For a long time in Russia it has become a tradition three times a year (April 8, July 26 and November 21) to celebrate a holiday called the Cathedral of the Archangel Gabriel. It was established in honor of the incorporeal spirit ─ the servant of God, who brought the Blessed Virgin Mary the message of Her great destiny. In this regard, it becomes clear why one of the days selected is the date following the Annunciation celebrated the day before. The word “cathedral”, included in the name of the holiday, emphasizes its universality and mass character. On this day, Christians come together to praise God and His faithful messenger.
Archangel called the "Fortress of God"
In order to read the akathist and prayer more deliberately during the celebration of the Cathedral of the Archangel Gabriel, we should dwell on what we know from the Holy Scriptures and Traditions about this representative of the ranks of angels.
First of all, we note that his name is Gabriel, translated from Hebrew as “Fortress of God”. In addition, it is generally accepted that among the archangels who are representatives of the second order of heavenly spirits (there are nine of them, in all), he takes a position immediately behind Archangel Michael, holding a fire-burning sword in his hand and guarding the entrance to the Garden of Eden.
Mention of the Archangel Gabriel in the Old Testament
Every angel is a messenger of something (we note along the way that the word “angel” is translated from Greek), but the Archangel Gabriel has a special mission ─ to reveal the hidden meaning of visions, and to foretell people the course of future events. In addition, he has many responsibilities. In particular, standing at the Throne of God, he praises the Creator of the Universe and prays for those who live on earth.
Among other higher powers of the ethereal world, he commands the host of heaven. As appears from the 1st chapter of the Old Testament Book of Enoch, among other archangels Gabriel was sent by the Creator to punish the fallen angels. He inspired the prophet Moses to create the Book of Genesis and revealed to him the future of the Jewish people. However, this is far from all of the reasons why the Cathedral of the Archangel Gabriel is one of the most revered holidays among the people.
First New Testament prophecies
It was Archangel Gabriel who appeared to the righteous Anna when she indulged in grief over her infertility, and announced to her that her prayer to the Lord had been answered, and that she would soon give birth to the Virgin, through whom the Son of God would be incarnated into the world. His words were exactly fulfilled, and after the due time, the righteous Anna gave birth to the Blessed Virgin Mary.
When a sermon is preached from the church pulpit on the day of the Cathedral of the Archangel Gabriel, it usually mentions how the messenger of God invisibly stayed with the Holy Virgin in the Jerusalem temple during Her adolescence, and then protected him all the days of earthly life. In such cases, they do not forget to mention how Archangel Gabriel, appearing to the priest of Zacharias, announced that soon his wife Elisaveta would give birth to a son, the future John the Baptist. When he doubted the truth of the prophecy, the archangel struck him with dumbness.
Annunciation to the Immaculate Virgin
However, his main act, which made the feast of the Cathedral of the Archangel Gabriel especially dear to all Orthodox Christians, is the good news that he brought to the Blessed Virgin Mary about the conception of the Son of God in Her by the fall and the action of the Holy Spirit. Two evangelists narrate about this event: Matthew and Luke, and if the first of them is very brief, the second gives a detailed story.
Further, in order to save the immaculate Virgin from the suspicions that arose of her betrothed (formal husband) Joseph, who was unable to comprehend the divine secret by a weak human mind, the Archangel Gabriel appeared to him in a dream and proclaimed that the Otrokovitsa, having conceived in the womb, remained innocent, since this happened from the action of the Holy Spirit, which changes human nature. He instilled peace and quiet into the soul of the righteous old man Joseph, which is also mentioned on the feast of the Cathedral of the Archangel Gabriel.
News of the Savior's Coming to the World
The Holy Evangelist Luke, describing the birth in Bethlehem of the Son of God ─ Jesus Christ, mentions that it was the Archangel Gabriel who appeared to the shepherds guarding the herds and announced to them great joy ─ the appearance in the city of David the Savior, who is destined to save all people of the world from eternal death . He, surrounded by Heavenly warriors, was the first to sing praises to the Most High, inspiring peace and goodwill in the hearts of his children.
The messenger of God, St. Joseph the Betrothed, did not leave his care even after the birth of Jesus. Sent by the Lord, he appeared to him a second time in a dream and ordered the Mother of God and her Eternal Infant to flee to Egypt to find salvation from the machinations of the wicked King Herod, who intended to destroy their Holy Family.
The Evangelist of the Three Major Gospel Events
But even this is far from all the acts of God's Messenger mentioned in the akathist to the Cathedral of the Archangel Gabriel, which is read in all Orthodox churches of Russia. In one of the most dramatic moments of the earthly life of Jesus Christ ─ His prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane, which became the threshold of the torment of the cross, the Lord directed the Archangel Gabriel to strengthen His Son. The Evangelist Luke describes in detail in chapter 22 how the Messenger of God was inseparable with Jesus, helping him to maintain the presence of the spirit.
Then this time, all four evangelists already report on the appearance of the Archangel Gabriel to the Myrrh-bearing Women, who appeared early in the morning at the Holy Sepulcher, to anoint His honest body with incense. Despite the fact that their testimonies diverge somewhat in the enumeration of participants in this event, they are all unanimous in one thing: it was Archangel Gabriel who met at the entrance to the cave of pious women, who announced the resurrection of the Son of God from the dead. Thus, he was the evangelist of the three main New Testament events related to the name of Jesus Christ, ─ His conception, Christmas, and resurrection.
And finally, the last episode related to the Archangel Gabriel, and described in the New Testament, is his appearance to the Blessed Virgin Mary, who came at the end of her life's journey to the Mount of Olives to pray to her Eternal Son. Announcing the approaching day of Her honest assumption and ascension to heaven, he left the Mother of God a light branch from the Garden of Eden.
Miracle revealed on Mount Athos
Everything that was told above is known from the pages of the New Testament, but stories about God's messenger can be found in the Holy Tradition. And although they do not sound from church pulpits on the day of the Cathedral of the Archangel Gabriel, Christians cherish them carefully for many centuries. Recall only one of them.
They say, for example, such a curious fact that is directly related to the celebration of the Cathedral of the Archangel Gabriel, ─ the prayer “It is fitting to eat”, read daily by all church people, turned out to be brought into the world by this very messenger of God. This happened at the end of the XI century on the holy Mount Athos, where a certain hermit monk and his novice were then saved.
Once, when he went to the church for the all-night service, an unknown old man visited his cell and taught the lad who remained in her, who knelt at that hour before the image of the Virgin, the text of this new prayer at that time. So that her words would not be erased from the memory of the young man, the night visitor traced them with his finger on a stone slab, the surface of which at the same time became soft as wax. After that, he disappeared as mysteriously as he appeared, giving only his name ─ Gabriel. Having returned from the all-night service and having listened to the story of the novice, the monk realized that in his absence the cell visited Archangel Gabriel.
Subsequently, the news of the miraculous incident spread throughout the world and reached Constantinople. There, in confirmation of the authenticity of what happened, a stone slab was sent with the text of the prayer “It Is Adequate to Eat”, read since then daily and especially solemnly pronounced on the day of the Cathedral of the Archangel Gabriel. The icon of the Virgin, in front of which the lad and his night guest prayed, has since also received the name "It is worthy to eat." Her image is shown below.
Discussions of scientists
There is no consensus among church historians about the official date for the establishment of the feast of the Cathedral Day of the Archangel Gabriel. Many of them are inclined to believe that this tradition originates from the consecration in the 17th century of the Church of Constantinople, erected in his honor. However, their opponents very reasonably point to numerous evidence that the history of the Cathedral of the Archangel Gabriel has much deeper roots.
The first two days of the memory of the Archangel Gabriel
As for the generally accepted days in memory of this incorporeal spirit, the messenger of God, who brought to the world the news that became the main landmarks in his history, there are three of them, as was said at the beginning of the article. The first of them, March 26 (April 8), is celebrated the day after the Feast of the Annunciation, since the Archangel Gabriel has the most direct relation to it.
The next date, July 13 (26), is set in honor of four centuries ago, the consecration in Constantinople of a temple dedicated to the Archangel Gabriel, which was also discussed above. By the way, we note that there is a popular belief among people ─ if this day stands out, even if it is cold, but without rain, then the autumn will be dry and warm.
Day of Honor to all ethereal Heavenly Forces
But November 8 (21) was chosen because Archangel Michael is honored on this day , and with it all the ethereal ethereal spirits equal to him: Jerimiel, Yehudiiel, Uriel, Varahiel, Selafiel, and, of course, the closest to him is Archangel Gabriel. In addition, on this day honor is given to all the Heavenly Forces, which are acquired at the Throne of the Most High and are fulfilling His holy will.
Holiday Features
For a long time, many people have developed many beliefs that determine what can and cannot be done on the feast of the Cathedral of the Archangel Gabriel. Among the cases deemed appropriate, common Christian pious deeds, such as a one-day fasting on the eve of the holiday, church attendance with the reading of the occasion of prayer, as well as rendering all possible help to all who need it, can be noted. In this case, the requirements do not go beyond the usual norms of behavior of a pious Christian.
Things to Refrain from
The list of prohibitions imposed on this day is quite peculiar. First of all, it is believed that on November 8 (21) two things cannot be done: cut with a knife and stab with an ax. This is due to the fact that the Archangel Michael being honored on the same day may be offended, since stabbing and chopping is the prerogative of his fire-burning sword. You can also not weave, although the reason for this is difficult to find.
However, these prohibitions are probably related to an older belief, according to which on this day a person can still pay for his sins during his lifetime, that is, something unforeseen and fatal, for example, some kind of accident. In this regard, it was customary to avoid performing various hard work in which it was possible, say, to tear yourself or those that were fraught with the risk of injury.
Of course, the exceptions were those types of activities that a person was obliged to carry out not of his own free will, for example, official or production duties. This also included matters, albeit associated with hard or dangerous work, but at the same time aimed at committing something good and pious. It is only important that selfish goals are not pursued.
The common thing for the three days of the celebration of the Archangel Gabriel was the requirement to perform as many good deeds in them, which, incidentally, applies to the whole of human life.