A Sermon given in 1948, when once again there
seemed to be absolutely no hope for the deliverance of Russia from the Communist Yoke.
There was no limit to the grief and despondency of the
ancient Jews when Jerusalem was destroyed and they were led away into the Babylonian
captivity. Where are Thine ancient mercies, O Lord, which Thou swarest to
David? (Ps. 88:50), they cried out. But now Thou hast cast off and put us to
shame... They that hated us spoiled for themselves and Thou scatterest us among
the nations (Ps. 43:10-12).
However, when it seemed that there was no hope for
deliverance, the Prophet Ezekiel, who was likewise in captivity, was made
worthy of a wondrous vision. Moreover, the hand of the Lord came upon me, he
says of this. The invisible right hand of the Lord placed him in the midst of a
field full of human bones. The Lord asked him: Son of man, will these bones
live? The Prophet replied: O Lord God, Thou knowest this. Then the voice of the
Lord commanded the Prophet to say to the bones that the Lord will give to them
the spirit of life, clothing them with sinews, flesh and skin. The Prophet
uttered the word of the Lord, a voice resounded, the earth shook, and the bones
began to come together, bone to bone, each to its own joint; sinews appeared on
them, the flesh grew and became covered with skin, so that the whole field
became filled with the bodies of men; only there were no souls in them. Again
the Prophet heard the Lord, and at His command, he prophesied the word of the
Lord. From the four directions souls flew to them, the spirit of life entered
the bodies, they stood up and the field was filled with an assembly of a
multitude of people.
And the Lord said, Son of man, these bones are the
whole house of Israel; and they say, Our hope has been lost, we have perished...
Behold, I will open your tombs and will bring you up out of your tombs, My
people, and I will put thy spirit within you and ye shall live, and I will
place you upon your own land (Ezekiel 37:1-14).
Thus, the Lord God revealed to Ezekiel that His
promises are steadfast, and that what seems impossible to the human mind is
performed by the power of God.
This vision signified that Israel, after being
delivered from captivity, would return to its own land; in a higher sense, it
indicated the settlement of the spiritual Israel in the eternal heavenly
Kingdom of Christ. At the same time, there is prefigured the future General
Resurrection of all the dead.
Therefore, this prophecy of Ezekiel is read at the
Matins of Great Saturday, when by His death Christ, having broken down the
gates of death, opens the tombs of all the dead.
Belief in the resurrection is the cornerstone of
our faith. If there be no resurrection, then is Christ not risen; and if Christ
be not risen, then is your faith vain (I Cor. 15:13-14). If there is no
resurrection, the whole Christian teaching is false. This is why the enemies of
Christianity fight so much against faith in the resurrection and it is why the
Church of Christ affirms faith in the resurrection. Many times the waves of
unbelief have risen high, but they have rolled back before new signs which
revealed the reality of the resurrection, of God's bringing to life of what was
acknowledged as dead.
In the 5th century, in the reign of the Emperor
Theodosius the Younger, doubt in the resurrection of the dead was widespread,
so that there were disputes about this even in the churches. It was just at
this time that a wondrous event occurred, the authenticity of which is confirmed
by a number of historical writings.
In the middle of the third century, in the reign
of the Emperor Decius (249-251), by his decree seven youths were walled up with
stones in a cave near the city of Ephesus. The son of the head of the city of Ephesus, Maximilian,
and his six friends- Jamblicus, Dionysius, John, Antoninus, Martinian, and
Exacustodian confessed themselves Christians and refused to offer sacrifice to
the idols. They had taken advantage of the time, which had been given them for
reflection, and of the temporary absence of the Emperor, and had gone away from
Ephesus and hidden in a cave in the nearby mountains, (in mountain called
Ochlon). When Decius returned and found out about this, he ordered that the
entrance to the cave be walled up with stones so that the youths, deprived of
food and air, might be buried alive. When the command of Decius had been
fulfilled, two secret Christians, Theodore and Rufinus-wrote down this event on
pewter plates that they hid among the stones at the entrance to the cave.
The youths who were in the cave, however, did not
know what had happened. On the eve of this event, having found out about the
arrival of Decius in the city, and having prayed fervently to God, they fell
asleep in a powerful and unusual sleep which lasted for about 172 years. They
awoke only in the reign of Theodosius the Younger, precisely when there were
disputes concerning the resurrection. At that time, the owner of that place was
taking out the stones that walled up the entrance to the cave and was using
them for a building, without suspecting in the least that the children whom
everyone had forgotten, long before, were still in the cave. The youths, having
awoke, thought that they had slept one night, since they did not notice any
changes in the cave, and they themselves had not changed at all. One of them,
the youngest, Jamblicus, who had previously gone to the city for food, having
prayed to God with his friends, likewise went to Ephesus to find out whether
they were being looked for, and to buy some food for themselves. He was
astonished at the change, seeing churches which, as it seemed, had not existed
the day before, and hearing the name of Christ being pronounced openly.
Thinking that by mistake he had come across some other city, he decided
nonetheless to buy some bread here. When he gave a coin for the bread, the
bread merchant began to examine it carefully and asked where he had found the
treasure. When Jamblicus affirmed that he had found no treasure, but that he
had received the money from his parents, people began to gather, and they tried
to find out where he had found such old money. Jamblicus named the names of his
parents and friends, but no one knew them. Finally, Jamblicus heard from those
present that he was really in Ephesus, that there had been no Emperor Decius
for a long time, and that the Christ-loving Emperor Theodosius was reigning.
The head of the city and the bishop heard about
what had happened, and in order to test the words of Jamblicus they went with
him to the cave where the other six youths were. At the entrance to the cave
they discovered the pewter plates, and from them, they found out when and how
the youths had been in the cave. Concerning all this, the head of the city
immediately informed the Emperor, who personally came to Ephesus and conversed
with the youths. During one of these conversations they lay down their heads
and fell asleep in eternal sleep. The Emperor ordered that they be brought to
the Capital, but the youths, appearing to him to be asleep, commanded him to
bury them in the cave where they had already been in a wondrous sleep, for many
years. This was done, and during the course of many centuries, their relics
reposed in that cave; the Russian pilgrim of the 12th century, Anthony,
describes how veneration was paid to them.
This miraculous awakening of the youths was
accepted at that time as a prefiguration and confirmation of the resurrection.
Everywhere the news spread about this. Several contemporary historians mention
it, and it was discussed at the Third Ecumenical Council, which soon
thereafter, convoked in the same city. This striking miracle strengthened faith
in the resurrection at that time. The power of God, which had preserved the
bodies and clothing of the youths incorrupt for many years, was clearly
revealed. In addition, just as the Lord raised them from sleep, so will he
gather the bones and raise the dead according to the vision of the Prophet
Ezekiel.
This prophecy, which foreshadows not only the
resurrection of the dead, but also the preservation from destruction of the
people who keep God's law, was manifestly fulfilled upon the Russian land.
At the beginning of the 17th century, with the
dying out of the reigning house, a time of troubles came upon Russia. The
Russian land was without a government. It was torn asunder by internal
rebellion and subjected to the attack of neighboring peoples who seized many
Russian provinces and the heart of Russia, Moscow. The Russian people became
fainthearted and lost hope that the Russian kingdom would continue to exist.
Many sought alms from foreign governments, others adhered to various impostors
and thieves who pretended to be crown princes.
When it seemed that there was no more Russia and
only a few still hoped in her deliverance,-then from a subterranean prison in
the Chudov Monastery, resounded the last appeal of the starving Patriarch St.
Hermogenes. This document, together with the epistle of Archimandrite St.
Dionysius of the Trinity St. Sergius Monastery and the cellarer Abraham Palitzin,
reached Nizhni-Novgorod. There, the Russian people were called upon to stand up
in defense of Moscow's holy things and the House of the Mother of God.
The document moved hearts and the citizen Cosmas
Minin addressed his fellow citizens from the porch of the cathedral with a
flaming appeal to sacrifice everything for the fatherland. Immediately
contributions poured in and an army began to be gathered. The courageous
general, Prince Demetrius Michaelovich Pozharsky, was called to lead it,
although he had scarcely recovered from wounds. While acknowledging the
infirmity of human power, the Russian people gave themselves over to the
protection of the Champion General and the greatest treasure the army took from
Kazan, was the miraculous Icon of the Mother of God which had
been brought out of the earth by the holy Patriarch Hermogenes while he was the
Presbyter Hernialaus.
The Russian army moved, not trusting its weak
power, but in the almighty help of God. Moreover, in reality it accomplished
what no other force had been able to do. In a short time, Moscow was delivered,
and on the same day of the commemoration of the Seven Youths of Ephesus
(October 22), the Russian army entered the Kremlin with a triumphant
procession, and to meet it, another procession came from the Kremlin with the
Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God which had been in the captive city.
The Russian land was cleansed of the enemies and
imposters, the Russian kingdom was restored and the young Michael Feodorovich
Romanov ascended on its throne. Russia was resurrected, its wounds were healed and it went from
glory to glory. The Icon of the Mother of God with which Moscow had been delivered, and with it the whole Russian land,
became the greatest holy object of the entire Russian people. Copies of it were
placed in the capital city of Moscow, and later in the new reigning city of St.
Petersburg, which was glorified by a multitude of miracles. Kazan Icons of the
Mother of God were to be found in every city, village, and in almost every
house. All of Russia celebrated the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, as a great
feast.
Again today, the Russian land has been shaken to
its foundation, and the waves of unbelief have risen high.
Grief takes possession of the heart, and in
perils, the Russian people are ready, like the captive Israelites, to call out:
"Our bones are dry, our hope has been lost, we have perished." But
the memory of the Seven Youths who arose from sleep, together with the Meeting
of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, proclaims the almighty right hand of
God, and the word of the Prophet Ezekiel thunders from the depths of the ages
with the voice of the Lord: "Behold, I will open your tombs, and will
bring you up out of your tombs, My people, and will bring you into your own
land, and you shall know that I am the Lord: I have spoken and will do it,
saith the Lord (Ezekiel 37:12-14).
Shanghai,
October 22, 1948
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