A well-deserved place in the history of the formation and development of the Church is occupied by Father Gregory , who was called the Double Speaker. He, being the Christian Pope of Rome, shared food with the poor, wrote many books that were later re-read by scientists. His memory is very closely intertwined with Lent; his name is immediately associated with fasting services, reading psalms, troparia tunes. The church calls him the originator of a special Liturgy, which is served during Lent. Being a pope, sv. Gregory composed hymns, choir singing, ordered services in the church.
A little biography
The future holy father Gregory (a photo of his face can be bought today in church shops) came from a noble family of Anitsiev, he was born in 540. His family was revered in the Roman Church; in modern times, his father and mother are recognized as saints. Gregory’s youth passed during the restoration of culture and traditions in Italy, he was educated in law, and in 573 he entered the civil service and became the highest official in the capital. After the death of his father, he left politics and became a monk. He began to study scripture and theology, held various positions in the church, and wrote Creations, which were worshiped by various theologians. In Sicily, Father Gregory built six monasteries, and in Rome - the monastery of the Apostle Andrew.
Papal representative
In 579, Pope Pelagius the second appointed Gregory as a deacon and sent him to Constantinople as his envoy to the emperor. While there, the deacon lived in solitude in the circle of monks, studying the biblical scriptures. As representative of the Roman Church, Father Gregory urged the emperor to protect Rome from barbarians, but was refused. In 585, the Pope recalled his messenger back.
Pope
After the death of Pelagius, Gregory became his successor, and five years later he was ordained bishop, and then the people elected him the new Pope. At that time, Italy was in crisis due to military and political actions. Moreover, only the Church was the structure that cared about the welfare of the country. Also, Father Gregory, whose biography is briefly described in this article, made peace between the warring parties. As a representative of church authority, he led a modest life, was engaged in charity and missionary activities. He also carried out church reform; he converted unbelievers to Christianity.
Empire and Church
Holy Father Gregory believed that the Church is the authority that must fulfill the mission of converting to Christianity the whole world and prepare for the second coming of Christ. The main task here was the observance of all the rules, so the rulers had to be led by God, true Christians. He argued that authorities serve the Church, that the empire and the Church complement each other. But the Pope himself had a limited influence on imperial power; he could not control the local religious communities. The church honored Father Gregory as his teacher, he managed with his labors to form a new Christian west in a divided empire. In the last years of his life, Dad was very sick. He died in 604, was buried in Rome.
Grigory Dvoeslov
In the Orthodox tradition, Father Gregory was called the “Double Speaker,” which is associated with the name of one of his books, Dialogues. It describes the life of Italian saints. The term "Doublers" itself was misinterpreted by a translation from the Greek name of the book Dialogus. This book quickly spread, it was translated into Slavic and Greek. Such popularity of the book of Gregory led to the fact that the title "Doubles" became his middle name for all Christians.
Dialogues by Gregory
The popular book Dialogues is a collection of stories about Italian saints, which Gregory loved to tell his spiritual son. Of great interest in this was the description of mystical events that are often found in work. Here you can also meet the expulsion of demons, descriptions of the afterlife, punishments of sinners, etc. Gregory the Great created the concept of purgatory, which is a place where the souls of dead people go to be cleansed of sins by suffering. It was established to them what sin corresponds to one or another period of stay in purgatory. This concept invented by him suggests that Father Gregory was a true believing Christian. In the same work, Gregory focused on the meaning of prayers, humility and labor.
Finally ...
Strict, honest and logical remained Pope Gregory in the memory of many people. He always did good deeds, gave alms, took care of the afflicted and the unfortunate. He received beggars in his house, and also ordered that the income from church possessions be directed to their maintenance. There is evidence that when Gregory did not have anything to donate, he gave the beggar a dish of silver, which served vegetables. Currently, the name of Father Gregory is combined with the word "Great", he is revered at all times.