Gleanings from Orthodox Christian Authors and the Holy Fathers

russia

3 Entries

...upon the bones of the martyrs, as upon a firm foundation, will a new Rus' be erected -- in conformity with the old model -- one strong in her faith in Christ-God and in the Holy Trinity! And the Church, in accordance with the testament of Holy prince Vladimir, will be as one! The Russian people have ceased to discern what Rus' is; she is the footstool of the Lord's Throne! The Russian must ever realize this and thank God for the very fact that he is a Russian. St. Father John of Kronstadt, quoted in https://www.orthodox.net//articles/hold-fast-the-faith.html

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Oh, Russia, Russia! How terribly has she sinned before the loving-kindness of the Lord. The Lord God favored Russia, and He gave her that which He had not given to a single other nation on earth. And this nation turned out to be so ungrateful. She left Him; she rejected Him; and it is therefore that the Lord has given her over to be tormented by devils. The devils took up their residence in the souls of men, and the nation of Russia became possessed; literally, devil-ridden. And all the terrible things that we hear about what went on -- and what continues to go on -- in Russia: all the sacrilege, all the militant atheism and theomachy, -- all of this stems from her being possessed by devils. But, through the inexpressible mercy of God, this possession will pass and the nation will be healed. The nation will turn to repentance; to faith. That will occur, which none expects. Russia will be resurrected from the dead, and the entire world will be astonished. Orthodoxy in her will be reborn and triumph. But that Orthodoxy which had existed formerly will be no more. The great startsy have said that Russia will be reborn; that the people themselves will restore the Orthodox Monarchy. A mighty Tsar’ will be placed upon the Throne by God Himself. He will be a great reformer, and he will be strong in the Orthodox faith. He will cast down the unfaithful hierarchs of the Church. He himself will be an outstanding personality, with a pure and holy soul. He will possess a strong will. He will be of the Romanov Dynasty, through the maternal line. He will be God’s Chosen One, obedient to the Lord in all things. He will transform Siberia. But this Russia will exist only for a very short time. Soon thereafter will come to pass that of which the Apostle John speaks in his “Apocalypse.” Bishop Feofan Of Poltava, Translated from the Russian text into English by G. Spruksts. English-language translation copyright (c) 2001 by The St. Stefan Of Perm' Guild, The Russian Cultural Heritage Society, and the Translator. All rights reserved.

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What I say, I do not say on my own authority. But, rather, it is that which I heard from divinely-inspired startsy; that is what I have conveyed. The Lord will show His mercy to Russia, for the sake of the small number of true believers remaining in her. In Russia, the startsy used to say, through the will of the people, the Monarchy and Autocratic rule will be restored. The Lord has forechosen the future Tsar’. He will be a man of burning faith, of brilliant mind and of iron will. First of all, he will bring about order in the Orthodox Church, by removing all the false, heresy-preaching and lukewarm hierarchs. And very many indeed -- almost all, with few exceptions -- will be those removed by him; while new ones, true and steadfast hierarchs, will take their place. Through the female line, he will be from the lineage of the Romanovs. Russia will be a mighty state, but only for “a short time.”… After that, the antichrist will come into the world, with all the horrors of the end, as described in the Apocalypse. Bishop Feofan Of Poltava, Translated from the Russian text into English by G. Spruksts. English-language translation copyright (c) 2001 by The St. Stefan Of Perm' Guild, The Russian Cultural Heritage Society, and the Translator. All rights reserved.

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