One of those whose name has become a symbol of religious asceticism is the Monk Seraphim of Sarov, the day of veneration of which is one of the favorite Orthodox holidays. For all the labors suffered in the name of the Lord, He received from him the gift of foresight, the gift of miracles, and the gift of healing the afflicted. He never lived for himself. From childhood, having loved the Lord, he ascended from strength to strength, having before himself the highest goal - acquiring the Holy Spirit. And having succeeded in this, he generously shared his fruits with people who flowed to his cell in a multitude. Therefore, the day of memory of Seraphim of Sarov is celebrated by all Orthodox Russia with special love.
Feat of old age
The Lord laid upon him the greatest cross - the feat of old age. There is no higher service in monastic life. His entire past life was just the threshold of a future mission. An old man in Orthodoxy is not just a monk who has reached old age. This is a man who has received from the Lord the gift to work miracles. It is God's will to choose for this mission anyone whom he pleases, but the whole history of Christianity shows that the Lord stops His choice only on the most worthy.
In his life, St. Seraphim followed the example of ancient ascetics, and was able to refute the so often held belief that the heights of their spiritual growth in our time are unattainable. He always kept in his heart the words of the Apostle Paul that at all times, in the past and in the present, the Lord God is unchanging. Therefore, the same requirements are imposed on His ministry - to fulfill the commandments of Christ and imitate the example of His earthly life.
Lifetime veneration of an old man
Memorial Day of Seraphim of Sarov is celebrated twice a year: January 15 is the day when, standing in prayer in his cell, Saint Seraphim peacefully departed to the Lord, and August 1 is the day of finding his relics and canonization. He was counted among the saints in 1903, but his veneration began even in the days of earthly life.
The cell of Father Seraphim, who was in the Sarov monastery, was a place of continuous pilgrimage for many thousands of people. They brought to him their troubles, ailments and everything that could not be resolved by ordinary life measures. The times of his old age are not so far from us, so the memories of living people who had the good fortune to communicate with the old man were preserved.
Works of spiritual nourishment
The day of Seraphim of Sarov always began and ended with the work of spiritual nourishment for all who needed his wise word. They write about him that he literally radiated inner light. Father Seraphim taught that there is no greater sin than despondency — the product of unbelief in the mercy of God. Hence, his constant Easter greeting to all who crossed his threshold: “Christ is risen!” The joy that we all experience on the day of the Holy Resurrection of Christ did not leave him all year round. Indeed, if the Savior is resurrected, it means that we, His children, are destined for eternal life. Therefore, everything that happens in this life is so insignificant in comparison with the Kingdom of God prepared for us that there is no reason for tears. He even addressed people only as "My Joy!"
Strength in the consciousness of one's weakness
Showing deep humility, he always called himself "wretched Seraphim." There was no far-fetchedness and hypocrisy in this. It’s just the consciousness that everything good in us is from God. We are His creations, and our merits are not our merit.
Whether material or spiritual goods are all His. Yes, we work to achieve them, but the Lord gives us the strength for these works. Therefore, wisdom consists precisely in the realization of all weakness and wretchedness before the omnipotence of God. And this consciousness contains great power.
The posthumous blessings of the holy elder
Even after his honest death in 1833, Seraphim of Sarov brought healing to all who addressed him in their prayers. The history of his ascetic life was kept in numerous legends passed from mouth to mouth. To save the memory of Father Seraphim, much was done by the sisters of the female Diveevo monastery, which was founded, and subsequently nourished by it. We owe these nuns and novices many memories of the old man, as well as his predictions that have come down to us. In them St. Seraphim, with astonishing accuracy, predicted the upheavals that awaited Russia in the next century.
Canonization and the celebration associated with it
Memorial Day of Seraphim of Sarov, celebrated on August 1, is set in memory of his canonization, which took place in 1903. It should be noted that admirers of the holy elder were not only among the common people, but also among the aristocracy, and even the royal family. It was from them that the initiative came to rank him as a saint. The birthday of Seraphim of Sarov was the day when, in an atmosphere of special solemnity, his holy relics were discovered and transferred to a silver crab made for this occasion.
In those days, the press widely covered this significant event in the life of Russia. It was noted that more than 150,000 people took part in the celebrations associated with the canonization of the new heavenly protector of our Fatherland. They passed in the presence of the emperor and his family, who personally carried a cancer with precious relics on their shoulders. To this great day, an akathist, canon and troparion to Seraphim of Sarov had been composed in advance. According to the Orthodox tradition, the glorification of the saint was accompanied by numerous religious processions.
Honoring the memory of the saint during the years of the atheism
When during the period of the divine struggle, so predictably predicted by them, church holidays were the destiny of only the most convinced adherents of Orthodoxy, the day of memory of Seraphim of Sarov was strictly observed in all the churches of our country. Only bow to the holy relics of the Russians did not have the opportunity for almost seventy years. After the revolution, the godless authorities uncovered the cancer and seized the shrine, and only in 1990 the relics were rediscovered, and after a while placed for general worship in the Diveevsky monastery - the brainchild of St. Seraphim.
The day of St. Seraphim of Sarov is also celebrated on January 15. This is the day of his death. The life of the saint very touchingly describes how the cell-keeper discovered his already cooled body, bowed in a prayer position before the image of the Blessed Virgin Mary. On this day a memorial service is held in the temples and the troparion is read to Seraphim of Sarov.
The spiritual heritage of St. Seraphim
We cannot help but recall the spiritual heritage that Seraphim of Sarov left for us. The day of his veneration is August 1, it is also the anniversary of the day from which the world began to find records containing his famous instructions. Until the glorification of Seraphim of Sarov, they were kept by the heirs of N. A. Motovilov, the Simbirsk landowner, the first biographer of the saint. And only after the famous Diveyevo celebrations became the property of the general public. Motovilov himself was cured by his father Seraphim from a serious illness, and after recovering he stayed with him for many years, fulfilling the duties of both the cell-man and the secretary.
In his instructions, the Monk Seraphim indicates the main purpose of Christian life as the acquisition of the Holy Spirit. Wise by the rich experience of ascetic life, he assigns only an auxiliary role to the fulfillment of all religious precepts. He emphasizes that no matter how useful fasting, prayer and reading spiritual literature, but they are only tools that should be used in the works to achieve the main goal. What does the reverend mean by these words? He himself gives an explanation for this. The Holy Spirit is identified by him with the Spirit of Peace. Motovilov quotes him: “Get the Spirit of Miren, and then thousands around you will be saved!” Find the world in yourself!