St. Cyril of Alexandria. Icon of St. Cyril the Equal of the Apostles

Not popular in our days Christian name Cyril has a very rich history and powerful spiritual patrons. The origin of it is ancient Greek, literally means "lord", or "lord". Men bearing this name should know about their patron and remember the need to honor the day of St. Cyril.

Righteous with the name of Cyril

Orthodox Church, since the IV century, to the rank of saints are counted three dozen righteous who bore this name and lived on the territory of Byzantium, the Western Roman Empire and Russia. One of the first in this personage is Cyril, the patriarch of the Egyptian city of Alexandria. It was glorified approximately in 451 year. The most famous of our compatriots are the Monk Cyril of Radonezh, the father of Sergius of Radonezh, who at the end of his life took monastic vows, and Kirill Belozersky. St. Cyril is the founder of the idea of enlightened monasticism and comprehensive social ministry of the church.

Most often, boys at baptism are called the ancient Christian name in honor of St. Cyril, the Enlightener of the Slavs. Every saint has his own iconographic image. The day of the celebration of the heavenly patron is called the day of the Angel. Yes, and the most heavenly patron is sometimes called a guardian angel. The term is conditional and not entirely correct. This is a completely different personal non-material essence. One of the manifestations of reverence for his heavenly patron is the prayer appeal through his icon-painting image. The icon is the window to the higher world. It should contribute to the inner concentration of a person.

Careful, fetishism

In fact, it turns out a completely different picture. On an infinite number of sites it is offered to purchase icons of saints and the Virgin with detailed instructions on what exactly this or that image helps. Moreover, it is possible to meet supposedly competent believers who will advise who and in what circumstances should be prayed. This belittles the sublime meaning of the icon to the ordinary object of religious worship. The reasons are both the ignorance of the clergy, and the banal desire for profit: customers pay for the result. In some churches, you can see a price tag similar to the proposals in the secular sphere of services, offering to celebrate a moleben to a saint almost with a guaranteed result: about a lost thing, a successful search for the groom, so that the teeth do not hurt, etc. This is also facilitated by the incompetence of the believers who Identify the holy image with a drug in the pharmacy. I bought paracetamol, swallowed it - and it became easier. It is a very pernicious delusion, which in time can lead to negative consequences. After all, fire can not only warm, but also severely burn. You can have huge treasures all your life and not be able to use them properly. From a huge number of icons there will be no grace, but, on the contrary, a careless and unworthy attitude towards them can be punished. The sacred image requires proper veneration. You should know that prayer before any icon can help in alleviating any trouble.

How to properly read the icons of saints

The icon should not have a relationship like a book or a photograph stored on a shelf, which you can use from time to time. If you have acquired a holy image, then even the smallest icon requires a corresponding reverential attitude. Honoring the icons of saints, first of all it is necessary to study the earthly life of the archetype. This brings the inner peace of the praying person closer to the heavenly patron. And on the other hand, the person who is in a different dimension is placed somewhat in a special way to the microcosm of the earthly man, who attends to her awe.

Icon of the heavenly patron

Undoubtedly it is necessary to have in the house of the icon its heavenly intercessor, that is, that saint, after whom the person is named. Do not just store it somewhere in the sideboard behind the glass, like a souvenir. When you look at the icon, you should treat your patron daily, at least briefly. It is also preferable to pay attention to a close-knighted righteous - the patron of work. For example, St. Cyril, an educator of the Slavs, by virtue of his labors under earthly life, is traditionally considered the patron of teachers and students. As well as the apologist of the ancient church, the patriarch of Alexandria Cyril deserved the glory of a great preacher and writer. The icon of St. Cyril, the guardian angel and patron of Orthodox theologians, enjoys tremulous veneration from theologians.

Outstanding personality of the Middle East

St. Cyril was an extraordinary church figure, and on the other hand - a typical representative of his era. The exact date of his birth is unknown. He came from a noble Greek family. In Alexandria, there was a kind of dynastic continuity in the hierarchy. The beginning of the tradition was laid by the patriarch Athanasius, the successor of which was his nephew Peter. So Cyril took the chair after the death of his uncle Theophilus. According to the church historian Socrates Scholastic, the enthronement of Cyril was accompanied by mass riots in the city. Many parties fought for the throne, including heretics. It was only thanks to the intervention of the troops that they were able to calm the citizens. St. Cyril was a very active person and, having settled in the department, began to claim the power of a secular ruler. Then it was the dictates of the times. The first Christian communities not only engaged in preaching the teachings among the heterodox and spiritual nurturing of the flock, but also carried a huge burden of social service to society.

In the fifth century the Church fought numerous heretical teachings. At the behest of Cyril in Alexandria, all parishes of Novatians were closed. Contemporaries testify that St. Cyril not only led an uncompromising struggle against heresies and remnants of pagan ideology, but also was distinguished by aggressive anti-Semitism. The persecution of the Jews led to clashes with the Roman governor Orestes. The authority of the Egyptian chair allowed the patriarch to openly fight the heresy of Nestorius, who in 428 occupied the Constantinople chair. It was at the initiative of Cyril that the Third Ecumenical Council was convened, which established the veneration of the Blessed Virgin to the Mother of God. The Alexandrian Local Church he ruled for 32 years and died in 444. Kirill wrote a lot of dogmatic treatises. The most outstanding exegetical works are the interpretation of the books of the Old Testament prophets, the Gospel of Luke, John the Theologian and the Epistle of the Apostle Paul.

Iconographic image of Cyril of Alexandria

The tradition of Christian painting has the oldest roots of the Syr-Palestinian origin. On icons it is customary to depict saints in accordance with the image of their earthly life. As a rule, a picturesque image is created by the time of the ceremony of being consecrated to the saints. Sometimes between the righteous and the canonization of the righteous is not one decade, and the image on the icon may not fully correspond to the portrait resemblance. Unfortunately, in connection with the iconoclastic heresy raging in Byzantium in the VIII century, many ancient icons were irretrievably lost. Not preserved and the most ancient images, which depicts the great Patriarch of Alexandria, St. Cyril. The icon in modern execution depicts a saint in a liturgical vestment corresponding to his episcopal ministry. An obligatory part of the composition is the Gospel in the hands. In accordance with the iconographic tradition, emphasizing a reverent attitude to the Holy Scriptures, the saint holds the book not with his open hand, but through the fabric of vestments.

Saints Athanasius and Cyril of Alexandria

The memory of St. Cyril, Patriarch of Alexandria, is celebrated on June 22 in a new style. However, the church established another veneration - January 31. On this day the celebration of Cyril is celebrated together with another outstanding teacher of the church, his predecessor at the chair of Athanasius of Alexandria. The joint celebration is determined in memory of the recognition of their merits and exploits in defense of the dogmatic teachings of the Church. Saints Athanasius and Cyril are two great representatives of the Alexandrian theological school. Their works are important not only for intra-church use, but also very relevant for sociologists, historians and psychologists.

The Apostle of Eastern Europe

The greatest contribution to the culture of our fatherland was made by two brothers, Cyril and Methodius. The Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Cyril was called Constantine before taking monastic vows. He and his brother Methodius came from a pious Slavic family. Their father was a commander in the Greek city of Thessaloniki (modern Thessaloniki). Constantine received a brilliant classical education at the court of the emperor, for which he received the nickname of a philosopher. They became famous in connection with unprecedented works on enlightenment of East Slavic tribes. To effectively influence the Christian preaching by them, a new alphabet for the Slavic tribes speaking in related languages was compiled and put into circulation. By the name of one of the creators, this monument was called the Cyrillic alphabet. Many of the liturgical books and the Gospel were translated into the Slavonic language by the brethren. For the possibility of performing a divine service in a dialect intelligible to the Slavs, Constantine was consecrated bishop. Shortly before his death, which followed in 869, he accepted a monastic order.

It should be noted that the clergy of Russian, Serbian, Bulgarian and some other Eastern Slavic churches have been using original writing for more than a millennium. And if the modern languages of related peoples are already obscure for each other, then the language of worship is absolutely identical. The feat of the preaching work of Constantine-Cyril is equated with the church's consciousness to the feat of the apostles; therefore, under the canonization, the saint was given the title of "Equal-to-the-Apostles", and the days of celebration are fixed on May 24 and February 27. In each Orthodox educational institution in the place of honor is the icon of St. Cyril, guardian angel and patron of students and teachers.

Images of the Enlightener of the Slavs

The artistic images of the great teacher are widespread. In Orthodox churches in Eastern Europe, you can find authentic frescoes depicting St. Cyril. The icon has several canonically approved taps. Constantine-Cyril is most often depicted in the garb of a monk-ascetic. Monastic vows he took a special severity - schema. When the two brothers-enlighteners write together, Cyril is portrayed only in monastic vestments. Since the saint was consecrated, there are icons where he is written in the bishop's divine clothes. Invariably in the hands of the saint are either a scroll with the Slavic alphabet, or an open book, most often the Gospel of John with the first lines of scripture. Cyril reposed, being 42 years old. In modern tradition, at about this age, he is portrayed. On the few surviving ancient icons, the Slavic guardian angel St. Cyril is represented in the form of an old man with a rather long, bifurcated beard.

Day of Names

Primate of the Russian Church, His Holiness Patriarch of All Russia, Cyril took this name in monastic vows. The new name is called a sign of renunciation of the past life and the beginning of a new, ascetic, subordinate to a completely different worldview principles. In this heavenly patron of the future hierarch in monasticism became the Enlightener of the Slavs St. Cyril. The Patriarch of Moscow shows an example of honoring his heavenly patron. According to the Christian canons, on the day of his Angel, one should surely receive the sacrament of Christ's Mysteries. On May 24, the Orthodox world celebrates the festival of Slavic writing and culture. On the day of his heavenly patron Saint Patriarch Cyril obligatory performs the Liturgy, if possible in the church dedicated to the saint. Also, any believer, bearing the name of Cyril, if he really wants to honor his heavenly patron, must on this day take part in public worship or at least go into the temple to put a candle.

Spiritual conversation

Regardless of whether a person believes or not, the laws of the spiritual world work. An analogy can be drawn with the laws of physics. Even if a person has never heard of the law of Newton and the constant of acceleration of free fall, the universal gravitation works, and those who neglect it can suffer greatly. The world of metaphysics is still waiting for its explorers and discoverers, but for now one should listen to the millennial experience of the church. Appeal to the saints is usually called a prayer. There are canonical prayers for liturgical use, which can be used by believers and in household use. In prayer to St. Cyril of Alexandria Christians are treated as an assistant in the defense of all truth and piety. The preservation and dissemination of faith is impossible without preaching. The success of the speaker is based on talent, all-round education and dedication. Such in the ecclesiastical consciousness and it seems to all Saint Cyril aspiring to enlightenment is the guardian angel. Prayer to the Equal-to-the-Apostles, the righteous, expresses requests for assistance in overcoming fraternal strife among nations and preserving paternal traditions and traditions.