The Optina Desert and its Era

The Optina Desert and its Era
Author: Ivan Kontsevich
Publisher: Vladimir Djambov
Total Pages: 555
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Genre: Religion
ISBN:
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“Wealth without work Pleasure without conscience Science without humanity Knowledge without character Politics without principle Commerce without morality Worship without sacrifice. https://vidjambov.blogspot.com/2023/01/book-inventory-vladimir-djambov-talmach.html Together with Christianity, the spiritual work of the ancient Egyptian hermits was also transferred to Russia, which subsequently developed among monasticism in the Byzantine Empire for more than 1000 years of its existence. In the XV century, when Russia lost touch with the Christian East, due to the invasion of the Turks, this inner work was forgotten. And when at the end of the XVIII century he was revived in Moldova by the Archdiocese Paisy Velichkovsky, it is a work that many seemed like an unprecedented innovation. Since its penetration into Russia, Optina Pustyn has been the main focus of this feat and the associated old age. In Optina, it was transmitted for about 100 years from generation to generation and was interrupted only with the defeat of this monastery by the Bolsheviks. I devoted my whole life to this topic. When at the Theological Academy I had to choose a topic for my candidate essay, I wanted to write about Optina Desert and its elders. For a candidate's essay, it is necessary to study all the literature on this topic. When I studied it, I saw that the question of the essence of old age was not completely covered in theological science. Moreover, there were incorrect and conflicting opinions. There was not even a definition of the concept of old age. Therefore, I started from the very beginning: with an explanation of spiritual work and its occurrence in history, and in particular in the spiritual life of our people, since the spiritual life of the people is connected with the spiritual life of monasticism. The fruit of this was my book "Gaining of the Holy Spirit in the ways of ancient Russia." It expresses the Orthodox worldview with a historical perspective. But this book only serves as an introduction to the main theme.

Elders and Soothsayers of the Optina Desert

Elders and Soothsayers of the Optina Desert
Author: Optina Elders Leo, Macarius, Moses, Anthony, Hilarion, Ambrose, Anatoly the Elder, Isaac I, Joseph, Barsanuphius, Anatoly the Younger, Nectarios, Nikon, and Isaac II
Publisher: Vladimir Djambov
Total Pages: 325
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Genre: Religion
ISBN:
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“Wealth without work Pleasure without conscience Science without humanity Knowledge without character Politics without principle Commerce without morality Worship without sacrifice. https://vidjambov.blogspot.com/2023/01/book-inventory-vladimir-djambov-talmach.html If you do any mercy to anyone, you will be pardoned for that. If you suffer with a suffering person (it is not great, it seems, this is) - you are numbered as martyrs. If you forgive the offender, for this all your sins will be forgiven. Advice and guidance from Moses of Optina On the pages of this book, in the biographies of the elders, the whole history of Optina Hermitage will pass before you - the foundation, the time of prosperity and the closure of the monastery. There were few of them, the Optina elders - fourteen in a hundred years. Thanks to them, Optina Desert became the spiritual center of Russia and a place of pilgrimage for many people. In the 19th century they said: "[Go] To Optina for [the sake of (gaining)] experience." And they went ... with troubles and illnesses - ordinary people, with questions about the meaning of life - representatives of the intelligentsia. More than once the Kireyevsky brothers came to Optina Desert, N.V. Gogol, F.M. Dostoevsky, L.N. Tolstoy.

Stories from the past of Optina

Stories from the past of Optina
Author: Monk Lazar Afanasyev
Publisher: Vladimir Djambov
Total Pages: 366
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Genre: Religion
ISBN:
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“Wealth without work Pleasure without conscience Science without humanity Knowledge without character Politics without principle Commerce without morality Worship without sacrifice. https://vidjambov.blogspot.com/2023/01/book-inventory-vladimir-djambov-talmach.html Here Igor writes in his diary on January 3, 1989: “The Holy Vvedensk monastery, / The blessed Optina Desert, / always hoping for the mercy of the Mother of God, / on the banks of the river flowing into the eternal life, / nurtured a wonderful tree of old age / and you became like a city, to him who descended from heaven, / where God dwells from men, / taking away every tear from their eyes, / let us also rejoice, brethren, / we will praise Christ the King and our God / and we will glorify the Lady of the world, the Most Pure Virgin, / as a haven for salvation has been given to us / and instructors - the reverend fathers”. Why is there so much misunderstanding of the spiritual word in people? “It is difficult for people to penetrate into the meaning of the word,” Igor writes, “it is difficult to familiarize with the power of the word, and thus the consciousness of the truth is difficult - only by the action (power) of sin. This is a consequence of the fall, the transgression of God's commandment. Adam did not listen to the word, that is, he rejected himself from understanding the meaning, as if he was separated from him, and the instantly formed gap filled sin... The way of restoring the possibility of listening to the Word and comprehending Him and joining Him is the meaning of our labors.” … There is no final finishing, or maybe it was not necessary for him: the diary was not intended for prying eyes. But now we are reading these penitential appeals to the Lord of extraordinary spiritual beauty... “Where will I receive tears, if not from You, O God?” it says there. “Where am I going on the day of sorrow, if not to Your temple, Master? Where will I find consolation, if not in Thy words, Holy One? Do not reject me, Lord, and now remember me.” Having a divine mind, as if a God-given infant, You have abhorred the pagan delights, you wise, But having fallen in love with parental piety, Ascend by virtue as on a ladder from strength to strength, You have acquired the grace of God... Akathist to the Holy Great Martyr Demetrius, Thessalonian wonderworker (Ikos 2).

Optina Elders - Instructions. Teachings. Diaries

Optina Elders - Instructions. Teachings. Diaries
Author: Optina Elders Leo, Macarius, Moses, Anthony, Hilarion, Ambrose, Anatoly the Elder, Isaac I, Joseph, Barsanuphius, Anatoly the Younger, Nectarios, Nikon, and Isaac II
Publisher: Vladimir Djambov
Total Pages: 579
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Genre: Religion
ISBN:
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“Wealth without work Pleasure without conscience Science without humanity Knowledge without character Politics without principle Commerce without morality Worship without sacrifice. https://vidjambov.blogspot.com/2023/01/book-inventory-vladimir-djambov-talmach.html “Inasmuch as you don't want to be stubborn, sail to Valaam, and if you don't want to be harsh, go to Sarov. If you want to be experienced, go to Optina,” Russian people used to say in the old days. And not without reason. Optina Desert raised in its monastery walls a whole galaxy of elders who were distinguished by the most valuable spiritual gift - the gift of reasoning. Not only ordinary people came to them for advice, but also the intelligentsia - great Russian writers and public figures: F.M. Dostoevsky, N.V. Gogol, L.N. Tolstoy, K.N. Leontiev, V.S. Soloviev. The elders, wise in spiritual experience, opened the will of God to those who were asking, consoled in difficult life trials, diverted them from sinful life and turned to repentance - sometimes strictly, and sometimes with a joke-joke. The advice and instructions of the elders, preserved in letters or spoken in conversations and recorded by eyewitnesses, are relevant at all times, and especially in ours, meager spiritual mentors. The teachings collected in this book are only a small part of the richest Optina treasury. Great and incomparably beautiful is the river of God - Holy Optina! This river flows from the sources of temporary life in the sea of eternally joyful endless life in the kingdom of the inexorable Light, and it bears on itself the boats and its desert inhabitants, and many other mournful, tortured, suffering souls who have found the truth of life at the feet of the great Optina elders. What miracles, what signs of the mercy of God, as well as his righteous anger, are not concealed in the transparent deep life-giving waters of this majestic, beautiful, mysteriously wonderful river! How many times from its picturesque bank, covered with a tent of lush green pines and firs, wrapped in the coolness of curly oaks, lace birches, aspens and maples of the reserved monastery forest, my seine descended into its bottomless depths, as clear as rock crystal, and -not in vain ... Oh, blessed Optina! S. A. Nilus If you do any mercy to anyone, you will be pardoned for that. If you suffer with a suffering person (it is not great, it seems, this is) - you are numbered as martyrs. If you forgive the offender, for this all your sins will be forgiven. Advice and guidance from Moses of Optina

Dostoevsky’s Convictional Theology Expressed in His Life and Literature

Dostoevsky’s Convictional Theology Expressed in His Life and Literature
Author: Dumitru Sevastian
Publisher: Langham Monographs
Total Pages: 315
Release: 2021-03-12
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1839734620
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Fyodor Dostoevsky was not a theologian, and his books are not books of theology. However, there is a “living way” that emerges from the study of his life and work, convictions made manifest in the details of his own life and the lives of his characters. Utilizing James William McClendon’s conception of biography as theology, Dr. Dumitru Sevastian explores the lived convictions that emerge from three distinct periods in Dostoevsky’s life, the pre-Siberian, Siberian, and post-Siberian, each represented by one of his novels, The Poor Folk, The House of the Dead, and The Brothers Karamazov. What emerges is a powerful expression of faith formed in community and tempered in suffering, an example relevant to all Christians seeking to model their lives and relationships on the dying and resurrected Christ.

Father Arseny

Father Arseny
Author: various unknown
Publisher: Vladimir Djambov
Total Pages: 549
Release: 2021-07-24
Genre: Religion
ISBN:
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“Wealth without work Pleasure without conscience Science without humanity Knowledge without character Politics without principle Commerce without morality Worship without sacrifice. https://vidjambov.blogspot.com/2023/01/book-inventory-vladimir-djambov-talmach.html Dedicated to the memory of the new martyrs and confessors of Russia /// Father Arseny /// “Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.” (Gal. 6:2) /// Can die /// but stay living for people /// and you can stay alive /// but to be lost. /// "Father Arseny" is a collection of literary processed eyewitness accounts of the life of a modern confessor - their spiritual father, as well as their stories about his life. The first editions spread throughout Russia and abroad and made the book Father Arseny one of the most beloved in the Orthodox world. The book is translated and published in English and Greek. It revealed the image of a saint, internally identical to the Orthodox holiness of all times, but having unique features of an ascetic of modern times. In the new edition, for the first time, the fifth part of “Love Your Neighbor” is published, transmitted to the publishers after the publication of previous editions. /// The authenticity of the events described (partially hidden by personal names) is not in doubt. In addition to the confirmations of the still living disciples of Father Arseny, there is also an internal guarantee of this authenticity - the reader’s heart joyfully believes everything described, since it is impossible not to believe - the truth is in its genuine beauty. /// Even in Samizdat typewriting, a remarkable book was widely distributed and had a very strong impact on a large circle of readers. It revealed the image of a saint of our time, intrinsically identical to the Orthodox holiness of all times, but having unique features of an ascetic of modern times. What is the peculiarity of this recent feat? First of all, in the spirit of the times. The first Christian martyrs were waiting for the imminent end of the world, but they were spiritually born in a young church, living a clean, spiritual life that did not yet know the notorious “historical sins”. If then out of twelve students one became a traitor, then the persecution of the 20th century, figuratively speaking, often only one out of twelve was left true. The terrible atmosphere of total renunciation, betrayal, betrayal, the unimaginable scale of a spiritual and historical disaster, millions of people, captivated by lies and involved in the satanic reprisals against the Church of Christ, over their people and their country - all this plunged into despondency and despair, produced a sense of doom, hopelessness, abandonment. Having lost faith in God, the formerly great, Orthodox Russia became a defenseless object for the implementation of the satanic plan of an unprecedented in the history of genocide. Civil and Patriotic War, tens of millions of victims of artificially created famine, tens of millions of innocent, painfully destroyed in countless camps and prisons. Before, the Orthodox people are soldered, accustomed to deception, theft and lies as a way of life, to violence and robbery, to fornication and debauchery, to the systematic destruction of their own children. In a devilish obscurity, seeing enemies in each other and becoming enemies, people gave their strength and life to a century-old senseless war, cruelly, ruthlessly tormenting each other. They became unable to organize their national life, forgot how to work, forgot how to love, live a family life, give birth and raise children.

Russian Ideology + Autocracy and the Salvation of Russia

Russian Ideology + Autocracy and the Salvation of Russia
Author: St. Seraphim (Sobolev), Sofia wonderworker
Publisher: Vladimir Djambov
Total Pages: 401
Release:
Genre: Religion
ISBN:
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“Wealth without work Pleasure without conscience Science without humanity Knowledge without character Politics without principle Commerce without morality Worship without sacrifice. https://vidjambov.blogspot.com/2023/01/book-inventory-vladimir-djambov-talmach.html I was invited to expound the ideology of the Russian Christian Labor Movement at the Council of Bishops of the Russian Church Abroad, which was held in December 1937, chaired by His Eminence Metropolitan Anastasius. I complied. (My report on Russian ideology was heard at the Council of Bishops in August 1938. The conclusions of the report were adopted by the Council, and in accordance with this a council decree was issued. In addition, at the 1938 Council of Russian Bishops with the participation of the laity, some of the laity - members of the Council, representatives from dioceses in Yugoslavia and Western Europe, asked me to give them information about Russian ideology and, in particular, the justification of the tsarist autocratic power.) This prompted me to engage in clarification of the real issue, vital and so close to the hearts of Russian people, the fruit of which was my book: “Russian Ideology”. The first chapter of this book indicates that Russian ideology consists in the Orthodox faith and the life of a Russian person based on it in all its manifestations. This faith was assimilated by the Russian people from the time of baptism of Himself, as the main rule of life, which is evidenced by the fact that the most beloved books for reading Russian people, in addition to the book of life – the Bible – were the Lives of the Saints (The Minions of Minea). But especially the vitality of this faith was testified to by the holy monastic life in monasteries and the pious life of the laity, as evidenced by the countless churches in Russia and the church life of our ancestors, to whom they openly professed their faith - their great prayerful deeds both in churches and at home, their sincere deep repentance of sins and the purity of their Orthodox faith. The same chapter notes the marvelous protection and intercession that the Lord showed the Russian people for their devotion to the Orthodox faith and the desire for holiness, which is the same for life that is consistent with this faith. The second chapter of our book depicts another - the sad side of the life of the Russian people - their retreat from the Orthodox faith and, above all, through the assimilation of Protestantism. It is shown here that this retreat did not happen immediately, but gradually, starting with John III , from the time the Germans entered the Russian service. But especially devastating for Russia was the retreat from the Orthodox faith under Peter the Great. This misfortune was facilitated by his anti-church reforms, which brought about the breaking of the Orthodox faith itself. Particularly detrimental were the reforms in relation to monasteries with the selection of monastic and generally church property. As a result of this, the monasteries have lost their great significance as church educational centers in the life of the Russian people. Education and enlightenment were taken away from the Church and passed into the hands of the state and began to be conducted along the line of withdrawal from the Church and Her saving influence. To the retreat of the Russian people from the Orthodox faith was directed and personal behavior of Peter. Russia is a salvific ark, keeping afloat before the eyes of the mankind drowning in sin. What awaits Russia (our Motherland) in the apostatic world, what idea will unite the nation and who will lead this union? The works of the remarkable Russian hierarch - Archbishop Seraphim (Sobolev ; 1881-1950) "Russian Ideology" and "On the true monarchical world outlook" are devoted to the answers to these difficult questions . The Russian saint and theologian is deeply revered in the Slavic world not only as a man of deep intelligence and extensive knowledge, but also as a righteous man and seer, through whose prayers hundreds of miracles have been performed and are still being performed.