macarius was still young. But Saint Macarius, burdened by the position of a cleric, left and settled in a desolate place. A devout man came here to him and began to serve Macarius.

The devil, the hater of all good, seeing how he was defeated by the young monk, began to fight vigorously with him, building many different intrigues: sometimes inspiring him with sinful thoughts, sometimes attacking him in the form of various horrors. When Macarius was awake at night, standing in prayer, the devil shook his cell to the very foundations, and sometimes, turning into a snake, he crawled on the ground and rushed with fury at the saint. But Blessed Macarius, protecting himself with prayer and the sign of the cross, considered all these intrigues for nothing. Then the devil taught a woman to slander Macarius that he had allegedly dishonored her. Relatives, believing her, beat the blessed one to a pulp, and then demanded that he now support their daughter. Having recovered, the blessed one began to make baskets and sent the money from their sale to feed the woman. When the time came for her to give birth, then the righteous judgment of God comprehended her. For a very long time she could not get rid of the burden, sobbing bitterly from severe pain, until she confessed to slander. Hearing that the hermit was innocent of her shame, the inhabitants weptly tried to fall at his feet, asking for forgiveness, so that the wrath of God would not overtake them, but Macarius did not want glory from people and hastily retired to Mount Nitria, where he once had a vision in a dream.

After living there for three years in one cave, he went to Antony the Great, for he had long wanted to see him. Received with love by the Monk Anthony, Macarius became his disciple and lived with him for a long time, receiving instruction and trying to imitate his father in everything. Then, on the advice of the Monk Anthony, Macarius withdrew for a solitary life in the Skete. The skete desert was located a day's journey (25-30 versts) from the Nitrian mountain, in the northwestern part of Egypt. It was a waterless rocky desert, a favorite place of the Egyptian hermits. Here Macarius shone so much with heroic deeds and was so successful in monastic life that he surpassed many of the brethren and received from them the name “the youth-elder”. Macarius had to fight demons both day and night. Sometimes demons, obviously, turning into various horrors, rushed at the monk, sometimes they raised up invisible warfare against the saint, instilling in him various passionate and impure thoughts. However, they could not overcome this courageous fighter of truth.

It happened once that Macarius picked up many palm branches in the desert for weaving baskets and carried them to his cell. On the way, the devil with a sickle met him and wanted to hit the saint, but could not. Then he said to Macarius: “Macarius! Because of you, I endure great sorrow, because I am unable to defeat you. Here I am, everything you do, I do. You fast - I eat nothing at all; you are awake - and I never sleep. One thing, however, is where you are superior to me. This is humility. That's why I can't fight you. "

When the Monk Macarius was 40 years old, he received from God gifts of miracles, prophecies and power over unclean spirits. At the same time, he was ordained a priest and made abbot (abba) of the monks living in Skete. Various legends circulated among the fathers about the exploits of Saint Macarius, this heavenly man, whom everyone called the Great. It is said that the monk ceaselessly ascended with his mind to the heavens, and for the greater part of his time directed his mind towards God rather than towards the objects of this world.

Macarius often visited his teacher Anthony the Great, conducting spiritual conversations with him. Together with two other disciples of the Monk Anthony and Macarius, he was honored to be present at his blessed death, and, as a kind of richest inheritance, received the staff of Anthony. Together with this staff of Anthony, the Monk Macarius received especially the spirit of Anthony the Great, as the prophet Elisha once perceived such after Elijah the Prophet. By the power of this spirit, Macarius performed many wonderful miracles. So, he destroyed the intrigues of sorcerers, returning people to their original appearance after the evil eye and magical transformations, healed incurable diseases with prayers and holy oil, many times cast out demons. The Monk Macarius received from God such gracious power that he could even raise the dead. With this gift, he put to shame heretics, restored the truth in the intricate cases associated with murders and unpaid debts.

In the prologue about the Monk Macarius, the following is also told. Once he was on his way and, when night overtook him, entered a pagan cemetery to spend the night there. Finding there an old bone of a dead pagan, the monk put it at his head. The demons, seeing such boldness of Macarius, took up arms against him and, wanting to intimidate him, began to shout, calling the bone by a woman's name: "Go to the bathhouse to wash." The demon, who was in this dead bone, answered this call: "I have a stranger over me." The monk was not afraid of demonic intrigues, but with boldness began to beat the bone he had taken, saying: "Get up and go if you can." The demons were put to shame.

Another time the Monk Macarius walked through the wilderness and found a dried-up human skull on the ground. Macarius asked the skull: "Who are you?" “I was the chief of the pagan priests who lived in this place. When you, Abba Macarius, filled with the Spirit of God, having compassion on those in torment in Hell, pray for us, then we get some relief. ” - "What kind of relief do you get and what is your torment?" “How far the sky is from the earth,” the skull answered with a groan, “so great is the fire in the midst of which we are, burning from everywhere from head to toe. At the same time, we cannot see each other's faces. When you pray for us, we see each other a little, and this serves us some consolation. " Hearing such an answer, the monk shed tears and said: "Cursed is the day when man transgressed the Divine commandments." And again he asked: "Is there any other torment that is the worst of yours?" “We who did not know God,” the skull replied, “although a little, we still feel the mercy of God. Those who knew the name of God, but rejected Him and did not keep His commandments, are tormented below us by much more grievous and cruel torments. ” After this, the Monk Macarius took that skull, buried it in the ground, and withdrew.

Many different people came to the Monk Macarius, even from distant countries. Some asked for his prayers, blessings and fatherly guidance, others - for healings from their ailments. Because of this large population, Macarius now had little time to indulge in divine thought in solitude. Therefore, he dug a deep cave under his cell, where he hid for prayer. His monastery, as Rufinus narrates, was below, in another desert; there were many brethren in him.

Once Macarius was sitting on the road leading to the monastery. Suddenly he sees the devil walking in human form, dressed in furry clothes and all hung with pumpkins. Macarius asked: "Where are you going, breathing anger?" - "I am going to tempt the brethren." - "Why did you put on pumpkins for yourself?" - “I bring food to the brethren.” - “Are food in all the pumpkins? - asked the reverend. "In all. If someone does not like one, I will suggest another, third, etc., so that everyone can try at least one ”. Having said this, the devil withdrew. The monk remained on the road. Seeing that the devil was returning, Macarius again asked: "Did you go well to the monastery?" “Bad,” the devil replied, “and how could I be successful? All the monks took up arms against me, and no one accepted me ”. - "Do you really not have a single monk who would obey you?" Macarius asked again. “I have only one thing,” the devil answered. “When I come to him, he spins around me like a top.” “What name does he have?” - "Theopempt!" Then Abba Macarius went into the distant wilderness to the named monastery. The brethren, hearing that the saint was coming to them, with palm branches went out to meet him, and each of them prepared his own cell, thinking that the monk would want to stay with him. But Macarius the Great asked the monks who Theopemptos was, and went in to him. He received the monk with great joy. Left alone with Theopemptus, Saint Macarius wisely questioned him and learned that he was possessed by a spirit of fornication and other sins. Having taught the monk soul-beneficial instructions, the blessed one returned to his wilderness. There, sitting by the road, he again saw the devil going to the monastery, and he confessed that now all the monks were up in arms against him.

Once, when the Monk Macarius was praying, there was a voice to him, which said: “Macarius! You have not yet achieved such perfection in a virtuous life as two women living together in the nearest city. " Having received such a revelation, the monk took his staff and went to that city. Finding there a house where the aforementioned women lived, he summoned both to him and said to them: “For your sake, I took upon myself such a great feat, coming here from a distant desert, for I want to know your good deeds, which I ask you to tell me about. without hiding anything. ”“ Believe us, honest father, ”the women answered,“ that we shared our bed with our husbands last night. What kind of virtues do you wish to find in us? " But the monk insisted that they tell him the way of their life. Then, the women said: “We were not related to each other before, but then we married two brothers, and for 15 years now we have all been living in the same house; during all the time we lived together, we did not say a single spiteful or bad word to each other, and we never quarreled among ourselves. Recently we decided to leave our carnal spouses and retire to the host of holy virgins serving God. However, we cannot in any way beg our husbands to let us go. Then we made a covenant with God and among ourselves - not to utter a single worldly word until our death. " Having listened to their story, the Monk Macarius said: “Truly, God does not seek either a virgin, nor a married woman, nor a monk, or a layman, but - a free intention, accepting it as the very thing, and giving to the voluntary will of every person the grace of the Holy Spirit acting in man and managing the life of everyone who wants to be saved. "

During the lifetime of Macarius the Great, also called the Egyptian, another Venerable Macarius, the one of Alexandria, shone with holiness. He was a presbyter in a monastery that bore the name of Cell. This area was in the desert between Nitria and Skete. The ascetics of Mount Nitria withdrew to the desert of Celius after they had already established themselves in monastic life. Here they practiced in silence, and their cells were significantly removed from each other. This blessed Macarius of Alexandria often came to the Monk Macarius of Egypt, and they many times walked together in the wilderness. When the Arian emperor Valens reigned, he erected a very cruel persecution against the Orthodox. Lucius, the Arian bishop, who overthrew Saint Peter, the successor of Saint Athanasius the Great, from the episcopal see, arrived in Alexandria by order of the tsar. He also sent warriors into the wilderness to capture and exile all the desert fathers. Among the first, both Venerable Macarius were seized and taken to a remote island, the inhabitants of which worshiped idols. One of the priests who were on that island had a daughter possessed by a demon, and the monks, having made a prayer, drove him out and healed the girl. Her father immediately believed in Christ and received holy baptism. Likewise, all the inhabitants of that island were converted to Christ. Upon learning of what had happened, the wicked Bishop Lucius was greatly ashamed that he had expelled such great fathers. Therefore, he secretly sent to return the blessed Macarius and all those who were with them, the holy fathers, to their places of their former habitation.

Meanwhile, a multitude of people came from everywhere to the Monk Macarius the Great, so there was a need to build a hotel for pilgrims and the sick. This is what the saint arranged. Every day he usually healed one sick person, anointing him with holy oil and letting him go home completely healthy. The monk did this so that other sick people, who were not immediately healed by him, lived with him for some time and thus received healing not only of the body, but also of the soul, listening at this time to his divinely inspired teachings.

Once the Monk Macarius went from the Skete to the Nitrian mountain with one of his disciples. When they were already approaching the mountain, the monk said to his disciple: "Go ahead of me." The disciple went and met a pagan priest carrying a large log. Seeing him, the monk shouted: “Hear, you, demon! Where are you going?" The priest beat the monk so badly that he barely survived. Grabbing the then thrown log, the priest ran away. Soon he met the Monk Macarius, who lovingly said: "Save yourself, hard worker, save yourself." The priest stopped and asked: "What good did you see in me, greeting me with these words?" “I see that you are working,” answered the monk. Then the priest said: “I was moved, father, by your words. I see that you are a man of God. Here before you another monk met me, who scolded me, and I beat him to death. " And with these words the priest fell at the saint's feet, embracing them and saying: "I will not leave you, father, until you convert me to Christianity and make me a monk." And he went with Saint Macarius. After walking a little, they came to the place where the monk, beaten by the priest, lay and found him barely alive. Taking it, they brought it to the church. The fathers, seeing a pagan priest together with the Monk Macarius, were greatly amazed. Then, christening him, they made him a monk, and for his sake many pagans converted to Christianity. Saint Macarius gave the following instruction on this occasion: "An evil word also makes the good evil, but a good word also makes the evil good."

Once the Monk Macarius came to the monastery of Abba Pamvo. Here the elders asked the blessed one to give a word for the edification of the brethren. Saint Macarius began to say: “Forgive me, for I am a bad monk; but I saw monks. So one day I was sitting in Skete in my cell, and the thought came to me to go into the inner desert. Five years later I went there and found a huge swamp, in the middle of which I saw an island. At this time, the animals came to drink water. Among the beasts, I noticed two naked people and thought that I saw disembodied spirits. Seeing that I was very frightened, people calmed me down and said that they were from Kinovia, but they had already left the monastery for thirty years. One of them was Egyptian, the other was Libyan. Then they asked me what state the world is in now, whether the rivers are still filling up with their streams, whether the earth is full of its usual fruits. I answered them: “Yes”. Then he asked them how I could become a monk. They answered me: "If a person does not renounce everything that is in the world, he cannot be a monk." To this I said: "I am weak and therefore I cannot be like you." “If you cannot be like us,” they said, “then sit in your cell and lament your sins.” And again I asked them if they were suffering from cold in winter and scorching heat in summer. They answered me: “The Lord God has given us such bodies that we do not suffer from frost in winter, nor from heat in summer”. “That is why I told you brethren,” the Monk Macarius finished his speech, “that I have not yet become a monk, but I have seen monks.”

Once the Monk Macarius was asked by the Skete fathers, how did he achieve that his body always remains thin? The Monk Macarius gave the following answer: “As the poker, which is turned over the burning wood and brushwood in the stove, is always scorched with fire, so in a person who always directs his mind to the Lord and always keeps in his memory terrible torments in the fire of Gehenna, this fear not only eats away the body, but it also drains the bones. "

Then the brethren asked the monk about prayer. He gave them the following instruction: “Prayer does not require verbosity, but you must raise your hands, saying: Lord! as you desire and as you know yourself, have mercy on me. If the enemy raises sinful warfare in the soul, one should only say: Lord, have mercy. The Lord knows what is good for us and will show us mercy. ”

Another time Abba Isaiah asked the monk: "Tell me, father, some kind of instruction for the benefit of the soul." - "Flee from the people," the Monk Macarius answered him. But to his disciple Pafnutius the Great he said: “Do not offend anyone, do not slander anyone - by doing this, you will be saved”. The saint also said: “If you wish to be saved, be like a dead man: do not be angry when you are dishonored, do not be exalted when you are praised. In doing so, you will be saved. ” The monk said to the elders who lived on Mount Nitria: “Brethren! let us cry, and let tears flow from our eyes that cleanse us before we go to the place where tears will burn our bodies in torment ”.

Once the Monk Macarius found a thief in his cell. Outside, near the cell, a donkey was tied, on which the thief put the stolen things. The monk, seeing this, did not let the thief understand that he was a householder, and even began to help him take things and put them on the donkey. Then he let him go in peace, thinking like this: “We have not brought anything with us into this world, we can’t take anything away from here. The Lord has given us everything, and as He desires, so everything happens. God be blessed in everything! "

The fathers told about this about the Monk Macarius that he had become, as it were, an earthly god, for, just as God, although he sees the whole world, does not punish sinners, so the Monk Macarius covered the human infirmities that he saw. It happened that even being far from his children, he appeared to them during demonic temptations and miraculously helped to avoid falls. Such power was possessed by the prayer of Macarius the Great with God. Once the monk himself, being greatly weary, prayed fervently and was carried over a great distance to where he had to go.

It is now timely to tell about the blessed death of Macarius of Egypt, about which Serapion, the scribe of his life, told us. The time of death did not remain unknown to the monk. Not long before his repose, the Monks Anthony the Great and Pachomius the Great appeared to him in a vision. Those who appeared announced to the saint that on the ninth day he would depart for blessed eternal life. Then the divine Macarius called his disciples and said to them: “Children! Now the time has come for my departure from here, and I convey you to the goodness of God. So, keep the fatherly statutes and traditions of the fasting ”. Having then laid his hands on his disciples, having taught them enough and having prayed for them, the monk began to prepare for his death. When the ninth day came, a Cherubim appeared to Saint Macarius with many Angels and saints and took his immortal soul to the Paradise abodes.

The writer of the life of Saint Macarius Serapion heard from the Monk Paphnutius, one of the saint's disciples, that when the soul of Macarius ascended to heaven, some of the fathers saw with their mental eyes that the air demons stood in the distance and shouted: “Oh, what glory you have won, Macarius! " The saint answered: "I am afraid, for I do not know anything good that I would do." Then those of the demons who were even higher along the path of the soul of Macarius who followed, cried out: "You really escaped our hands, Macarius!" But he said: "No, but one must also avoid it." And when the monk was already at the gates of paradise, the demons exclaimed: "He escaped us, escaped us." Then Macarius answered loudly to the demons: “Yes! Shielded by the power of my Christ, I have escaped your wiles. ” Such is the life, death and transition into eternal life of our venerable father Macarius of Egypt.

Saint Macarius the Great died about 391 at the age of 90. The place of his exploits is hitherto called the Macarius desert. The monk's relics are in the city of Amalfi in Italy. The precious legacy of the experienced wisdom of Saint Macarius that has come down to us is the 50 Words, 7 Instructions and 2 Epistles, as well as several exalted prayers. The subjects of the talks and instructions of the Monk Macarius are the grace of God and the inner spiritual life, as it is accomplished on the path of contemplative solitude. Despite the deep subject matter, the conversations and instructions of the spirit-bearing teacher are simple and intelligible to the mind and close to a reverent heart.

Rev. Macarius was born about 300 in the village of Ptinapor (Lower Egypt). Widowed early, after the death of his wife he began to study the Holy Scriptures. After the death of his parents, he left the village and became a novice at a certain old man living nearby. After some time, he was ordained a deacon in the local church, but soon enough he retired into complete solitude in the Faransk desert.

Troparion to the Monk Macarius the Great, Tone 1

A desert inhabitant, and an Angel in the flesh, / and a miracle worker appeared, our God-bearing father Macarius, / by fasting, vigil, by the Heavenly prayer we receive gifts, / heal the sick and souls who come to you with faith. / Glory to the One who gave you the fortress, / glory to the One who crowned thee, // glory to the Healing who acts by you to all.

Kontakion to the Monk Macarius the Great, Tone 1

Having died a blessed life in a life with martyrs, / in the land of the meek, you are worthily settling, God-bearing Macarius, / and the wilderness, like a city, having inhabited, you received grace from God of miracles, // also we honor thee.

Prayer to the Monk Macarius the Great

Oh, holy chapter, venerable father, blessed Abvo Macarius, do not forget your poor ones to the end, but remember us always in your holy and auspicious prayers to God. Remember your flock, the hedgehog you yourself have saved, and do not forget to visit your children. Pray for us, holy father, for your spiritual children, as if you have boldness towards the Heavenly King, do not keep silent for us to the Lord, and do not despise us, who honor you with faith and love. Remember us unworthy at the Almighty Throne, and do not cease praying for us to Christ God, for you have been given grace to pray for us. We do not think that you are dead, even if you have passed away from us in body, but you remain alive even after death. Do not depart from us in spirit, keeping us from the arrows of the enemy and all the delights of the demonic and the wiles of the devil, our good shepherd. As long as your relics of cancer are always visible in front of our eyes, your holy soul with angelic hosts, with incorporeal faces, with heavenly powers, awaits at the Almighty Throne, rejoices with dignity. Leading you for truly and after death is alive, we fall to you and pray to you: pray for us to the Almighty God, for the benefit of our souls, and ask for time for us to repent, so that we can pass from earth to heaven without restraint, from the ordeals of the bitter demons of the air princes and let us get rid of the eternal torment, and let us be heiress of the Heavenly Kingdom with all the righteous, who have pleased our Lord Jesus Christ from time immemorial, all glory, honor and worship befitting Him, with His Beginning Father and with His Most Holy and Good and Life-giving Spirit, now and forever and ever. Amen.

Second prayer

Oh, venerable Father Macarius! We pray thee, unworthy ones, by your intercession from our All-Merciful God to us mental and physical health, quiet and godly life and a kind response at the Last Judgment of Christ. Quench the arrows of the devil with your prayers, may sinful malice not touch us, may we piously end our temporary life, let us be worthy to inherit the Kingdom of Heaven and glorify the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit forever and ever with you. Amen.

Ro-dyl-Xia in Egypt-those about 301-yes. With love and diligently, he served his own ro-di-te-lyam at a hundred-age, using-for-in-after-for-in-ch- ta-nii ro-di-te-lei, and at the end they made them so-ut-shen-but-free from living hassles. Under the leadership of the experienced elder, the pre-like Ma-ka-rii began to walk a silent foreign life tie and ru-co-de-lie. Sna-cha-la he sat down in an empty place not far from the village where he lived, so pre-like pe-re -se-lil-sya on the Nitrii-go-ru in the Fa-ran-skuyu-pustyn.

Lived for three years in the empty, he went to the pre-do-n-mu (+ 356), the father of the egi-pet-th-th mo-ness, oh I heard some rum, I was still living in the world, and I could see him. The pre-like av-va An-to-niy with any-bo-vyu accepted the bla-wen-go Ma-ka-riya, who made his pre- this teacher and after-to-va-te-lem. With him, the pre-like Ma-ka-rii lived for a long time, and then, in accordance with the holy av-you, he retired to the Skete skuyu-st-nyu (in the se-ve-ro-west-noy part of Egypt) and there so -or call it "young-she-old-cem", because when he reached the stig-nouve thirteen-ts-t-years-old-age, he showed that -by experienced, mature and different. Here, pre-do-do-no-mo Ma-ka-riu pri-ho-di-moose fights with be-sa-mi day and night, and they are in-pi-li that they cannot to beat him, because he has a great weapon - humility.

When the saint was half a century old, he was ordained to the rank of priest and put on a av-voy) of the monks who lived in the Skete wilderness. In these years, the pre-like Ma-ka-rii often sowed ve-li-ko-go An-to-niya, a-tea from him on-st-le -niya in the spiritual be-se-dakh. Along with two other teachers, pre-do-do-go An-to-nia pre-do-do Ma-ka-riy spo-do-beat -have-come-to-be-vat at his blessed end, and as a kind of god-ha-tey-neck on-next, he-chil-so-so-pre-do-no -th An-to-nia, who-that-eye that supported-zh-shaft in the do-ro-ge his feeble body, discouraged by age and post-ni- che-sk-mi-mo-mo-mi. Along with this in-so-h, pre-like Ma-ka-rii took su-gu-bo and the spirit of An-to-nia Ve-li-ko-go, as some-where - received such a pro-rock Eli-this after Elijah pro-ro-ka. Si-loy his doo-ha pre-like Ma-ka-rii co-created many wondrous chu-de-sa. One-na-zhdy pre-like Ma-kariy raz-go-va-ri-val with four-re-pom of the main pagan priest, who- that-ry rass-told about his mu-men and about the more difficult and any, more stig-shy of those who knew the name of God, but he rejected Him and did not co-eat Him.

For the reason of a lot of pri-ho-div-she-go to him on-ro-da, pre-like Ma-ka-rii had little time to ud-le-nii bet-da-vat-bo-go-mys-liyu. Therefore, a pre-like you-ko-fell under your kel-li-her deep cave, about half a stage long, ku -yes and hid-up from the hundred-yang-but-coming-to-him and on-ru-sha-yu-shhhhhh his god-thought and prayer. The pre-like Ma-ka-riy reached such a boldness in walking before God, which, according to his prayer, the State come back to the dead. Despite such-that you-so-so-that-so-so-so-so-so-so-so-in-do-biy, he continued to keep an extraordinary-venous media -res.

In the years of the kingdom-va-nia im-pe-ra-to-ra Va-lent-ta ari-a-ni-na (364-378) pre-like Ma-ka-rii Ve -li-cue together with pre-like under-come-under-followed-up-to-va-niu from the side of ari-an-sko-go epi-sko-pa Lu-ki ... About-their elders grabbed-ti-li and, in-sa-divs to the ship, took them to the empty island, where the tongues-ni-ki lived. There, according to the prayers of the saints, the daughter of the priest was healed, after that the priest himself and all the inhabitants of the island va received the Holy Baptism. Having learned about the incident, the Ari-an-skii epi-skop got tired and resolved the elders to return to their pits. The smallness, the smallestness and the sweetness of the pre-like-add-no-go pre-ob-ra-zha-if the soul-shi is human. 60 years of St. Ma-ka-rii in the dead-howl for the world of the empty space. More than all the time, pre-like, I was in the be-se-de with God, often staying in the same place du-hov-no-hoo-hoo-chi-niya The av-va transformed his abundant movement-ni-ch-ny experience into the deep-seated God-word-creation. 50 bes-sed and 7 in-motion-no-che-words remained dra-go-valuable on-follow-di-em spirit-hov-noy mud-ro-sti pre-do-but-no th Ma-ka-riya Ve-li-ko-go. The highest bliss and the goal of man is co-unity of souls with God, - the main thought in yours pre-add no-go Ma-ka-riya.

The pre-like-lived up to 97 years, not long before the end (+ c. 390-391), pre-like An-to-ny and , co-communicating good news about his close transition to the blessed heavenly abodes. Pre-kind-of-begin-to-go-to-go-to-go to his-her death. After nine days, pre-do-no-ma-ka-riu appeared He-ru-vim with many An-ge-lov. When the holy spirit pre-do-do-no-go Ma-ka-riya was-la-that He-ru-vim and ascended to heaven, some rye of the fathers of the thought-flax-with-eyes-mi-de-li, that the airy bees in the from-da-le-nii are hundred-I-li and in-pi-li, that St. Ma-ka-rii.

See also: "" in the translation of St. Di-mit-rya Rostov.

Prayers

Troparion to the Monk Macarius the Great of Egypt, Tone 1

A desert inhabitant and in the realm of an angel, / and the miracle-worker appeared as it is, God is the father of our Macarius, / constantly, by vigil, by prayer, Heavenly gifts of God, / heal / Glory to him who is active in you for all healings.

Translation: As a desert inhabitant, and in the flesh as an Angel, and as a miracle worker, you appeared, our Father Macarius: by fasting, by prayer, having acquired heavenly gifts, you heal the sick and souls who come running to you with faith. Glory to Him who gave you strength, glory to Him who crowned you, glory to Him who works through you to heal all.

Kontakion to the Monk Macarius the Great of Egypt, Tone 1

Having passed away a blissful life in a life with martyred faces, / in the land of the short, having dignified worthily, the God-given Macarius, / and the desert, which is like a city inhabited, blessedly welcomed from God, much more miraculously.

Translation: Having finished a blessed life in the assembly of (bloodless, spiritual) martyrs, in the land of the meek () you settle down with dignity, God-bearing Macarius. Having populated the wilderness, like a city, you received the grace of miracles from God, therefore we honor you.

Prayer to the Monk Macarius the Great of Egypt

Oh, Reverend Father Macarius! We pray to you, unworthy ones, to ask by your representation from the All-Merciful God our soul and body health, quiet and godly living and a good answer in the Last Judgment of Christ. Quench with your prayers those kindled for the work of God (names) the arrows of diabolism, let us not touch sin Amen.

Another prayer to the Monk Macarius the Great of Egypt

Reverend Father Macarius! Behold us mercifully, and raise those who have been led to the earth to the height of the heavens. Thou woe in heaven, we are on earth low, far from you, not only by a place, because of our sins and iniquity, but we run to you and cry out: insist that we walk your ways, give understanding and guidance. All your holy life is the mirror of every virtue. Do not cease, God's pleasure, O us crying to the Lord. By asking for our representation from the All-Merciful God, our world is His Church, under the sign of the cross of war, concord in the wind and one mind, rejoicing and pretending destruction, reassurance in mercy, delightful deeds Do not put us to shame, who come to you with faith. All Christians of Orthodoxy, by your miracles of fulfillment and mercies of beneficence, confess the desire to be their patron and intercessor. The manifestations of your mercy, and you gave all the help to the father, do not reject us either, chad them, with their footsteps walking towards you. Thy icon is to be honored, as I live for thee, we fall and pray: accept our prayers and exalt them to the mother of God's blessing, that we may accept you in kindness and mercy. Strengthen our cowardice and strengthen us in faith, so that we undoubtedly hope to receive all the blessings from the Lord's mercy by your prayers. Oh, the great delight of God! All of us flowing to you with faith, by your representation to the Lord, and all of us, rule in peace and repentance, we end up alive, and come down with hope in the mercy of all the merciful God of God, the idea of ​​Abraham , in the Trinity of the glorious, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and forever, and forever and ever. Amen.