Prophecies about the third world war (terms, participants, consequences). Amazing prophecies of the Monk Seraphim of Vyritsky Predictions of Seraphim of Vyritsky about the future
« Now is the time for repentance and confession. The Lord Himself determined the punishment for the Russian people for sins, and until the Lord Himself has mercy on Russia, it is pointless to go against His holy will…
If the people of the whole world, every single person, at the same time would kneel and pray to God for at least five minutes to prolong life, so that the Lord would give everyone time to repent ... If the Russian people do not come to repentance, it may happen that brother will rise again against brother».
Venerable Seraphim of Vyritsky
Prophecies of the elder - From the teachings of St. Seraphim of Vyritsky - Prayer - Condemnation - Condemnation of priests - Commemoration of the dead - Patience of sorrows - “It was from Me”
Rev. Seraphim Vyritsky (1866-1949)
Father Seraphim actually fulfilled the patristic testament: “Save yourself and around 
thousands will be saved.” Many of his deeds are marked by obvious miracles, to which there are eyewitness accounts. These include cases visions of what was happening in the distance; insights into the past and future of visitors; reading the thoughts of interlocutors; healing the sick from incurable bodily ailments; exorcism of evil spirits; predictions and prophecies, as well as the highest grace gifts - prayerful contemplation, spiritual consolation and love for people. During the Great Patriotic War, Fr. Seraphim following his example heavenly patron Rev. Seraphim of Sarov prayed in the garden on a stone for the salvation of Russia.
Prophecies of the Elder
Father Seraphim predicted the Great Patriotic War, the ruin of the Church and the revival of faith in Russia. He spoke about the revival of ancient monasteries - the Holy Trinity Sergius Lavra, the Diveevsky Monastery, the Alexander Nevsky Lavra, the Kiev-Pechora Lavra. The elder said that Leningrad would be renamed St. Petersburg and that the time would come when it would be possible to hear on the radio church prayers, sermons and spiritual instructions.
From the first days of the Great Patriotic War, St. Seraphim Vyritsky spoke openly about the victory of the Russian people. Vyritsa at that time was occupied by the Romanian unit, commanded by German officers. They were informed about the prophecies of Father Seraphim, and soon they came to him uninvited guests. The elder immediately struck them by speaking to them in good German. The German captain asked the Monk Seraphim if the German units would soon march victoriously along Palace Square? The elder humbly replied that this would never happen. The Germans will have to leave in haste, and the questioner himself will not be destined to return home; during the retreat, he will lay down his head near Warsaw. According to the stories of local residents captured by the Germans, whom the invaders tried to drive to Germany, this German officer really died in the area of the Polish capital, and the slaves were returned to their homeland.
A poem written by him in 1939 remarkably testifies to the elder’s deep insight into not only the fate of people, but also the future of our Church and Fatherland:
A thunderstorm will pass over the Russian land,
The Lord will forgive the Russian people their sins.
And the Holy Cross of divine beauty
Above the temple of God will again shine brightly.
And the ringing of bells throughout our Holy Rus'
From sinful sleep to salvation will awaken.
Holy cloisters will be reopened
And faith in God will unite everyone.
Terrible adversities will subside,
Russia will defeat its enemies,
And the name of the Russian great people
Like thunder throughout the universe will rumble.
To the question of his spiritual son about the future of Russia, the elder suggested that he go to the window and look. He saw the Gulf of Finland and many ships sailing under different flags.
— How to understand it? he asked the father.
The old man replied:
- A time will come when there will be a spiritual flowering in Russia. Many churches and monasteries will open, even non-Christians will come to us to be baptized on such ships. But this is not for long - for fifteen years, then the Antichrist will come.
He said that when the East gains strength, everything will become unstable. The number is on their side, but not only that: they have sober and hardworking people working, and we have such drunkenness ...
They also told how the elder said: “The East will be baptized in Russia. The whole heavenly world is praying for the enlightenment of the East.
The time will come when Russia will be torn apart. First they will divide it, and then they will begin to rob wealth. The West will contribute in every possible way to the destruction of Russia and will give up its eastern part to China before the time comes. The Far East will be seized by the Japanese, and Siberia by the Chinese, who will move to Russia, marry Russians, and, in the end, by cunning and deceit, will take the territory of Siberia to the Urals. When China wants to go further, the West will resist and will not allow it.
Many countries will take up arms against Russia, but she will stand, having lost most of her lands. This war, about which the Holy Scriptures narrate and the prophets speak, will be the cause of the unification of mankind. People will understand that it is impossible to live like this, otherwise all living things will perish, and they will choose a single government - this will be the threshold of the accession of the Antichrist.
Then the persecution of Christians will begin; when echelons from cities leave deep into Russia, we must hurry to be among the first, since many of those who remain will die.
It's time for lies and evil. It will be so hard, so bad, so scary that God forbid to live up to this time. We won't live with you."
Shortly after the end of the Great Patriotic War, Father Seraphim was told:
— Dear father! How good it is now - the war is over, the church bells are ringing...
The old man answered this:
— No, that's not all. There will be more fear than before. You will meet her (war) again. It will be very difficult for young people to change their uniforms. Who will only survive? Who will remain alive? But whoever remains alive - what a good life he will have.
If the people of the whole world, every single person, at the same time would kneel and pray to God for at least five minutes to prolong life, so that the Lord would give everyone time to repent ... If the Russian people do not come to repentance, it may happen that brother will rise again against brother.
“The time will come,” said the ascetic, “when not persecution, but money and the charms of this world will turn people away from God and many more souls will perish than in times of open rebellion. On the one hand, crosses will be erected and domes gilded, and on the other hand, the kingdom of lies and evil will come. The true Church will always be persecuted, and it will be possible to be saved only by sorrows and illnesses, while persecution will take on the most sophisticated, unpredictable character. It will be terrible to live up to these times.”
The old man loved the youth very much. At that time, young people hardly went to church, and he was so happy when they came to him. The elder spoke about the enormous role of the young in the future revival of the Church. He said that the time will come (and is already coming!) when the corruption and decadence of morals among the youth will reach its last limits. Almost no one will remain uncorrupted. They will consider that everything is permitted to them to satisfy their whims and lusts, because they will see their impunity. They will gather in companies and gangs, steal, debauchery. But the time will come when the voice of God comes, when the youth understands that it is impossible to live like this any longer, and they will go to faith in different ways, the craving for asceticism will increase. Those who were previously sinners, drunkards, will fill the temples, feel a great thirst for spiritual life, many of them will become monks, monasteries will open, churches will be full of believers. Then the young will go on pilgrimages to holy places - it will be a glorious time! The fact that they are sinning now, they will repent so ardently. Just as a candle, before it goes out, flares up brightly, illuminating everything with its last light, so does the life of the Church. And that time is near.
“How much the Lord gave grace to Russia - what forests, lakes, rivers, rich bowels of the earth. But we live without God, and the earth is a mother, she gives bread and life. Our enemies and the God-fighting authorities will not allow people to return to the earth for a long time. It is possible to feed everyone and arrange everything, but it is not profitable for the enemies - they are afraid of Russia revived. And yet Russia will live off her land.”
« Salvation of the world - from Russia, and St. Petersburg will become the spiritual center of the country. There will also be great events in Russia - the discovery and glorification of the relics in St. Petersburg - a great joy for the whole world. Vyritsa will be a place of pilgrimage, and a monastery will be opened here.”
About the way from St. Petersburg to Vyritsa, the father said: “Now a steam engine is running for two and a half, or even three hours, then electric trains will go, then you will get there faster, and the time will come: once - and another flies.”
After the war, the elder told his spiritual daughter: “The time will come when the procession from the Kazan Cathedral to the Lavra will again go. You will wait." It was hard to believe it, but now everything has come true!
“Jerusalem will become the capital of Israel, and in time it must become the capital of the world. For there is the true center of the Earth, there the Savior of the world was crucified and resurrected.”
The elder predicted that Catholics would have a Slavic pope.
Father Seraphim spoke about his future glorification, but added at the same time: “Do not rush to dig up my body. Leave everything to the Lord… I don’t want my body to be traded.”
From the teachings of St. Seraphim of Vyritsky
“The Lord is able to raise up laborers if we ask. Let's pray and ask - and then the Lord will raise up His chosen ones from stones».
“At least once in a lifetime, you need to light a candle for those whom we offended, cheated, stole from whom, did not return the debt.”
« The Lord will wait a thousand years for at least one person to be saved and replenish the number of fallen angels».
« Now is the time for repentance and confession. The Lord Himself determined the punishment for the Russian people for sins, and until the Lord Himself has mercy on Russia, it is senseless to go against His holy will. A gloomy night will cover the Russian land for a long time, much suffering and sorrow awaits us ahead. That is why the Lord teaches us: by your patience save your souls (Luke 21:19). We can only trust in God and beg His forgiveness. Let us remember that God is love (1 John 4:16), and hope for His inexpressible mercy.”
The old man said that the time will come when 40 people will cling to each believer so that he pulls them out.
The elder advised the sick to take a tablespoon holy water every hour. He said that there is no stronger medicine than water and consecrated oil.
Prayer
“Prayer shields fearful suggestions dark force. And the prayer of loved ones is especially strong. A mother's prayer, a friend's prayer - it has great power.
Never ask the Lord for anything earthly. He knows what is good for us better than we do. Always pray like this: I commit, Lord, myself, my children and all relatives and neighbors to Your holy will».
In the most difficult times, it will be convenient to be saved who, to the best of his ability, begins to struggle in the Jesus Prayer, ascending from the frequent invocation of the name of God to unceasing prayer.
The elder advised his spiritual children to read the prayer of St. Ephraim the Syrian as often as possible: Lord and Master of my life". “In this prayer,” the elder said, “the whole essence of Orthodoxy, the whole Gospel. With it, we ask the Lord for help in acquiring the properties of a new person.
condemnation
“We have the right to judge only ourselves. Even talking about a person, we unwittingly condemn him.
Condemnation of priests
« Personal human infirmities cannot take away the grace of ordination. During the performance of the Sacraments, the priest is only an instrument in the hands of God. All the Sacraments are performed invisibly by Christ Himself. Whatever the sinful priest, even if he is destined to burn in the fire of Gehenna, only through him can we get permission from our own sins».
Commemoration of the dead
The elder said that the Lord gave us a soul, but our body is from our parents and grandparents, so part of their sins passes to us. So we must pray for our parents and grandparents, and in confession we must repent for all of them. They are waiting for our prayer and are so happy when we pray for them; and those who are already in the Kingdom of Heaven help us.
Patience of Sorrows
“The Almighty Lord governs the world, and everything that happens in it is done either by the grace of God, or by the permission of God. The fate of God is incomprehensible to man. The three holy youths in the cave of Babylon confessed God and truly believed that all the spiritual and civil calamities allowed on them and on the people of Israel were allowed according to the righteous judgment of God. Only such a view of the essence of everything that happens attracts the world into the soul, does not allow to be carried away by excitement, directs the mind's vision to Eternity and delivers patience in sorrows. Yes, and the sorrows themselves then seem short-term, insignificant and petty.
Do not complain about the weight of the cross; on the day of sorrow, tell your grief to the Lord, and He will comfort you.”
THIS WAS FROM ME
Spiritual testament
Venerable Seraphim of Vyritsky
(Conversation of God with the soul of man)
Have you ever thought that everything about you
Does it apply to me too? For what concerns you
Touches the apple of my eye.
You are precious in my eyes,
And I have loved you, and therefore for Me
It is a special joy to educate you.
When temptations come upon you and the enemy comes like a river,
I want you to know that
It was from me.
That your infirmity needs my strength
And that your safety lies in
To give Me the opportunity to protect you.
Are you in difficult circumstances
Among people who don't understand you
Do not consider what pleases you,
that put you away,
It was from me.
I am your God, who disposes of circumstances,
And it's no coincidence that you were in the right place,
This is the very place that I appointed you.
Have you asked me to teach you humility?
And so I put you in that very environment,
To the school where this lesson is taught.
Your environment and those who live with you only fulfill
my will. Are you in financial difficulty
It's hard for you to make ends meet, know that
It was from me.
For I dispose of your means and I want
You ran to me and you would know that you are addicted
From me. My reserves are inexhaustible. I want to
You were convinced of My faithfulness and My promises.
Yes, there will be no one to tell you
In your need: "Thou shalt not believe the Lord thy God."
Have you experienced the night in sorrow?
You are separated from those close and dear to your heart, -
It was sent to you from me.
I am a man of sorrows, who has known sickness,
I allowed it so that you turn to Me
And in Me she could find eternal consolation.
Have you been deceived in your friend, in someone,
To whom did you open your heart,
It was from me.
I let this disappointment touch you
So that you know that your best friend is the Lord.
I want you to bring everything to Me and speak to Me.
Has anyone slandered you, leave it to me,
And cling closer to Me, your refuge, your soul,
To hide from the strife of tongues,
I will bring out your truth as a light
And your fate, like noon.
Your plans collapsed, you drooped in soul
And tired -
It was from me.
You made a plan for yourself, you had your intentions
You brought them to Me so that I would bless them.
But I want you to give me
Manage and manage circumstances
Your life, since you are only a tool,
Not an active person.
Have you suffered unexpected failures of life,
And despondency seized your heart, know -
It was from me.
For I want your heart and your soul
Were always ablaze before my eyes,
And by My name they would conquer all cowardice.
You do not receive news from loved ones for a long time,
Dear people,
Due to your cowardice and lack of faith
You fall into grumbling and despair, know -
It was from me.
For with this yearning of your spirit I will test
The strength of your faith in the immutability of promises
And the boldness of your prayer
About your loved ones
For did you not take care of them
To my providential love?
Are you not now giving them
The Protection of My Most Pure Mother?
Have you suffered a serious illness
Temporary or incurable
And you were chained to your bed -
It was from me.
For I want you to know me even more deeply
In your bodily infirmities, I would not grumble for this
The test sent to you
And so that you do not try to penetrate My plans
Salvation of human souls in various ways,
And meekly and humbly I would bow your head
Under my grace for you.
Have you ever dreamed of creating
Special thing for me
And instead she lay down on a bed of sickness and infirmity -
It was from me.
For then you would be immersed in your affairs,
And I could not draw your thoughts to Me,
And I want to teach you the deepest thoughts and
My lessons, so that you may be in My service.
Some of the best of My sons are those
who are cut off from living activity,
To learn them
Wield the weapon of unceasing prayer.
Are you called to unexpectedly take on the difficult
And a responsible position, relying on Me.
I entrust these difficulties to you,
And for this the Lord your God will bless you
In all your affairs
In all your ways, in everything
Your guide and mentor will be
your Lord.
This day into your hands, My child,
I gave this vessel of consecrated oil,
Use it freely.
Always remember that every
The difficulty that arises
Every word that hurts you
Every slander and condemnation
Every hindrance in your work
which could cause
Feelings of disappointment, disappointment,
Every revelation of your weakness and inability
Will be anointed with this oil -
It was from me.
Remember that every obstacle is God's instruction,
And so put your word in your heart,
which I have declared to you this day,
It was from me.
Keep them, know and remember - always
Wherever you are
That every sting will be dulled,
When will you learn
See Me in everything.
Everything is sent by Me for perfection
your souls -
It was all from me.
This text, written in poetic form, was addressed by Father Seraphim to one of his spiritual children, the imprisoned bishop. In it is a reflection of the deepest prayerful mystery revealed in the conversation of God with the human soul. This is the spiritual testament of the elder, addressed to all of us.
According to the book: “Seraphim Vyritsky Life. Prophecies. Akathist". Holy Dormition Pochaev Lavra.
25.07.2014
Update 03.04.2019
Prophecies about the future of Russia. Hieromonk Seraphim Vyritsky
Hieromonk Seraphim Vyritsky (Vasily Nikolaevich Muravyov in the world) is a secret person. Sometimes you can find references that during the war years he repeated the feat of the Reverend Seraphim of Sarov - he stood on a stone for a thousand days and nights, begging for victory.
By the grace of God, AS Igovskaya sent me her memories of him. “Father Seraphim Vyritsky was a merchant. When the rout of the monastics of the city of Petrov came, on the night of February 18, 1932, he was already an elder of about seventy. He entered monasticism with his wife, already having one son. Husband and wife went to monasteries under the influence and blessing of Father Barnabas of Gethsemane.
Name about. Seraphim in Holy Baptism was Basil, and in tonsure he took the name of Barnabas. His wife was tonsured with the name of Christina. Father Varnava entered the Alexander Nevsky Lavra in St. Petersburg, and his wife entered the Novodevichy Convent in the same city. Their son married, and gave his daughter to a monastery under the guidance of a grandmother. This girl was of extraordinary beauty and wore the uniform of a novice in the monastery with a headdress adopted in this monastery.
Father Barnabas worked behind a candle box. When, after the assassination of Metropolitan Veniamin, churches began to be taken away from the Lavra in order to preserve the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, they began to serve in it in the winter as well. The cathedral was not heated. The cold there was terrible. The candle box was located near entrance doors, and about. Barnabas caught a cold for the rest of his life: intercostal neuralgia. He could neither stand nor lie down, but only sit reclining in an armchair. So he “sat” for 17 years.
When they came to him in his cell to arrest him, they could not "take" him. He was the only one not taken away from the monastics that night. The next morning, admirers hastily took him to Vyritsa in a passenger car. And the authorities "forgot" about him. The father was placed in a private dacha. On the top floor lived two old ladies. In the lower - Father and m. Khristina. She was not arrested, since since Fr. Barnabas fell ill, lived in his cells and looked after him. They didn't take her. And in Vyritsa they lived quietly until the death of Batiushka. When the Germans occupied Vyritsa in the first days of August 1941, they also did not cause the Elder the slightest violence. In Vyritsa, a family of summer residents, admirers of the Elder, also fell “under the Germans”. At that time Fr. Barnabas long ago, from the beginning of the illness that chained him to the chair, accepted the schema with the name Seraphim.
Batiushka was sagacious and told his visitors their future for many years to come. He announced the date of the end of the war, and whose victory would be, and spoke about this to many. Then not everyone liked it, as some expected the Germans to be released from the "Babylonian captivity." But Father knew the will of God...
When the Novodevichy Convent was closed, Father's granddaughter, Margarita, returned home. Her further fate is unknown, but before the war she visited Vyritsa.
The area around the cottage about. Seraphim was a corner of an untouched pine forest, and on one pine, at the direction of the Father, an icon of the Monk Seraphim was arranged. Batiushka called this corner "Sarov" and sent visitors to pray to this pine tree with the image of the Reverend. Batiushka also managed to preserve a wonderful image of St. Blessed Prince. Alexander Nevsky with a particle of his relics, which used to be in the cathedral. When the temple at the Theological Academy was opened, this icon was transferred from Vyritsa to it, and after, when the Lavra Trinity Cathedral was opened, it was transferred there. Now she is on that elevation, where the relics of St. are good. prince.
Personally, Father Seraphim predicted my future for me 23 years before his prophetic words came true. I went to the Elder as to the sun, in the midst of the darkness of the languor of those years. Around - untouched pine forest; aroma, silence, no crowds; as if time had stopped. Batiushka was affectionate, almost tender, and somehow surprisingly resembled the Reverend Seraphim. He died in 1949. I was in the Yakutsk camps; they wrote to me. He died on April 3, and was buried on the Annunciation. So many people gathered for the burial that there were not enough trains. People did not leave the station in Petrograd, they demanded additional trains, and they were given! It was not a funeral, but a city-wide great, victorious celebration!..” (December 1991)
Mother Khristina (Olga Ivanovna Muravyova, nee Naydenova) reposed in the Lord as schema-nun Seraphim in 1945. She is buried in the village. Vyritsa near the Kazan Church, where he served about Alexy Kabardin, famous for baptizing the royal children and being their confessor, for which he received a term, but still survived, got out. Granddaughter of Serafima Margarita Nikolaevna is now over 70 years old.
Once a spiritual son asked the Elder a question about the future of Russia. “There will come a time,” he answered, “when there will be an extraordinary flowering in Russia. Many churches and monasteries will open, even foreigners will come to us to be baptized. But this is not for long, for 15 years, then the Antichrist will come.”
Nun Taisiya. Hieromonk Seraphim // St. Petersburg Diocesan Gazette. 1990, no. 1-2, p. 35
Hieromonk Seraphim Vyritsky (Muravyov, 1865-1949).
[an article from a series on the history of prophecy].
Letter:
“Not long ago at one Orthodox forum I read:
"Author: Eugene.
From the prophecies of Seraphim Vyritsky:
“The time will come when not persecution, but money and the charms of this world will turn people away from God and many more souls will perish than in the days of open rebellion,” said the priest, “on the one hand, they will erect crosses and gild domes, and on the other hand, the kingdom of lies and evil will come. The true Church will always be persecuted, and it will be possible to be saved only by sorrows and illnesses. Persecution will take the most sophisticated, unpredictable character. It will be terrible to live up to these times. We, thank God, will not live, but then from the Kazan Cathedral will go procession to the Alexander Nevsky Lavra.
The citywide festive procession along Nevsky Prospekt, established back in 1743 by Empress Elizaveta Petrovna, daughter of Peter I, took place in St. Petersburg on September 12, 2013. It marked the beginning of the celebrations dedicated to the 300th anniversary of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra.
In the morning, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Rus' served a liturgy at the Holy Trinity Cathedral, after which the citywide religious procession took place along Nevsky Prospekt from Kazan Cathedral to Alexander Nevsky Square. In the evening, a festive concert with fireworks was held in the Metropolitan Garden of the Lavra.
It turns out that new persecutions of Orthodoxy will soon begin?”
If it is not in your book, this does not mean that the reverend did not say such things. Who needed to fake it and why? This is not the first time I have come across these words.
In the book of Valery Filimonov: "But deliver us from the evil one" of the 2000s, this passage is given with words about the procession. As far as I know, Valery Pavlovich was collecting data on the life of St. Seraphim. In any case, everything else from this passage is already coming true.
Tamara Nikolaevna, what can you say about this?
Answer:
Sometimes you can find references that during the years of the Patriotic War during the occupation of Vyritsa (1941-1944), Hieroschemamonk Seraphim (Muravyov) repeated the feat of the Monk Seraphim of Sarov - he stood on a stone for a thousand days and nights, begging for victory.
[Historical reference:
Seraphim Vyritsky (monastic vows Barnabas, in the world Vasily Nikolaevich Muravyov, 1866-1949) – hieroschemamonk of Russia Orthodox Church, an old man and a seer.
Before the revolution of 1917, he was a very large fur trader, a merchant of the 2nd guild.
In 1920, he submitted a petition to the Spiritual Cathedral of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra to be accepted into the ranks of the brethren, to which he received consent, was accepted as a novice and received the obedience of a sacristan.
On October 29, 1920, he was tonsured a monk with the name Barnabas.
On September 11, 1921, he was ordained a hieromonk by Metropolitan Veniamin (Kazan).
At the end of 1926, Father Barnabas took the schema under the name of Seraphim (in honor of Seraphim of Sarov) and became the confessor of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra.
In 1933 he moved to the village of Vyritsa, where he lived until his death. Moved to the old man and his ex-wife, who accepted the monastic feat (she died in 1945).
Soon, a stream of pilgrims from Vyritsa, the northern capital and other cities rushed to the elder for consolation, blessing, and advice. Since 1935, the nun Joanna (Vera Shikhobalova, 1869-1944) helped the Muravyov family as a housekeeper.
At the end of his life, the cell-attendant Seraphim helped the elder].
* * *
Anna Sergeevna Igovskaya (1907-1994), who personally knew Elder Seraphim, sent me her short “Memories” about him in a letter in 1992:
“Father Seraphim Vyritsky was a merchant. When the rout of the monastics of the city of Petrov came, on the night of February 18, 1932, he was already an elder of about seventy. He entered monasticism with his wife, already having one son. Husband and wife went to monasteries under the influence and blessing of Father Barnabas of Gethsemane [see ch. history help].
Father Seraphim's name in Holy Baptism was Basil, and in tonsure he took the name Barnabas, in honor of his spiritual father. His wife was tonsured with the name of Christina. Father Varnava entered the Alexander Nevsky Lavra in St. Petersburg, and his wife entered the Novodevichy Convent in the same city. Their son married, and gave his daughter to a monastery under the guidance of a grandmother. This girl was of extraordinary beauty and wore the uniform of a novice in the monastery with a headdress adopted in this monastery.
Father Barnabas worked behind a candle box. When, after the murder of Metropolitan Veniamin, churches began to be taken away in the Lavra in order to preserve the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, they began to serve in it in the winter as well. The cathedral was not heated. The cold there was terrible. The candle box was located near the entrance doors, and Father Barnabas caught a cold for the rest of his life: intercostal neuralgia. He could neither stand nor lie down, but only sit reclining in an armchair. So he “sat” for 17 years.
When they came to him in his cell to arrest him, they could not "take" him. He was the only one not taken away from the monastics that night. The next morning, admirers hastily took him to Vyritsa in a passenger car. And the authorities "forgot" about him. The father was placed in a private dacha. On the top floor lived two old ladies. In the lower - Father and Mother Christina. She did not fall under arrest, since since Father Barnabas fell ill, she lived in his cell and looked after him. They didn't take her. And in Vyritsa she lived calmly until her death.
When the Germans occupied Vyritsa in the first days of August 1941, they also did not cause the Elder the slightest violence. In Vyritsa, a family of summer residents, admirers of the Elder, also fell “under the Germans”. At that time, Father Barnabas had long ago, since the onset of the illness that chained him to the chair, accepted the schema with the name Seraphim. There was no question of any "standing" on the knees for 1000 days. This is a pious fiction, but a fiction nonetheless.
Batiushka was distinguished by his perspicacity and told his visitors their future for many years to come. He also knew the date of the end of the war, and whose victory would be, and spoke about this to many. Then not everyone liked it, as some expected the Germans to be released from the "Babylonian captivity." But Father knew the will of God. When the Novodevichy Convent was closed, Father's granddaughter, Margarita, returned home. Her further fate is unknown, but before the war she visited Vyritsa.
The area around the cottage about. Seraphim was a corner of an untouched pine forest, and on one pine, at the direction of the Father, an icon of the Monk Seraphim was arranged. Batiushka called this corner "Sarov" and sent visitors to pray to this pine tree with the image of the Reverend. Batiushka also managed to preserve a wonderful image of the Holy Good. Prince Alexander Nevsky with a particle of his relics, which used to be in the cathedral. When the temple was opened at the Theological Academy, this icon was transferred from Vyritsa to it, and after, when the Lavra Trinity Cathedral was opened, it was transferred there. Now she is on that dais where the relics of the Holy Blessed Prince are.
I do not know about the prophecies about the fate of Russia, but Father Seraphim personally predicted my future to me 23 years before his prophetic words came true. I went to the Elder as to the sun, in the midst of the darkness of the languor of those years. Around - untouched pine forest; aroma, silence, no crowds; as if time had stopped. Batiushka was affectionate, almost tender, and somehow surprisingly resembled the Reverend Seraphim. He died in 1949. I was at that time in the Yakutsk camps, they wrote to me about his death. He died on April 3, and was buried on the Annunciation.
Mother Khristina (Olga Ivanovna Muravyova, nee Naydenova) reposed in the Lord as schema nun Seraphim in 1945. She is buried in the village. Vyritsa near the Kazan Church, where he served about Alexy Kabardin, famous for baptizing the royal children and being their confessor, for which he received a term, but still survived, got out.
[Historical reference:
“Barnabas of Gethsemane (Merkulov Vasily Ilyich, 1831-1906), hieromonk, elder of the Gethsemane skete of the Holy Trinity St. Sergius Lavra. From the serfs of the landowner Yushkov, he was tonsured a monk in the Vyksa monastery. In 1851, Vasily became the cell-attendant of the elder Gerontius (in the schema of Gregory). With the blessing of the latter, in 1857 he was accepted as a novice at the Gethsemane Skete.
In 1866. tonsured a monk with a name in honor of St. Barnabas, on next year ordained hieromonk.
According to legend, he predicted the persecution and revival of the Russian Church in the 20th century:
“The persecutors against the faith will constantly increase. Unheard-of grief and darkness will cover everything and everyone, and the temples will be closed. But when it becomes unbearable to endure, then liberation will come ... Temples will be erected again. Before the end there will be a flowering.
* * *
Probably, earlier these same “Memoirs” by A.S. Igovskaya served as material for the journalist Alexander Nikolaevich Novikov in writing an article dedicated to Vasily Nikolaevich Muravyov:
“Father Seraphim was from the merchant rank. When the rout of the monastics of the city of Petrov came, on the night of February 18, 1932, he was already an elder of sixty-six years. He entered monasticism with his wife. Husband and wife went to monasteries under the influence and blessing of Father Barnabas of Gethsemane. Name about. Seraphim in Holy Baptism was Basil, and in tonsure he took the name of Barnabas. His wife was tonsured with the name of Christina. Father Varnava entered the Alexander Nevsky Lavra in St. Petersburg, and his wife entered the Novodevichy Convent in the same city.
Father Barnabas worked behind a candle box. When, after the murder of Metropolitan Veniamin, churches began to be taken away in the Lavra in order to preserve the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, they began to serve in it in the winter as well. The cathedral was not heated. The cold there was terrible. The candle box was located near the entrance doors, and Fr. Barnabas caught a cold for the rest of his life: intercostal neuralgia. He could neither stand nor lie down, but only sit reclining in an armchair. So he “sat” for 17 years.
When they came to him in his cell to arrest him, they could not "take" him. He was the only one not taken away from the monastics that night. The next morning, admirers hastily took him to Vyritsa in a passenger car. The father was placed in a private dacha. On the top floor lived two old ladies. In the lower - Father and m. Khristina. She was not arrested, since since Fr. Barnabas fell ill, lived in his cells and looked after him.
In 1941, in Vyritsa, he fell "under the Germans." At that time Fr. Barnabas took the schema with the name Seraphim. Batiushka was sagacious and told his visitors their future for many years to come. He also knew the date of the end of the war, and whose victory would be, and spoke about this to many.
Once a spiritual son asked the Elder a question about the future of Russia.
“There will come a time,” he replied, “when there will be an extraordinary flowering in Russia. Many churches and monasteries will open, even foreigners will come to us to be baptized. But this is not for long, for 15 years, then the Antichrist will come” […]” (A.N. Novikov “The Righteous and Ascetic Life of Seraphim Vyritsky (1865-1949)”, “St. Petersburg Diocesan Gazette”, 1990, No. 1, p. 35).
* * *
“Many countries will take up arms against Russia, but she will stand, having lost most of her lands. This war, about which the Holy Scriptures and the prophets narrate, will be the cause of the unification of mankind. People will understand that it is impossible to live like this, otherwise all living things will perish, and they will choose a single government - this will be the threshold of the accession of the Antichrist. Then persecution of Christians will come, when trains leave for Russia from the Far Eastern cities, we must hurry, since many of those who remain will die. Numerous heresies will tear Russia apart, and only a few who will try not only to be Christians in name, but at least to understand holy gospel. For true believers, this will be a Sign, do not rush to rejoice. The alleged new flourishing of the Church will soon be followed by new ordeals for Russia. For the numerous sins of her peoples will testify against her in the eyes of the Lord, and none of the saints will be able to intercede for her, for her sins are great […]” (A.N. Novikov “The Righteous and Ascetic Life of Seraphim Vyritsky (1865-1949)”, “St. Petersburg Diocesan Gazette”, No. 2, p. 56, 1990).
* * *
Later A.N. Novikov, without pointing to the sources of his information, developed the "prophetic heritage" of the elder Seraphim Vyritsky:
“The time will come when not the persecution of the atheists, but the money and charms of this world will turn people away from God and from the Church, and many more souls will perish than in times of open theomachism. On the one hand, crosses will be erected, and the domes of churches will be gilded, and satanic stars will be removed from the facades of many institutions, and on the other, a great kingdom of lies, deceit and evil will come. The true Church of the Lord will always be persecuted, for it truthfully denounced human sores, and it will be possible to be saved only by sorrows and illnesses. Persecution will take the most sophisticated, unpredictable character. It will be terrible to live up to these times, because any concept of morality will disappear. What will be evil, people will begin to call good and sincerely believe in it, and what will be good, they will call evil and will curse anyone who does good.
The first hierarchs of the Church will act not as saviors and healers of souls, but as the first persecutors of the true believers. For the sake of their earthly well-being, they will enter into an agreement with the godless authorities. Lists of true believers will be compiled and these lists will be handed over to the authorities. We, thank God, will not live to see this atrocity, we will not drink the cup of bitter shame for the Church, but at the same time, religious processions will go from the Kazan Cathedral to the Alexander Nevsky Lavra […]
Do not believe more than one word of the authorities, everywhere one hypocrisy. Pursue hypocrisy in yourself, drive it out of yourself, evade the masses infected by it, acting both intentionally and unconsciously in its direction, covering the search for temporal blessings with the search for eternal blessings, covering the vicious life and the soul wholly devoted to passions with the guise of holiness.
Are you asking what to do?
Rely on the providence of God. Today we only bear the name of Christians, and in deeds and deeds we are far from the first disciples of the Apostles, from the outside it is even creepy to look at our moral debauchery. There is nothing sacred in Russia […]
In July 1918, the fighters killed the Anointed of God and his family, the time will come when they will again want to repeat their atrocities. Who can resist them, only God. God changed his definitions, announced through the holy prophets, such as the prophecy of Jonah about the Ninevites, Elijah about Ahab, Isaiah about Hezekiah. Whoever has given himself and everything to the will of God does not need to know anything in advance. The Lord changed anger to mercy after individuals or a whole people humbled themselves before Him, left a sinful life and embarked on the path of repentance. If Russians, all over the world, every single person at the same time would kneel and pray to God for at least five minutes to prolong life for Russia, so that the Lord would give everyone time to repent. Russia would have been saved. The Lord would have heard them and prevented the impending atrocity [...]
No one can defeat us in an open battle, we ourselves forge fetters against each other and exterminate ourselves for the amusement of others. Many countries will take up arms against Russia when she accepts the last Russian Tsar, but she will stand, having lost most of her lands. This is the war that tells Holy Bible and the prophets, will be the cause of the unification of mankind. People will understand that it is impossible to live like this any longer, otherwise all living things will perish. And then they will choose a single government, it will be the reign of the Antichrist […]
When the East gains strength, everything will become unsustainable. The number is on their side, but not only that, sober and hardworking people work for them. And we have such drunkenness [...]
The time will come when Russia will be torn apart. First they will divide it, and then they will begin to rob wealth. The West will contribute in every possible way to the destruction of Russia and will give up its eastern part to China until the time comes. The Japanese will seize the Far East, and the Chinese will seize Siberia, some will move to Russia, marry Russians, and in the end, by cunning and deceit, they will take the territory of Siberia to the Urals. Then the persecution of Christians in the Far East will come, when trains will leave for Russia from the cities of Primorye, we must hurry to be among the first, since many of those who remain will die. When China wishes to go further, the West will oppose and will not allow […]” (A.N. Novikov “Elder Hieroschemamonk Seraphim Vyritsky”, “Derzhavnaya Rus”, No. 2, pp. 45-52, 1993).
Note under the article:
“The elder said that before the end, many people would come to St. Petersburg and Vyritsa - this is a special place chosen by God. Three monasteries will be opened here”
[Historical reference:
"Rus Derzhavnaya" is a Russian monthly Orthodox-patriotic newspaper (published with the subtitle "Orthodox People's Newspaper").
As an epigraph on the front page of the publication are the words of Seraphim of Sarov: "... the Lord will have mercy on Russia and lead her through suffering to great glory."
Founded in 1993 by Andrei Pechersky, a journalist for the Pravda newspaper].
* * *
All further publications of the prophecies of the elder hieroschemamonk Seraphim Vyritsky, including the collection-reference book on the Patriotic history of prophecies “Russia before the Second Coming” (compiled by S.V. Fomin, Trinity-Sergius Lavra Publishing House, 1993) and Valery Pavlovich Filimonov’s book “But deliver us from the evil one” (2000), there are reprints of excerpts from the articles of A.N. Novikov “The Righteous and Ascetic Life of Seraphim Vyritsky (1865-1949)” (“St. Petersburg Diocesan Gazette”, No. 1-2, 1990) and “Elder Hieroschemamonk Seraphim Vyritsky” (“Derzhavnaya Rus”, No. 2, 1993).
What does the first article for 1990 have to do with the passage: “Thank God, we will not live to see this atrocity, we will not drink the cup of bitter shame for the Church, but at the same time, religious processions will go from the Kazan Cathedral to the Alexander Nevsky Lavra [...]”, indeed, no.
This passage appeared only in 1993, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, when the name was changed, and the historical name of St. Petersburg was returned to the city on the Neva, and "patriotic" believers began to demand the resumption of religious processions.
However, can Alexander Nikolayevich be trusted unconditionally?
Unfortunately, you can't.
Subject real existence The prophecies then captured Alexander Nikolayevich so much that he published at least two more articles in 1991-1992, including the “prophecies” of the Great White Brotherhood. The topic of the near future was probably in great demand, the Russian public, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, had a demand for prophecies, and the journalist did not have time to understand their reliability.
[Historical reference:
The Great White Brotherhood "USMALOS" (more common name in the media: White Brotherhood) is a new religious movement of the eschatological direction.
Founded in 1990-1991 in Kyiv by a specialist in the field of mental influence on personality Yuri Krivonogov and a native of Donetsk Maria Mamonova (Tsvigun). The leader of the organization is Yu.A. Krivonogov, took the ritual name of Yuoann Swami (Saint John, that is, the Baptist), M.V. Tsvigun - took the ritual name Maria Devi Khristos, declaring herself the Virgin Mary. Mamonova also stated that she had seen God and was entrusted with a special mission.
The name of the organization "White Brotherhood" is borrowed from the teachings of Helena Pavlovna Blavatsky. The name "YUSMALOS" is an abbreviation: YUS - "Yuoani Swami", MA - "Mary Devi Christ", LOS - logos. Supporters of the "White Brotherhood" preached about the appearance on Earth of the "Mother of the World" Tsvigun and the imminent the Last Judgment, the date of which, at the insistence of Yuri Krivonogov, was announced on November 24, 1993.
At the end of 1991, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyiv Patriarchate came out with sharp criticism of the “Great White Brotherhood of Yusmalos”. Maria Devi Khristos is anathematized, she is declared an impostor.
On November 10, 1993, on the last day of the decade of repentance declared by the “Great White Brotherhood of Yusmalos”, M. Tsvigun and several dozen members of the White Brotherhood tried to seize St. Sophia Cathedral in Kiev and hold their prayer service there. The capture attempt was stopped by the police officers, Tsvigun and Krivonogov were detained.
In 1996, Tsvigun was sentenced to 4 years in a penal colony, the formal head of the sect, John Peter II, to 5 years, and Krivonogov, to 6 years. Even during the investigation, Tsvigun deprived Yuri Krivonogov of his spiritual dignity, declaring him a traitor who performed his dark role next to her, similar to the one played by Judas, who betrayed Jesus Christ. Krivonogov himself, after his release in 2000, publicly admitted the fallacy of his "prophecies" and stated that he no longer believed in Tsvigun as the "Mother of the World" and "Maria Devi Christ".
In 1997, Tsvigun was released. She restores the "Great White Brotherhood of Yusmalos".
From 1998 to 2001, attempts were made to officially register religious community"Great White Brotherhood Yusmalos" in Ukraine, but the Committee on Religious Affairs refused.
Since 2006, Tsvigun has moved the center of his activities to Moscow. She changed her first and last name to "Victoria Preobrazhenskaya". Under this name, she founded the multi-level “Space polyart of the Third Millennium” (combining spiritual painting, graphics, poetry, music, dance), created the “Victoria Preobrazhenskaya Mystery Theater” and the “Victoria Preobrazhenskaya Creative Workshop”, holds exhibitions of her paintings, writes poetry and music, publishes poetry and literary collections].
Thus, the Ukrainian "prophets" from the Great White Brotherhood themselves publicly admitted the fallacy of their "prophecies", but Alexander Nikolayevich managed to write about them.
Therefore, let us hope that, having historically accurately published the autobiography of Elder Seraphim of Vyritsky (in vows Barnabas, in the world Vasily Nikolayevich Muravyov, 1866-1949), Alexander Nikolayevich did not allow too many "pious inventions" in terms of prophecies, although with a feat in the style of St. Seraphim of Sarov - to stand on a stone for a thousand days and nights, begging for victory, wheelchair, - obviously went too far.
* * *
Subsequently, other writers professing the apostasy role of Russia joined the "prophetic legacy" of Hieroschemamonk Seraphim Vyritsky:
“How much the Lord gave grace to Russia - what forests, lakes, rivers, rich bowels of the earth. But we lived and live without God, and the earth is a mother, it gives bread and life. Our enemies and the God-fighting authorities will not allow people to return to the earth for a long time. To give people land in Russia means to give them freedom. It is possible to feed everyone and arrange everything, but it is not profitable for the enemies - they are afraid of a free, reborn Russia. And yet Russia will live from her land […]
Now there will be peace, but only in form, not in reality. Disasters will then be the same as during the war. And the Lord will pour out a spirit of deceit upon them, and they will want what they do not need, and they will not want what they really need. Again bell ringing will go across Russia and the double-headed eagle will return to the Kremlin towers, and a monastery will be founded in Vyritsa. The theomachists will lose power, but Russia will be divided for our sins. They will no longer love this world that is around us, this incomparable creation of the Lord. But this is not the end yet, the Lord will once again send trials for us. Will we understand it? Shall we follow his path? The Lord is able to restore laborers if we ask. Let us pray and ask, and then the Lord will restore His chosen ones from stones […]
Salvation of the world - from Russia, and St. Petersburg will become the spiritual center of the country. There will also be great events in Russia - the discovery and glorification of the relics in St. Petersburg - a great joy for the whole world. Vyritsa will be a place of pilgrimage, and a monastery will be opened here […]
The time will come ... when the corruption and decadence of the morals of the young will reach the last limits. Almost no uncorrupted will remain. They will believe that everything is permitted to them to satisfy whims and lusts, because they will see their impunity. They will gather in companies, gangs, they will steal, debauchery. But the time will come when the voice of God will come, when the youth will understand that it is impossible to live like this any longer, and they will go to faith in different ways, the craving for asceticism will increase. Those who were previously sinners, drunkards, will fill the churches, feel a great attraction to spiritual life, many of them will become monks, open monasteries, churches will be full of believers - and most of them will be young people ...
The fact that they sin now, they will repent so fervently. Just as a candle, before it goes out, flares brightly, illuminating everything with its last light, so the life of the Church, before its very end, will flare up with the bright light of Divine grace. And this time is near […]” (Archpriest Vasily Shvets “Memories of Vyritsa and Elder Seraphim”, “Orthodox Rus'”, No. 8, pp. 7-8, 1993).
[Historical reference:
Pravoslavnaya Rus is the newspaper of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia. From 1928 to 1934, it was published as a weekly church-public newspaper "Orthodox Carpathian Rus", the executive editor was Vsevolod Vladimirovich Kolomatsky. Distributed in 48 states.
Since 1935, the newspaper began to be published under the name "Orthodox Rus'" under the editorship of the monk Alexei (Dekhterev). The editors set the following goals: strengthening the Orthodox church self-awareness of Russian emigrants, telling about spiritual treasures Orthodox faith, informing readers about the church life of the Russian Diaspora, the fight against militant atheism, upholding the church-wide unification of the entire Russian Diaspora.
last number" Orthodox Rus'"of the Slovak period was released in Bratislava on October 22, 1944.
After the majority of the brethren of the Holy Trinity Monastery of St. Job of Pochaev moved to Jordanville, the publication of the journal resumed there. The first issue was published in the USA on January 31, 1947. In 1949, priest Kirill Zaitsev arrived in Jordanville, later Archimandrite Konstantin, who headed the editorial office of Orthodox Rus'. He led the publication for 30 years.
From 1988 to 2001, he headed the editorial office of the publishing house "Orthodox Rus'" teacher of the Holy Trinity Theological Seminary A.V. Psarev].
* * *
“There are forces on earth that hate Rus'. Blessed Rus', which adopted in its infancy the foolishness of the cross, preserved in the depths of its immense soul the image of Christ Crucified and carrying it in the heart the true light of the world. These forces hate Holy Rus', which has always lived in a premonition of what is above, first of all, it has sought the Kingdom of God and its righteousness and has been in living communion with heaven. In Russia the sky was inseparable from the earth. The Saint of Rus' always knew that the main goal for him was the acquisition of heavenly blessings. And the evil forces will destroy this person in Russia, taking him away from God. And then they will calm down, deciding that Russia is finished. But Russia, relying on the holy truths of the Orthodox faith, will be reborn. There will be ascetics who will rise up to fight against principalities, against authorities, against spirits of wickedness in high places […]
I remember how Father told me: "Look out the window."
I went to the window - there are trees, houses can be seen behind them. And suddenly everything seemed to blur - and a view of the Gulf of Finland opened up, the waters of which were filled with many ships with multi-colored flags.
"What do you see?"
"Ships, father, there are many ships on the Gulf of Finland."
"And how many are there?"
"Is it possible to count?"
"One thousand six hundred. The time will come when there will be a spiritual flowering in Russia. Many churches and monasteries will open. Pagans and unbelievers will arrive in Russia on such ships to be baptized. For through Russia the light of the world will shine. Many will come to pray, admire the Russian land, touch its shrines - and all this will come true. And such grace will be given that people will turn to God, and their hearts will be opened, and their minds will be enlightened - and all this is the gift of the Lord. But this is not for long - for fifteen years, then the Antichrist will come [...] ”(Archpriest Vasily Shvets, “Memoirs of Vyritsa and Elder Seraphim”, “Derzhavnaya Rus”, No. 6, 1994).
Unfortunately, Archpriest Vasily Shvets did not share the sources from which he drew his information about the “prophetic words” of Elder Seraphim Vyritsky.
Let us not forget that the preservation of prophecy has never been the responsibility of Orthodox priests. The first efforts in this regard began to be made only after 1884 by the Supreme Church Authority in the form of periodically appearing instructions “On the collection and proper storage on the ground in the diocesan archives of the prophecies of blessed husbands and wives” (1884, 1888, 1896, 1902). But in practice they were little guided in Everyday life, since the very "circumstances of the time" and the conditions of church life of those days invariably nullified all these "good undertakings" of the Church leadership.
Since 1917, the situation has changed dramatically.
It is known that many (if not all) bishops, after 1920, taught by the bitter experience of administrative activity, deliberately, “for the sake of fear” of the Cheka and the GPU, systematically destroyed all the papers that came into their hands, as soon as the practical need had passed, and also each, according to “his own discretion”, “cleaned” the archives “just in case”.
Therefore, the preservation of the prophecies was carried out only thanks to the ingenious practice of the Russian people (and this should be especially noted and emphasized). Since it was impossible to print openly, the prophecies were distributed among the population in copies or in lists through Samizdat. This event, which arose spontaneously as a replacement for the complete absence of any kind of printing at all, helped a lot to penetrate the main prophecies into wide circles of believers.
True, this should also be noted, sometimes with a certain number of “additions”, or as Anna Sergeevna Igovskaya (1907-1994) wrote:
“At that time, Father Barnabas long ago, from the onset of the illness that chained him to the chair, accepted the schema with the name Seraphim. There was no question of any "standing" on the knees for 1000 days. It's a pious fiction, but a fiction nonetheless."
Therefore, the phrase of Hieroschemamonk Seraphim Vyritsky: “We, thank God, will not live to see this atrocity, we will not drink the cup of bitter shame for the Church, but at the same time, processions will go from the Kazan Cathedral to the Alexander Nevsky Lavra” - this is also, most likely, a pious fiction, because in the first article of the journalist A.N. Novikov "The Righteous and Ascetic Life of Seraphim Vyritsky (1865-1949)" ("St. Petersburg Diocesan Gazette", 1990, No. 1, p. 35) - it is not. This phrase appeared in the text only in 1993 due to the "pious intention" to strengthen the "prophetic" part of the text.
* * *
Saint St. Seraphim Vyritsky possessed an undoubted prophetic gift.
Elder's prediction in 1927, the patriarchal ministry to Archbishop Alexy (Simansky) of Khutyn and the approaching cruel persecution; the prophecies of the ascetic about the coming Great Patriotic War and the victory of our weapons in it; foresight about. Seraphim of the death of Fr. Alexy Kibardin fifteen years after his own, as well as the exact insight into the fate of many people, have now become indisputable facts.
Deeply prophetic are the lines written by the elder in 1939. poems "A thunderstorm will pass over the Russian land ..."
"A thunderstorm will pass over the Russian land,
The Lord will forgive the Russian people their sins
And the holy cross of divine beauty
On the temples of God it will again shine brightly.
And the ringing of bells throughout our Holy Rus'
From sinful sleep to salvation will awaken,
The holy cloisters will be opened again,
And faith in God will unite everyone."
During the years of bloody persecution, when it seemed that the Church was doomed to a speedy and complete annihilation, Fr. Seraphim spoke openly about her coming rebirth. Talked about. Seraphim about the revival of specific monasteries - the Holy Trinity Sergius Lavra, Diveev, etc. It is noteworthy that, predicting the restoration of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra, the elder said that at first the state would return the Holy Trinity Cathedral to the Church as a parish church, and only then, after many years, the entire Lavra would be transferred to monastics. The priest also predicted that in time a monastery would also be founded in Vyritsa, and Leningrad would be renamed St. Petersburg again.
Was talking about. Seraphim, that the time will come when Orthodox radio stations will operate in Moscow, St. Petersburg and a number of other cities of Russia, in the transmissions of which one can hear soulful edifications, prayers and church hymns ...
Relatives and close spiritual children of Fr. Seraphim note that not everything was seen by the elder in rainbow colors.
"The time will come when not persecution, but money and the charms of this world will turn people away from God and many more souls will perish than in times of open rebellion,- said the father, - on the one hand, crosses will be erected and domes gilded, and on the other hand, the kingdom of lies and evil will come. The true Church will always be persecuted, and it will be possible to be saved only by sorrows and illnesses. Persecution will take the most sophisticated, unpredictable character. It will be terrible to live up to these times. We, thank God, will not live to see it, but then a religious procession will go from the Kazan Cathedral to the Alexander Nevsky Lavra.
In a number of predictions of the Vyritsky elder, there are very disturbing notes. "If the Russian people do not come to repentance," the priest said, "it may happen that brother will rise again against brother".
Several important predictions about. Seraphim of Vyritsky was recorded by Maria Georgievna Preobrazhenskaya, niece of Vladyka Theophan of Poltava.
It was right after the war. I sang in the kliros of the Peter and Paul Church in the village of Vyritsa. Often, with the singers from our church, we approached Fr. Seraphim for blessing. Once one of the singers said: "Dear father! How good it is now - the war is over, the bells in the churches rang again ..." And the elder answered this: "No, that's not all. There will still be more fear than before. You will meet her again. It will be very difficult for young people to change their uniforms. Who will only survive? ..."
After a short pause, the priest again said thoughtfully: “If people from all over the world, every single person (again, as if in a singsong voice, the elder repeated these words several times), at the same time would kneel and pray to God for at least five minutes to prolong their lives, so that the Lord would grant everyone time to repent…”
The Vyritsky elder has repeatedly said that Russia has a priceless treasure - it is the guardian of the holy Orthodox faith. True enlightenment is the enlightenment of the soul with the light of Orthodoxy. Not the prosperous West, where the ultimate goal of all things is the earthly well-being of man, but Rus', blessed Rus', which in its infancy accepted the foolishness of the Cross, preserved in the depths of its immense soul the image of Christ Crucified and carries it in its heart, is the true light of the world. That Holy Rus', which has always lived in anticipation of the heavenly, first of all sought the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and was in living communion with heaven. The eternal strength and beauty of Orthodoxy lies in the wonderful unity of the heavenly and the earthly.
Nun Seraphim (Morozova) recalled how the elder, describing one of his spiritual contemplations, told her:
"I have visited all countries. I have not found better than our country and I have not seen better than our faith. Our faith is above all. This is the Orthodox, true faith. Of all the known creeds, it alone was brought to earth by the incarnated Son of God. I ask you, mother Seraphim, to tell everyone that no one deviates from our faith ... "
Combining his breath with the sweetest name of Jesus, Father Seraphim saw in mental prayer an invaluable means for acquiring peace of mind and salvation:
“In the most difficult times, it will be convenient to be saved who, to the best of his ability, begins to strive in the Jesus Prayer, ascending from the frequent invocation of the name of the Son of God to unceasing prayer.”
Vyritsky elder advised to read the prayer of St. Ephrem the Syrian "Lord and Master of my life..." “In this prayer is the whole essence of Orthodoxy, the whole Gospel. With it we ask the Lord for help in acquiring the properties of a new person,” said the priest. The sin of condemnation Seraphim called one of the greatest spiritual ailments of our time. "We have the right to judge only ourselves. Even talking about a person, we already involuntarily condemn him"- said the Vyritsky elder.
Father Seraphim was deeply convinced that a person should prepare himself for Eternity. At the same time, the elder strongly advised not to accept any visions, phenomena and voices from the spiritual world, and he himself carefully concealed his supernatural gifts from people, never performing miracles or feats for show. "Carnal, sinful people are not worthy to see angels and saints. They tend to communicate only with fallen dark spirits, which, as a rule, becomes the cause of death. Let us pray that the Lord deliver us from the temptations of the evil one,"- Father Seraphim edified his neighbors.
Vyritsky ascetic with his life answered many questions that concern those who seek salvation in the modern stormy world. For many years, Fr. Seraphim through an imperceptible, everyday feat. This is a feat hidden from prying eyes, performed in inner solitude, where there is no place for excitement and irritability, despondency and despair. This is a daily feat of active repentance, fasting and prayer; a feat of real and feasible deeds performed for Christ's sake and in the name of love for one's neighbors. This is a quiet, but firm standing in faith, which requires much more courage than momentary ardor and the loudest exploits and miracles. Where passions rage, there is no place for the grace-filled peace of Christ.
Summarizing the words of the ancient fathers about the ascetics of the last time, St. Ignatius Brianchaninov writes: “Those who in truth will work for God, prudently hide themselves from people and will not perform signs and wonders among them ... They will go the way of doing, dissolved by humility, and in the Kingdom of Heaven they will turn out to be great fathers, glorified signs." Walking in this way - by doing, diluted with humility, St. Seraphim Vyritsky reached the heights of asceticism, becoming like his mentors and heavenly patrons - St. Seraphim of Sarov and Barnabas of Gethsemane.
Father Seraphim, pray to God for us sinners!