The Appearance of the Most Holy Mother of God to the Monk Sergei of Radonezh:
Commemorated on August 24
The Appearance of the
Most Holy Mother of God to the Monk Sergei of Radonezh: One time, in the
deep of night, the Monk Sergei (1314-1392) was reading an a akathist to the
Mother of God. Having finished his habitual rule, he sat down to rest a bit,
but suddenly he said to his cell-mate, the Monk Mikhei (+ 6 May 1385):
"Take courage, child, we shall have a wondrous visit". Scarcely had
he uttered these words when a voice was heard: "the All-Pure Virgin doth
approach!" The Monk Sergei rushed from the cell to the entrance, and suddenly
it was illumined by a bright light, brighter than that of the sun. He beheld
nearby in imperishable glory the Mother of God, accompanied by the Apostles
Peter and John. Unable to bear the miraculous radiance, the Monk Sergei
reverently prostrated himself before the Mother of God, and She said to him:
"Fear not, My chosen one! I am come to visit thee. Sorrow thee no more
about thy students and thy place. Thy prayer is heard. Henceforth all thine
habitation shalt prosper, not only in thy lifetime, but also after thy
departure to God shall it persist for thy monastery, granting abundantly its
petitions and preserving it in all needs". Having said this, the Mother of
God became invisible. For a long time the Monk Sergei was in an inexpressible
rapture, and having come to himself, he raised up the Monk Mikhei. "Tell
me, father, – asked the cell‑mate, –what is the meaning for this
miraculous vision? From terror my soul nearly departed the body!" But the
Monk Sergei was silent; only his luminous face spoke of the spiritual joy which
he experienced. "Wait a bit, – he said finally to his disciple, – until
my soul doth calm down from this wondrous vision". After a certain while
the Monk Sergei summoned two of his disciples, the Monks Isaac and Simon, and
communicated to them the common joy and hope. All of them together celebrated a
molieben prayer to the Mother of God. The Monk Sergei spent the remaining part
of the night without sleep, calling to mind the Divine vision. The appearance
of the Mother of God at the cell of the Monk Sergei, at the present place of
the Serapionov chamber, was on one of the Fridays of the Nativity fast in the
year 1385. The commemoration of the visit of the Mother of God to the Troitsky
(Trinity) monastery and of Her promise was reverently kept by the disciples of
the Monk Sergei. On 5 July 1422 was the uncovering of his holy relics, and soon
after on the grave of the Monk Sergei was placed an icon of the Appearance of
the Mother of God. The icon was honoured with great reverence. In the year 1446
GreatPrince Vasilii Vasil'evich (1425-1462) was besieged at the Troitsky
monastery by the armies of princes Dimitrii Shemyaka and Ioann of Mozhaisk. He
barricaded himself into the Trinity cathedral, and when he heard that he was
sought, he took the icon of the Appearance of the Mother of God and with it met
prince Ioann at the southern church doors, saying: "Brother, we kissed the
LifeCreating Cross and this icon in this church of the LifeBeginning Trinity at
this grave of the Wonderworker Sergei, that we would neither intend nor wish
any evil to any of our brethren amongst ourselves; and here now I know not,
what will happen with me".
The Trinity monk
Amvrosii (mid-XV Century) reproduced the icon of the Appearance of the Mother
of God to the Monk Sergei, carved in wood.
Tsar Ivan the
Terrible took along the icon of the Appearance of the Mother of God on his
Kazan campaign (1552). The most famous icon, inscribed in the year 1588, was by
the steward of the Trinity-Sergiev Lavra, Evstaphii Golovkin (1571-1581; 1583‑1593)
on a board from the wooden reliquary of the Monk Sergei, which was taken apart
in the year 1585 in connection with the placing of the relics of the Monk
Sergei in a silver reliquary (14 August). Through this icon the Mother of God
repeatedly protected the Russian army. Tsar Aleksei Mikhailovich (1645-1676)
took it on the Polish campaign in 1657. In the year 1703 the icon took part in
all the military campaigns against the Swedish king Charles XII, and in 1812
Metropolitan Platon sent it to the Moscow military levy. The icon took part in
the Russo-Japanese War of 1905 and during the time of World War I it was
at the quarters of the supreme commander-in-chief in 1914.
Over the grave of the
monk Mikhei was built a church and named through its consecration on 10
December 1734 in honour of the Appearance of the Most Holy Mother of God
together with the holy Apostles to the Monastic Father Sergei of Radonezh. On
27 September 1841 the church was restored and consecrated by the
Metropolitan of Moscow Philaret, who said: "By the grace of the All-Holy
and All-Sacred Spirit is now accomplished the restoration of this temple,
fashioned before us in honour and memory of the Appearance of our Lady the
Most Holy Mother of God to the Monk our God-bearing father Sergei, to which also
by his account the Monk Mikhei was an eye-witness, in sweet reverence here
honoured". Rightly was the commemoration of this grace-bearing event
honoured by the consecration of a church, although however, all this monastery
is a memorial of that miraculous visit. Wherefore its purpose in the continuing
centuries was the fulfilling of the promise of the heavenly Visitor: "This
place shalt persist". In memory of the visit of the Mother of God at
Trinity cathedral of the Trinity-Sergiev monastery is read on Fridays an
akathist to the Most Holy Mother of God, and a special service in honour of the
appearance of the mother of God is done at the monastery on 24 august, on the
second day of the leave-taking of the feast of Uspenie (Dormition) of the
Most Holy Mother of God.
© 1996-2001 by translator Fr. S. Janos.
