Holy lands of Russia. Cyril and Methodius - Slavic enlighteners
Zemtsova T.V. - MBOU Shchelkovo Gymnasium
Lesson topic: “Holy lands of Russia. Equal-to-the-Apostles Cyril and Methodius – Slavic Enlighteners»
(V grade 3 quarter "Music in the visual arts";
IV grade 4 quarter "Sing about Russia, what to strive for the temple";
III class 4 quarter "Holy lands of Russia")
Tasks:
1. Restoration and preservation of the historical memory of the defenders of Russia, classified as Russian Orthodox Church to the saints.
2. To acquaint with the life and spiritual feat of St. Equal to the Apostles. Cyril and Methodius.
3. Reveal the multilateral connections of music, history, literature, painting and sculpture;
4. Patriotic education based on spiritual and moral traditions.
5. To develop the listening and performing culture of students.
Lesson type: consolidation, understanding of concepts (icon, saint, magnification, hymn, stichera, apostle, equal to the apostles) in a new content.
Type of lesson: integrated lesson.
Technologies used in the lesson:
1. Metatechnologies:
Developmental, problematic technology;
Cultural learning.
2. Macro technologies:
Perception Technologies artistic image;
Arts integration technologies.
3. Mesotechnologies:
Technologies of collective music making.
4. Microtechnologies:
Technologies for the development of timbre hearing;
Ensemble development technologies in the choir.
5. Information and communication.
6. Art therapy and health care.
Activities: formation of universal educational activities (UUD), analysis, evaluation and generalization of spiritual and moral phenomena.
Forms of work: methodical development of a lesson with a presentation .
Basic concepts:
icon- Wed-Greek. εἰκόνα from other Greek. εἰκών "image", "image";
saint- sanctified by God's grace;
magnification- a short laudatory chant, characteristic of Russian church music;
hymn- solemn laudatory song;
apostle- a disciple of Christ, carrying his teachings to people;
Equal-to-the-Apostles- equal to the apostle;
stichera- (late Greek στιχηρόν, from Greek στίχος - a line of poetry, verse), in Orthodox worship - a hymn on the theme of a day or a memorable event.
Materials for the lesson
Icon "Saints Equal-to-the-Apostles Cyril and Methodius", icon "Cathedral of All Saints in the Russian Land Resplendent"; magnification and hymn to Cyril and Methodius, stichera performed by the choir of the Holy Trinity Lavra Russian saints, chorus "Get up, Russian people" from S. Prokofiev's cantata "Alexander Nevsky"; paintings - M. Nesterov "Vision to the youth Bartholomew", V. Vasnetsov "Three heroes", a triptych by Y. Pantyukhin "For the Russian Land"; monuments to Cyril and Methodius, presentation.
Equipment, technical means:
1. Piano.
2. Music center, projector.
3. Presentation.
4. CDs
Planned results:
Personal UUD : To cultivate the desire to serve for the good and glory of one's Fatherland by the example of the life of the saints.
To form musical culture as an integral part of spiritual culture, respect for history, spiritual and moral traditions.
Cognitive UUD : learn about the chronicle of monk Nestor Ancient Rus'- "The Tale of Bygone Years" and the oldest book in Rus', written in Cyrillic - the Ostromir Gospel of 1057.
Learn and perform the anthem and the majestic Cyril and Methodius.
Remember the youth Bartholomew (the future Sergius of Radonezh), who learned the power of prayer when he asked to learn to read, as well as Ilya Muromets, Alexander Nevsky, Prince Vladimir, Princess Olga.
Information UUD : Review presentation materials and prepare questions for it. Consider the icon of "All Saints of the Russian Land."
Communicative UUD : collective discussion of the impressions received, the ability to listen and hear each other, correct their own actions, correct the quality of the sound of voices, compare the laudatory and the hymn to Cyril and Methodius.
Regulatory UUD: Think and remember what the anthem means and how it differs from the greatness? Sing the anthem and the glorious Cyril and Methodius from the musical notation.
Methods: search, visual, verbal, creative, analysis.
Equipment: computer and multimedia projector, piano, CDs.
Engage in design and research activities on this topic, create your own improvisation for greatness.
Prepare a report about the Bulgarian composer Ponaiot Pipkov, who composed more than 100 years ago a hymn in honor of the Slavic Enlighteners Cyril and Methodius. Read how the Russian chronicle "The Tale of Bygone Years" tells in detail about them.
During the classes
Introduction
Russia gave the world a huge number of Saints.
In Rus', the desire for a "holy" (that is, sanctified by God's grace) life was feature life, way of life, way of life, tradition. Every pious Christian tried to follow the gospel ideals. However, in the Christian understanding, a saint is not just a “good and kind” person. Having accepted the Word of God about salvation into their hearts, the saints built their whole lives on the fulfillment of God's commandments. Living according to the commandments of Christ was not easy. To do this, they turned to God with a prayer for help in the hard work of fighting bad inclinations (passions) and cultivating good qualities (virtues). Earth life saints passed at different times, among different peoples. They were kings and poor people, warriors and simple fishermen, old and still very young... But what they had in common was love for God and for people. For this love, many of the saints endured terrible torment and death, becoming martyrs for their faith in Christ. For their loyalty, they became God's people, saints. People who did in the name of Christ spiritual feat became role models for other Christians.
The veneration of saints by Christians meant veneration in them of the grace of the Holy Spirit, God's presence in this person. And today every day of the year Christian church dedicates to the glorification of one of the saints. The stories of their life (life) are instructive for all people, as they tell about courageous, kind, brave, faithful people. These qualities of the human personality have always been respected by people.
In honor of all Russian saints, the song-hymn of the stichera is performed. Let's listenstichera performed by the choir of the Holy Trinity Lavra to Russian saints and see the icon "Cathedral of All Saintsresplendent in the Russian land" (slide 3).
Who sings the verse? What tune does it sound like? Can it be sung at a fast pace?
We have already spoken about many of the Saints of the Russian land in our lessons. Let's remember their names.
1. Who baptized pagan Rus'(Prince Vladimir - Red Sun) slide 4.
2. What was the name of his grandmother (Princess Olga) slide 5.
3. Epic hero, canonized Saints slide 6.7.
Source 4The saint who learned the power of prayer as a child by asking God to teach him to read slide 8.
5. Grand Duke, famous for his diplomatic talent in negotiations with the khans of the Golden Horde slide 9-11. (the chorus “Get up, Russian people” sounds from the cantata “Alexander Nevsky” -slide 9
sounds majestic -slide 10 )
Main part of the lesson
slide 12.
Cyril and Methodius, Slavic enlighteners, creators of the Slavic alphabet, preachers of Christianity, the first translators of liturgical books from Greek into Slavonic. Cyril (before becoming a monk in 869 - Constantine) (827 - 02/14/869) and his older brother Methodius (815 - 04/06/885) were born in Thessalonica in the family of a military leader.
The boys' mother was Greek, and their father was Bulgarian, so from childhood they had two native languages - Greek and Slavic. The characters of the brothers were very similar. Both read a lot, loved to study.
slide 13.
When Konstantin was 7 years old, he saw a prophetic dream: “The father gathered all the beautiful girls of Thessalonica and ordered to choose one of them as his wife. After examining everyone, Konstantin chose the most beautiful; her name was Sophia (Greek wisdom). So even in childhood, he became engaged to wisdom: for him, knowledge, books became the meaning of his whole life. Constantine received an excellent education at the imperial court in the capital of Byzantium - Constantinople. He quickly learned grammar, arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, music, knew 22 languages. Interest in the sciences, perseverance in learning, diligence - all this made him one of the most educated people in Byzantium. It is no coincidence that he was called the Philosopher for his great wisdom.
slide 14.
Methodius entered the military early. For 10 years he was the ruler of one of the regions inhabited by Slavs. Around 852, he took monastic vows, renouncing the rank of archbishop, and became hegumen of the monastery. Polychron on the Asian coast of the Sea of Marmara.
In Moravia, he was imprisoned for two and a half years, in severe frost they dragged him through the snow. The Enlightener did not renounce serving the Slavs, and in 874 he was released by John VIII and restored to the rights of a bishopric. Pope John VIII forbade Methodius to celebrate the Liturgy in the Slavic language, but Methodius, visiting Rome in 880, succeeded in lifting the ban. In 882-884 he lived in Byzantium. In the middle of 884 Methodius returned to Moravia and was busy translating the Bible into Slavonic.
slide 15.
The brothers visited many lands and many peoples together. Their goal was to convey to other nations the true values of Christianity.
slide 16.
Travel map of Saints Cyril and Methodius.
slide 17.
We are working on the performance of the Greatness by voices separately and in the choir.
We are talking about features (singing one syllable into several sounds; repetition of a whole line, sentences on one sound; smooth voice leading; solemn sound; major mode).
slide 18.
Get up, people, take a deep breath,
Hurry towards the dawn.
And the ABC, presented to you,
Write the future fate.
Hope. Faith warms the soul.
Our path is thorny - the path forward!
Only that people does not perish,
Where the spirit of the Fatherland lives.
Passing under the sun of enlightenment
From a long glorious antiquity,
We are now, Slavic brothers,
Faithful to the first teachers!
To the glorious apostles
Holy love is deep.
Cases of Methodius - Cyril
The Slavs will live for centuries!
slide 19.
We are talking about features (wide intervals; singsong voice leading; complex durations; solemn sound; major mode).
slide 20.
Glagolitic is one of the first (along with Cyrillic) Slavic alphabets. It is assumed that it was the Glagolitic alphabet that was created by the Slavic educator St. Konstantin (Kirill) Philosopher for recording church texts in Slavonic.
Slide 21.
The Old Slavonic alphabet was compiled by the scientist Cyril and his brother Methodius at the request of the Moravian princes. That's what it's called - Cyrillic. This is the Slavic alphabet, it has 43 letters (19 vowels). Each has its own name, similar to ordinary words: A - az, B - beeches, C - lead, G - verb, D - good, F - live, Z - earth and so on. Alphabet - the name itself is formed from the name of the first two letters. In Rus', the Cyrillic alphabet became widespread after the adoption of Christianity (988). The Slavic alphabet turned out to be perfectly adapted to accurately convey the sounds of the Old Russian language. This alphabet is the basis of our alphabet. The first textbook that you picked up when you came to school was called the ABC.
We sing a song about the ABC.
Slide 21.
One of the first Russian chroniclers was the monk of the Kiev-Pechersk monastery Nestor. He kept folk traditions in his memory, collected old documents, wrote down the stories of his contemporaries.
slide 22.
The most famous chronicle of the monk Nestor about Ancient Rus' is The Tale of Bygone Years. In his chronicle, Nestor spoke about the history of Ancient Rus', its capital Kyiv, the first Russian princes
slide 23.
Appearance"Tales of Bygone Years" (parchment).
The oldest book in Rus' written in Cyrillic is the Ostromir Gospel of 1057. This gospel is stored in St. Petersburg, in the State Russian Library. M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin.
Cyrillic existed almost unchanged until the time of Peter the Great. Under him, changes were made to the styles of some letters, and 11 letters were excluded from the alphabet.
In 1918, the Cyrillic alphabet lost four more letters: yat, i (i), izhitsu and fita. The oldest book in Rus' written in Cyrillic is the Ostromir Gospel of 1057. This gospel is stored in St. Petersburg, in the State Russian Library. M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin.
We perform the song "Thirty-three native sisters" (music by A. Zaruba, lyrics by B. Zakhoder).
slide 24.
In the XIV century, some South Slavic books began to be written on paper, but the final transition to it occurred in the XV century. Although parchment was still used in this century, it was used less and less.
slide 25.
"Apostle" the first printed book in Rus' 1563, 268 pages, I. Fedorov
slide 26.
"Hours" the second printed book in Rus' 1565, 172 pages, I. Fedorov
slide 27.
In Russia, the holiday is May 24, as the day of remembrance of St. Equal to the Apostles. Cyril and Methodius, established itself under Tsar Ivan the Terrible. It was church veneration because the brothers worked primarily to spread the faith of Christ.
But gradually people began to understand that this holiday concerns not only the church, but also all educated, cultured people, patriots of their country.
1986 - the revival of the holiday
1991 - approved as a public holiday
Every year some city in Russia becomes the host of the holiday
Festivals, concerts are held in all cities
slide 28.
On the holiday of Slavic writing on May 24, 1992, in Moscow on Slavyanskaya Square, the grand opening of the monument to St. Equal to the Ap. Cyril and Methodius by the sculptor Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Klykov.
slide 29.
The largest monument in Russia to St. Equal to the Apostles. Cyril and Methodius was consecrated and solemnly opened on May 23, 2004 in Samara. The author of the composition is a sculptor, president International Foundation Slavic writing and culture Vyacheslav Klykov. The composition of the monument, created by the Moscow sculptor Vyacheslav Klykov, does not repeat any of the existing monuments to Saints Cyril and Methodius in the world.
slide 30.
In Sevastopol on June 14, 2007, the monument to St. Equal Ap. Cyril and Methodius - the creators of the first Slavic alphabet, the great enlighteners. The author of the monument is Kharkiv sculptor Oleksandr Demchenko.
slide 31.
Vladivostok.
slide 32.
Monument to St. Equal-to-the-Ap. Cyril and Methodius on cathedral square in Kolomna, Moscow region. The author is the Honored Artist of Russia Alexander Rozhnikov.
slide 33.
Dmitrov and Khanty-Mansiysk.
slide 34.
Kyiv and Odessa.
slide 35.
In the territory Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, near the Far Caves, erected a monument to the creators of the Slavic alphabet of St. Equal Ap. Cyril and Methodius.
slide 36.
Chelyabinsk and Saratov.
Slide 37-39.
Crossword (Appendix p.10). On slide 39 there is a hymn-song.
Lesson summary:
1. During the lesson, we remembered the names of the Saints of the Russian Land and solved the crossword puzzle.
2. They performed the Majestic St. Equal to the Apostles. Cyril and Methodius and compared it with the Great Alexander Nevsky.
3. Learned the hymn of St. Equal to the Apostles. Cyril and Methodius and met its founder, the Bulgarian composer Panayot Pipkov.
4. Get acquainted with the life and deeds of St. Equal to the Apostles. Cyril and Methodius.
5. We got acquainted with the paintings of V. Vasnetsov, M. Nesterov, Yu. Pantyukhin, Russian icons.
6. Remembered songs about the alphabet.
7. Considered the monuments dedicated to St. Equal to the Apostles. Cyril and Methodius in different cities.
8. We learned about the chronicler Nestor, about the oldest book in Rus' written in Cyrillic - the Ostromir Gospel of 1057 and the first printer Ivan Fedorov.
Conclusion:
Today the lesson was held surrounded by the names of prominent personalities of our history. Each of them had their own feat in life. We talked about the feat of the Slovenian teachers St. Ravnoap. Cyril and Methodius. I would like to believe that in your hearts, for sure, in a year, memories of school teachers will respond, who give all the strength of their souls to pass on knowledge to you, strengthen you in the desire to do good, love people, faithfully serve the Motherland and your people. To do this, we are trying to preserve the historical memory of the intercessors of Russia, canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church as saints.
Teaching material at the explain stage:
L.L. Shevchenko " Orthodox culture”, 1st year of study, part 1, pp. 65-66, part 2, p. 38;
L.L. Shevchenko "Orthodox culture", 2nd year of study, part 1, pp. 12-16. 3(4) year of study, part 2, pp. 28-29 and pp. 43-63;
E.D. Kritskaya, G.P. Sergeev "Music", 2nd grade, pp. 42-45, 3rd grade, pp. 52-53, 4th grade, pp. 26-31.
Training material at the stage of consolidation:
stichera Russian saints,
icons "The Cathedral of All Saints in the Russian Land Resplendent", St. book. Vladimir and St. Prince. Olga, teacher Ilya Muromsky, Rev. Sergius of Radonezh, St. Blessed Prince. Alexander Nevsky,
paintings by V. Vasnetsov, Yu. Pantyukhin, M. Nesterov,
magnification and hymn to St. Equal-to-the-Apostles Cyril and Methodius
Training task at the survey stage (KIM) - Crossword: "Russian Holy Lands".
Problem questions and tasks:
to prepare an interactive mini-tour through the cities of Russia, where there are monuments dedicated to St. Equal-to-the-Apostles Cyril and Methodius;
to prepare a report about the Bulgarian composer Ponaiot Pipkov, who composed more than 100 years ago a hymn in honor of the Slavic educators St. Cyril and Methodius Equal-to-the-Apostles. Why are they called that? (the brothers worked primarily to spread the faith of Christ).
What qualities of the human personality have always been respected by people in Rus', and do you have them? Is it easy to fight bad inclinations (passions) and cultivate good qualities (virtues) in oneself?
Reflection (approximate self-assessment of the lesson):
a) criteria of fact:
children mastered not only the names of the Saints, but also their deeds, by answering questions and solving a crossword puzzle;
good job over the performance of the Magnification by voices separately and in the choir, they compared it with the Magnification of St. Blessed Alexander Nevsky; learned the anthem of St. Equal to the Apostles. Cyril and Methodius and got acquainted with its creator - the Bulgarian composer Panayot Pipkov; remembered songs about the alphabet;
We got acquainted with the life and deeds of St. Cyril and Methodius Equal-to-the-Apostles, Russian icons and paintings by V. Vasnetsov, Yu. Pantyukhin, M. Nesterov.
Satisfactorily they remembered the information about the chronicler Nestor and the Tale of Bygone Years, about the oldest book in Rus' written in Cyrillic - the Ostromir Gospel of 1057 and the first printer Ivan Fedorov. We examined the monuments dedicated to St. Equal to the Apostles. Cyril and Methodius in different cities of Russia;
caused difficulties questions related to the dates of honoring the saints of the Russian land, asked during the lesson.
b) relationship criteria:
relation to content educational material- positive;
relations between children in the process of mastering the material - active mutual assistance and support;
attitude towards the teacher is positive.
Innovation: connection of the traditions of Orthodox culture with music and the life of a modern child and reliance on a visual-figurative component of educational material, taking into account the age-related characteristics of the perception of younger students .
Literature
L.L. Shevchenko. Orthodox culture. 2nd year of study, book 1. 2011. 112 p.
L.L. Shevchenko. Orthodox culture. 2nd year of study, book 2. 2011. 112 p.
L.L. Shevchenko. Orthodox culture. 3(4) years of study, book 1. 2015. 159 p.
L.L. Shevchenko. Orthodox culture. 3(4) years of study, book 2. 2015. 175 p.
L.L. Shevchenko. Enlighteners. Moscow: Center for Support of Cultural and Historical Traditions of the Fatherland. 2010. 96 p.
E.D. Kritskaya, G.P. Sergeev "Music". M.: Enlightenment. 2012. 159 p.
Application
Crossword "Holy Lands of Russia"
Horizontally:
1. The Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince, who baptized Rus' into Orthodoxy.
2. Equal-to-the-Apostles Princess, grandmother of the prince who baptized Rus'.
3. The saint who learned the power of prayer as a child by asking God to teach him to read.
4. The younger brother of Methodius - the creator of the ABC.
Vertically:
1. Epic hero, canonized as a Saint.
2. Grand Duke, famous for his diplomatic talent in negotiations with the khans of the Golden Horde.
3. Kirill's older brother.
4. Pioneer in Rus'.
Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles First Teachers and Slavic Enlighteners, brothers Cyril and Methodius descended from a noble and pious family that lived in the Greek city of Thessalonica. Saint Methodius was the eldest of the seven brothers, Saint Constantine (Cyril is his monastic name) was the youngest.
Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Cyril and Methodius
Saint Methodius was at first in a military rank and was the ruler in one of the Slavic principalities subordinate to the Byzantine Empire, apparently Bulgarian, which gave him the opportunity to learn the Slavic language. After staying there for about 10 years, Saint Methodius then accepted monasticism in one of the monasteries on Mount Olympus (Asia Minor). Saint Constantine from an early age was distinguished by great abilities and studied with the young Emperor Michael at the best teachers Constantinople, including Photius, the future Patriarch of Constantinople. Saint Constantine perfectly comprehended all the sciences of his time and many languages, he especially diligently studied the works of St. Gregory the Theologian. For his mind and outstanding knowledge, Saint Constantine received the title of Philosopher (wise). At the end of his teaching, Saint Constantine accepted the rank of priest and was appointed curator of the patriarchal library at the church of Saint Sophia, but soon left the capital and secretly retired to a monastery. Searched there and returned to Constantinople, he was assigned as a teacher of philosophy in the higher school of Constantinople. The wisdom and strength of faith of the still very young Constantine were so great that he managed to defeat the leader of the heretic iconoclasts Annius in the debate. After this victory, Constantine was sent by the emperor to debate the Holy Trinity with the Saracens (Muslims) and also won. Returning, Saint Constantine withdrew to his brother Saint Methodius on Olympus, spending time in unceasing prayer and reading the works of the holy fathers.
Soon the emperor summoned both holy brothers from the monastery and sent them to the Khazars for the gospel sermon. On the way, they stopped for some time in the city of Korsun, preparing for a sermon. There the holy brothers miraculously found the relics of Hieromartyr Clement, Pope of Rome (Comm. 25 November). In the same place in Korsun, Saint Constantine found a Gospel and a Psalter written in "Russian letters" and a man who spoke Russian, and began to learn from this man to read and speak his language. After that, the holy brothers went to the Khazars, where they won the debate with the Jews and Muslims, preaching the Gospel teaching. On the way home, the brothers again visited Korsun and, taking the relics of St. Clement there, returned to Constantinople. Saint Constantine remained in the capital, while Saint Methodius received hegumenship at the small monastery of Polychron, not far from Mount Olympus, where he had asceticised before. Soon, ambassadors came to the emperor from the Moravian prince Rostislav, who was being oppressed by the German bishops, with a request to send teachers to Moravia who could preach in their native language for the Slavs. The emperor called Saint Constantine and said to him: "You must go there, for no one can do it better than you." Saint Constantine, with fasting and prayer, embarked on a new feat. With the help of his brother Saint Methodius and the disciples of Gorazd, Clement, Savva, Naum and Angelyar, he compiled the Slavic alphabet and translated into Slavonic the books without which Divine services could not be performed: the Gospel, the Apostle, the Psalter and selected services. This was in 863.
After the completion of the translation, the holy brothers went to Moravia, where they were received with great honor, and began to teach Divine Liturgy in the Slavic language. This aroused the anger of the German bishops, who celebrated Divine Liturgy in Latin in the Moravian churches, and they rebelled against the holy brothers, arguing that Divine Liturgy could be celebrated only in one of three languages: Hebrew, Greek or Latin. Saint Constantine answered them: “You recognize only three languages worthy of glorifying God in them. But David cries out: Sing to the Lord, all the earth; praise the Lord, all nations; let every breath praise the Lord! And in the Holy Gospel it is said: Go and teach all languages. The German bishops were disgraced, but became even more embittered and filed a complaint with Rome. The holy brothers were called to Rome to resolve this issue. Taking with them the relics of Saint Clement, Pope of Rome, Saints Constantine and Methodius set off for Rome. Having learned that the holy brothers were carrying holy relics with them, Pope Adrian went out with the clergy to meet them. The holy brothers were greeted with honor, the Pope of Rome approved divine services in the Slavic language, and ordered the books translated by the brothers to be placed in Roman churches and to celebrate the liturgy in the Slavic language.
While in Rome, Saint Constantine fell ill and, in a miraculous vision, informed by the Lord that his death was approaching, he took the schema with the name Cyril. 50 days after the adoption of the schema, on February 14, 869, Equal-to-the-Apostles Cyril died at the age of 42. Departing to God, Saint Cyril commanded his brother Saint Methodius to continue their common work - the enlightenment of the Slavic peoples with light true faith. Saint Methodius begged the Pope of Rome to allow the body of his brother to be taken away for burial on native land, but the pope ordered the relics of St. Cyril to be placed in the church of St. Clement, where miracles began to happen from them.
After the death of Saint Cyril, the pope, following the request of the Slavic prince Kocel, sent Saint Methodius to Pannonia, ordaining him archbishop of Moravia and Pannonia, to the ancient throne of the holy Apostle Andronicus. In Pannonia, Saint Methodius, together with his disciples, continued to distribute Divine services, writing and books in the Slavic language. This again angered the German bishops. They achieved the arrest and trial of Saint Methodius, who was exiled to captivity in Swabia, where he endured many sufferings for two and a half years. Released by order of Pope John VIII and restored to the rights of an archbishop, Methodius continued gospel preaching among the Slavs and baptized the Czech prince Borivoi and his wife Lyudmila (Comm. 16 September), as well as one of the Polish princes. For the third time, the German bishops persecuted the saint for not accepting the Roman teaching about the procession of the Holy Spirit from the Father and from the Son. Saint Methodius was summoned to Rome, but justified himself before the pope, keeping the Orthodox teaching pure, and was again returned to the capital of Moravia, Velehrad.
Anticipating the approach of death, Saint Methodius pointed to one of his disciples, Gorazd, as a worthy successor to himself. The saint predicted the day of his death and died on April 6, 885 at the age of about 60 years. The funeral service for the saint was performed in three languages - Slavic, Greek and Latin; he was buried in the cathedral church of Velegrad.
24 May 2014
The holy teachers of Slovenia strove for solitude and prayer, but in life they constantly found themselves at the forefront - both when they defended Christian truths before Muslims, and when they undertook great educational work. Their success sometimes looked like a defeat, but as a result, it is to them that we owe the acquisition of “a gift of the most valuable and greater than any silver, and gold, and precious stones and all transient wealth." This gift is Slavic writing.
Brethren from Thessalonica
The Russian language was baptized back in the days when our ancestors did not consider themselves Christians - in the ninth century. In the west of Europe, the heirs of Charlemagne divided the Frankish empire, in the East Muslim states were strengthening, crowding out Byzantium, and in the young Slavic principalities Cyril and Methodius, the Equal-to-the-Apostles, preached and worked - the true founders of our culture.The history of the activities of the holy brothers has been studied with all possible care: the surviving written sources are commented on many times, and pundits argue about the details of the biographies and acceptable interpretations of the information that has come down. And how could it be otherwise when it comes to the creators of the Slavic alphabet? And yet, until now, the images of Cyril and Methodius are lost behind an abundance of ideological constructions and mere inventions. The Khazar dictionary of Milorad Pavic, in which the enlighteners of the Slavs are built into a multifaceted theosophical hoax, is not the worst option.
Cyril - the youngest both in age and in hierarchical ranks - until the end of his life was just a layman and took monastic tonsure with the name Cyril only on his deathbed. While Methodius, the elder brother, held high positions, was the ruler of a separate region of the Byzantine Empire, the abbot of the monastery and ended his life as an archbishop. And yet, traditionally, Cyril takes an honorable first place, and the Cyrillic alphabet is named after him. All his life he had a different name - Konstantin, and another respectful nickname - the Philosopher.
Konstantin was an extremely gifted man. “The speed of his abilities was not inferior to diligence,” the life, compiled shortly after his death, repeatedly emphasizes the depth and breadth of his knowledge. Translating into the language of modern realities, Konstantin the Philosopher was a professor at the capital's Constantinople University, very young and promising. At the age of 24 (!) he received the first important state task - to defend the truth of Christianity in the face of Muslims of other faiths.
Missionary politician
This medieval inseparability of spiritual, religious tasks and state affairs looks bizarre today. But even for it one can find some analogy in the modern world order. And today the superpowers, the newest empires, base their influence not only on military and economic strength. There is always an ideological component, an ideology that is “exported” to other countries. For the Soviet Union, it was communism. For the United States, liberal democracy. Someone accepts the exported ideas peacefully, somewhere you have to resort to bombing.
For Byzantium, the doctrine was Christianity. The strengthening and spread of Orthodoxy was perceived by the imperial authorities as a paramount state task. Therefore, as the modern researcher of the Cyril and Methodius heritage A.-E. Tahiaos, "a diplomat who negotiated with enemies or 'barbarians' was always accompanied by a missionary." Constantine was such a missionary. That is why it is so difficult to separate his actual educational activity from his political one. Just before his death, he symbolically resigned from public service, taking monasticism. “I am no longer a servant of either the king or anyone else on earth; only God the Almighty was and will be forever, ”Kirill will now write.
His life story tells about his Arab and Khazar mission, tricky questions and witty and profound answers. Muslims asked him about the Trinity, how Christians could worship "many gods" and why, instead of resisting evil, they strengthened the army. The Khazar Jews disputed the Incarnation and accused Christians of non-observance of the Old Testament prescriptions. Konstantin's answers - bright, imaginative and short - if they did not convince all opponents, then, in any case, delivered a polemical victory, leading the listeners into admiration.
"Nobody else"
The Khazar mission was preceded by events that greatly changed the internal structure of the Thessalonica brothers. At the end of the 50s of the 9th century, both Constantine - a successful scientist and polemist - and Methodius - shortly before that appointed archon (head) of the province, retire from the world and lead a secluded ascetic life for several years. Methodius even takes monastic vows. The brothers were distinguished by piety from an early age, and the idea of monasticism was not alien to them; however, there were probably external reasons for such a sharp change: a change in the political situation or the personal sympathies of those in power. However, this life is silent.But the worldly bustle receded for a while. Already in 860, the Khazar Khagan decided to arrange an "inter-religious" dispute in which Christians had to defend the truth of their faith in front of Jews and Muslims. According to the expression of the life, the Khazars were ready to accept Christianity if the Byzantine polemists "won the upper hand in disputes with the Jews and Saracens." They again found Constantine, and the emperor personally admonished him with the words: “Go, Philosopher, to these people and talk about the Holy Trinity with Her help. No one else can adequately take it upon themselves.” On the journey, Konstantin took his older brother as an assistant.
The negotiations ended on the whole successfully, although the Khazar state did not become Christian, the kagan allowed those who wished to be baptized. There were also political successes. We should also pay attention to an important passing event. On the way, the Byzantine delegation visited the Crimea, where, near modern Sevastopol (ancient Chersonese), Constantine found the relics of the ancient holy Pope Clement. Subsequently, the brothers will transfer the relics of St. Clement to Rome, which will additionally win over Pope Adrian. It is with Cyril and Methodius that the special veneration of St. Clement among the Slavs begins - let us recall the majestic church in his honor in Moscow not far from the Tretyakov Gallery.
The birth of writing
862 year. We have reached a historic milestone. This year, the Moravian prince Rostislav sent a letter to the Byzantine emperor with a request to send preachers capable of instructing his subjects in Christianity in the Slavic language. Great Moravia, which at that time included separate regions of the modern Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, Hungary, Romania and Poland, was already Christian. But the German clergy enlightened her, and all divine services, holy books and theology were Latin, incomprehensible to the Slavs.
And again at the court they remember about Constantine the Philosopher. If not him, then who else will be able to accomplish the task, the complexity of which both the emperor and the patriarch, St. Photius, were aware of? The Slavs did not have a written language. But even the fact of the absence of letters was not the main problem. They did not have abstract concepts and the richness of terminology that usually develops in "book culture". High Christian theology, Scripture and liturgical texts had to be translated into a language that had no means of doing so.
And the Philosopher coped with the task. Of course, one should not imagine that he worked alone. Konstantin again called for help from his brother, and other employees were also involved. It was a kind of scientific institute. The first alphabet - Glagolitic - was compiled on the basis of Greek cryptography. The letters correspond to the letters of the Greek alphabet, but look different - so much so that Glagolitic was often confused with Eastern languages. In addition, for sounds specific to the Slavic dialect, Hebrew letters were taken (for example, "sh").
Then they translated the Gospel, verified expressions and terms, translated liturgical books. The volume of translations carried out by the holy brothers and their immediate disciples was very significant - by the time of the baptism of Rus', a whole library of Slavic books already existed.
The price of success
However, the activities of the enlighteners could not be limited only to scientific and translational research. It was necessary to teach the Slavs new letters, a new bookish language, a new divine service. The transition to a new liturgical language was especially painful. It is not surprising that the clergy of Moravia, who until then had followed German practice, took the new trends with hostility. Even dogmatic arguments were put forward against the Slavonic transposition of services, the so-called trilingual heresy, as if one could speak with God only in "sacred" languages: Greek, Hebrew and Latin.Dogma intertwined with politics, canon law with diplomacy and power ambitions - and Cyril and Methodius found themselves at the center of this tangle. The territory of Moravia was under the jurisdiction of the pope, and although the Western Church was not yet separated from the Eastern Church, the initiative of the Byzantine emperor and the Patriarch of Constantinople (namely, this was the status of the mission) was still viewed with suspicion. German clergy, closely associated with secular power Bavaria, saw in the undertakings of the brothers the implementation of Slavic separatism. Indeed, in addition to spiritual interests, the Slavic princes also pursued state interests - their liturgical language and church independence would significantly strengthen their position. Finally, the pope was in tense relations with Bavaria, and support for the revival of church life in Moravia against the "tri-pagans" fit perfectly into the general direction of his policy.
Political controversy cost the missionaries dearly. Because of the constant intrigues of the German clergy, Constantine and Methodius twice had to justify themselves before the Roman high priest. In 869, unable to withstand the strain, St. Cyril died (he was only 42 years old), and Methodius continued his work, shortly after that he was ordained in Rome to the episcopal rank. Methodius died in 885, having experienced exile, insults and imprisonment that lasted several years.
The most valuable gift
Methodius' successor was Gorazd, and already under him the work of the holy brothers in Moravia practically died out: liturgical translations were banned, followers were killed or sold into slavery; many themselves fled to neighboring countries. But this was not the end. This was only the beginning of Slavic culture, and therefore of Russian culture too. The center of Slavic literature moved to Bulgaria, then to Russia. The Cyrillic alphabet, named after the creator of the first alphabet, began to be used in books. Writing has grown and strengthened. And today, proposals to abolish the Slavic letters and switch to Latin, which in the 1920s were actively promoted by People's Commissar Lunacharsky, sound, thank God, unrealistic.So the next time, dotting the “e” or agonizing over the Russification of the new version of Photoshop, think about how rich we have. Very few nations have been honored to have their own alphabet. This was understood already in the distant ninth century. “God has created even now in our years - declaring the letters for your language - something that was not given to anyone after the first times, so that you would be numbered among the great peoples who glorify God in their own language ... Accept the gift, the most valuable and greater than any silver, and gold, and precious stones, and all transient wealth, "wrote Emperor Michael to Prince Rostislav.
And after that we are trying to separate Russian culture from Orthodox culture? Russian letters were invented by Orthodox monks for church books, at the very foundation of Slavic literacy lies not just influence and borrowing, but “transplantation”, “transplantation” of Byzantine church literacy. The book language, cultural context, terminology of high thought were created directly together with the library of books by the apostles of the Slavs, Saints Cyril and Methodius.
Deacon Nikolai SOLODOV
Cyril and Methodius - saints, equal to the apostles, Slavic enlighteners, creators of the Slavic alphabet, preachers of Christianity, the first translators of liturgical books from Greek into Slavonic. Cyril was born around 827, died on February 14, 869. Before becoming a monk at the beginning of 869, he bore the name Constantine. His older brother Methodius was born around 820, died on April 6, 885. Both brothers were from Thessalonica (Thessalonica), their father was a military leader. In 863, Cyril and Methodius were sent by the Byzantine emperor to Moravia in order to preach Christianity in the Slavic language and assist the Moravian prince Rostislav in the fight against the German princes. Before leaving, Cyril created the Slavic alphabet and, with the help of Methodius, translated several liturgical books from Greek into Slavonic: selected readings from the Gospel, apostolic letters. Psalter, etc. There is no consensus in science on the question of which alphabet Cyril created - Glagolitic or Cyrillic, but the first assumption is more likely. In 866 or 867, Cyril and Methodius, at the call of Pope Nicholas I, went to Rome, on the way they visited the Blaten Principality in Pannonia, where they also distributed the Slavic letter and introduced worship in the Slavic language. After arriving in Rome, Cyril fell seriously ill and died. Methodius was consecrated Archbishop of Moravia and Pannonia and in 870 returned from Rome to Pannonia. In the middle of 884, Methodius returned to Moravia and was busy translating the Bible into Slavonic. Through their activities, Cyril and Methodius laid the foundation for Slavic writing and literature. This activity was continued in the South Slavic countries by their students, who were expelled from Moravia in 886 and moved to Bulgaria.
CYRIL AND METHODIUS - ENLIGHTENERS OF THE SLAVIC PEOPLES
In 863, ambassadors from Great Moravia arrived in Byzantium to Emperor Michael III from Prince Rostislav with a request to send them a bishop and a person who could explain Christian faith in Slavonic. The Moravian prince Rostislav strove for the independence of the Slavic Church and had already applied to Rome with a similar request, but was refused. Michael III and Photius, just as in Rome, reacted to the request of Rostislav formally and, having sent missionaries to Moravia, did not ordain any of them as bishops. Thus, Constantine, Methodius and their entourage could only conduct educational activities, but did not have the right to ordain their disciples to the priestly and deacon ranks. This mission could not have been successful and of great importance if Constantine had not brought to the Moravans an alphabet perfectly developed and convenient for the transmission of Slavic speech, as well as a translation into Slavonic of the main liturgical books. Of course, the language of the translations brought by the brothers differed phonetically and morphologically from the living spoken language spoken by the Moravans, but the language of liturgical books was initially perceived as a written, bookish, sacred, sample language. It was much more understandable than Latin, and a certain dissimilarity to the language used in everyday life, gave it greatness.
Constantine and Methodius read the Gospel in Slavonic at divine services, and the people reached out to the brothers and to Christianity. Konstantin and Methodius diligently taught the students the Slavic alphabet, worship, continued their translation activities. Churches where the service was conducted in Latin were empty, the Roman Catholic priesthood was losing influence and income in Moravia. Since Constantine was a simple priest, and Methodius was a monk, they did not have the right to put their students in church positions themselves. To solve the problem, the brothers had to go to Byzantium or Rome.
In Rome, Constantine handed over the relics of St. Clement to the newly ordained Pope Adrian II, so he received Constantine and Methodius very solemnly, with honor, accepted worship in the Slavic language under his guardianship, ordered to put Slavic books in one of the Roman churches and perform worship over them. The Pope ordained Methodius as a priest, and his disciples as presbyters and deacons, and in a letter to the princes Rostislav and Kotsel he legitimizes the Slavonic translation Holy Scripture and the administration of worship in the Slavic language.
The brothers spent almost two years in Rome. One reason for this is Constantine's deteriorating health. At the beginning of 869, he took the schema and the new monastic name Cyril, and on February 14 he died. By order of Pope Adrian II, Cyril was buried in Rome, in the church of St. Clement.
After the death of Cyril, Pope Adrian ordained Methodius to the rank of Archbishop of Moravia and Pannonia. Returning to Pannonia, Methodius launched a vigorous activity to spread Slavic worship and writing. However, after the removal of Rostislav, Methodius did not have strong political support left. In 871, the German authorities arrested Methodius and held a trial against him, accusing the archbishop of having invaded the possessions of the Bavarian clergy. Methodius was imprisoned in a monastery in Swabia (Germany), where he spent two and a half years. Only thanks to the direct intervention of Pope John VIII, who succeeded the deceased Adrian II, in 873 Methodius was released and restored in all rights, but the Slavic service became not the main one, but only an additional one: the service was conducted in Latin, and sermons could be delivered in Slavonic.
After the death of Methodius, the opponents of the Slavic worship in Moravia became more active, and the worship itself, which rested on the authority of Methodius, was first oppressed, and then completely faded. Some of the students fled to the south, some were sold into slavery in Venice, some were killed. The closest disciples of Methodius Gorazd, Clement, Naum, Angellarius and Lawrence, imprisoned in iron, kept in prison, and then expelled from the country. The writings and translations of Constantine and Methodius were destroyed. This explains the fact that their works have not survived to this day, although there is a lot of information about their work. In 890, Pope Stephen VI anathematized Slavic books and Slavic worship, finally banning them.
The work begun by Constantine and Methodius was nevertheless continued by his disciples. Clement, Naum and Angellarius settled in Bulgaria and were the founders of Bulgarian literature. Orthodox prince Boris-Mikhail, a friend of Methodius, supported his students. A new center of Slavic writing appears in Ohrid (the territory of modern Macedonia). However, Bulgaria is under a strong cultural influence of Byzantium, and one of Constantine's students (most likely Clement) creates a script similar to the Greek script. This happens at the end of the 9th - beginning of the 10th century, during the reign of Tsar Simeon. It is this system that gets the name Cyrillic in memory of the person who first attempted to create an alphabet suitable for recording Slavic speech.
THE QUESTION OF THE INDEPENDENCE OF THE SLAVIC ALPHABETs
The question of the independence of the Slavic alphabets is caused by the very nature of the outlines of the Cyrillic and Glagolitic letters, their sources. What were the Slavic alphabets - a new writing system or just a kind of Greek-Byzantine writing? In deciding this issue, the following factors must be taken into account:
In the history of writing, there was not a single letter-sound system that would have arisen completely independently, without the influence of previous writing systems. So, the Phoenician letter arose on the basis of the ancient Egyptian (although the principle of writing was changed), ancient Greek - on the basis of Phoenician, Latin, Slavic - on the basis of Greek, French, German - on the basis of Latin, etc.
Consequently, we can only talk about the degree of independence of the writing system. At the same time, it is much more important how accurately the modified and adapted original writing corresponds to the sound system of the language that it intends to serve. It is in this respect that the creators of Slavic writing showed a great philological flair, a deep understanding of the phonetics of the Old Slavonic language, as well as a great graphic taste.
THE ONLY STATE CHURCH HOLIDAY
PRESIDIUM OF THE SUPREME SOVIET OF THE RSFSR
RESOLUTION
ABOUT THE DAY OF SLAVIC WRITING AND CULTURE
Attaching great importance to the cultural and historical revival of the peoples of Russia and taking into account the international practice of celebrating the day of the Slavic enlighteners Cyril and Methodius, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR decides:
Chairman
Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR
In 863, 1150 years ago, the Equal-to-the-Apostles brothers Cyril and Methodius began their Moravian mission to create our written language. It is mentioned in the main Russian chronicle "The Tale of Bygone Years": "And the Slavs were glad that they heard about the greatness of God in their own language."
And a second anniversary. In 1863, 150 years ago, the Russian Holy Synod determined: in connection with the celebration of the millennium of the Moravian Mission of the Holy Brothers Equal to the Apostles, to establish an annual celebration in honor of St. Methodius and Cyril on May 11 (24 CE).
In 1986, at the initiative of writers, especially the late Vitaly Maslov, first the first Writing Festival was held in Murmansk, and on next year it was widely celebrated in Vologda. Finally, on January 30, 1991, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR adopted a resolution on the annual holding of the Days of Slavic Culture and Literature. Readers do not need to be reminded that May 24 is also the name day of Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus'.
Logically, it seems that the only state-church holiday in Russia has every reason to acquire not only a national sound, as in Bulgaria, but also a pan-Slavic significance.