The feast of All Saints of Russia is not a feast of just
righteous ones, but of saints. God is filled with holiness; "Holy is the
Lord our God." But man is created in the "image and likeness" of
God, and the Lord at creation breathed into him the power to partake of the
Divine essence, and thereby come closer to God. And the closer a man is to God,
the holier he is. Saints are those who have partaken of the Divine essence and
made it their own; to God, they become "His own." The saints enjoy
blessedness, for God is blessed. From them there is light for men. Through them
the power of God is revealed. Saints retain all that is characteristic of the
human condition; they know everything that is ours. They are near to God, but
they are also near to us; they walked and dwelt among us. The people of Holy
Russia venerated them, kissed their icons and holy relics, wanted to be as
close as possible to the saints, touched holiness, and the Russsian land was
filled with it. Holy Prince Vladimir demonstrated the regenerating power of the
Divine essence upon himself. Previously wild and passionate, he was completely
reborn, so that he became a new person, radiating light and joy, and was called
"beautiful sun." Do not think that contact with holiness is the fate
of only the Russian nation. No! All peoples can live in the spirit that Holy
Russia lived and lives in, and then they are close and comprehensible to each
other. St. Anthony of the Kiev Caves and St. Anthony the Roman were men of different countries,
but together they built the Russian Church, and they are equally near and dear to her. Until recent
times we did not have martyrs, but there was a multitude of saints. They
influenced the direction that the Russian people took; the people loved them
and tried to follow them, and this determined the way of life. All of life was
illuminated, until spiritual apostasy began, which led to a fall. But Holy
Russia is alive. When the persecution began, strugglers were revealed, confessors,
and now we have martyrs. The spirit of Holy Russia lives. Holy Russia is part of the Ecumenical (i.e., the entire) Church.
Celebrating the saints, we desire to be together with them and to acquire the
power of God through their holiness. They know us, our nature, our
characteristics and spirits, and they know our souls, too - what is necessary
for us. We are close to them as children are close to their parents. The
Apostle Peter prayed for his disciples. St. Demetrius of Thessalonica rushes to
help the Greeks because this is his own nation. Sts. Boris and Gleb help their
relatives (e.g., Alexander Nevsky), and their own Russian people.
Return to the first page
