• News of the monastery • Simple stories • History • The monastery today • Architecture • Monastic farmsteads • Children's building • Our guests • Chronicle • Patronal feasts of the Raifsky Mother of God Monastery • Raifsky Reserve • Pilgrims • Virtual tour of the monastery • Vocal quartet "Parable" • Photo gallery • English • Congratulation of the governor The Raifa Monastery is 400 years old. And even those 70 years of atheism, when it was closed, seem, in comparison with hundreds of years, to be grains. Has the tradition of spiritual work interrupted in prayer, worship, in the pastoral care of believers? We asked these and other questions to Archimandrite Vsevolod, the governor of the Raifa Mother of God Monastery. About traditions - The monastery is a place that cannot be scolded by any human means, because there has always been a spirit, a prayer of those priests, brethren, parishioners who have asked for God's mercy for 400 years ... And God was pleased to return this place to life, to faith so that people can find a quiet refuge here, worship services, pastoral care of believing Christians. And although the monasticism of the 21st century is not comparable to the monasticism of the 17-19th centuries, the divine services, the charter, the canon of the Church remain unchanged. We cannot modernize worship, we cannot modernize faith, it must be adamant. Following the instructions of the holy fathers, following the commandments of God. - How can you describe your personal feelings when you enter the altar? - I go in and see if all the priests are in the altar, if there are any wounded. (Laughs). You probably think that if a person enters the altar every day, then he accepts the throne as a machine? Human perception is excluded here - the Blessing of God, which is given to clergymen during ordination, gives understanding, feeling, "the holy of holies." When the service begins, gradually that Grace that comes down from above, tunes in to the service, tunes in to prayer, because a great Sacrament is being accomplished, and you feel this Sacrament with your heart - you do not just take part, but you participate in it. About prayer - How to convey to the laity the monastic experience in the understanding that a person's whole life should be built around prayer? - God grant that we ourselves pray well. Every priest should remember his first priestly cross more often; about what is written on it from the other side ... and with partiality assess myself - am I serving in the way that the Church entrusted me with it? "Awake the image with the faithful word, life, love, spirit, faith, purity" (1 Tim. 4, 12). This is the image that should be an indicator, a model for others in prayers. And, of course, show by your example, teach, reveal what sacrament is hidden in prayer, what kind of weapon it is against sinfulness. Where there is prayer, there is the creation of one's inner world, it is spiritualized, this is a connection with God. Prayer is when you open not only your mind, but also your heart. And the monastic experience of understanding prayer cannot be immediately conveyed to others. It's a long way to go. Because a believer who comes here must be able to open his heart to the great power of prayer, and a monk must help. And only when the parishioner sees sincerity in the priest, his eyes, which reflect life experience, the desire to help the layman, to show a reference point - after all, God blessed him to teach, only then will he open his heart to him. Fathers should gradually direct their spiritual children - truly and correctly - to correct prayer: heartfelt, mental. - Tell me, here we are praying, and we receive the Sacraments, and the saints pray for us, but changes in the soul for the better happen slowly or do not happen at all ... - Yes, building a temple or monastery is much faster than building your own inner world, your inner temple. You can say “Lord, have mercy” 400 times without heartfelt repentance and prayer, and you will receive nothing for it. Some atheists in Soviet times knew the entire Bible by heart, but they were not believers. After all, knowledge of the Bible does not guarantee that a person after reading will open his heart to God. Do you understand? After all, here it is necessary that a person really can accept all this with fear, pain ... "The Lord does his business slowly." Everything that happens quickly disappears into emptiness. So prayer is not a shot straight at the target. We must be patient. Большое значение в духовной жизни имеет именно терпение. Очищение души происходит только через молитву и таинства Церкви, прежде всего – исповедь, святое причащение. Когда человек молится, исповедуется и причащается, он начинает различать добро и зло в своей жизни. Десятилетия нужно потратить на то, чтобы искоренить греховные страсти в своей душе. Только Благодать Божия может помочь человеку изменить себя. Да, есть помощь от людей, есть советы святых, но только Христос Спаситель может по-настоящему помочь человеку: «Без Меня не можете творить ничего» (Ин. 15: 5). О послушниках и трудниках – Тот, кто пришел в монастырь, но еще не является послушником, а трудится во славу Божию – это трудник. Какую пользу он получают? – В первую очередь, он приносят пользу самому монастырю: трудники помогают в трапезной, в храмах, на территории. Естественно, мы не забываем о том, что они нуждаются в молитвенном окормлении, в духовном наставлении, чтобы каждый из них смог сделать выбор: остаться в монастыре, жить и служить во славу Божию, или уйти в мир, но уже с пониманием Бога. Он должен сам своим сердцем принять это место. В монастыре же жизнь идет по уставу, с определенными ограничениями. А готов ли он к этим ограничениям? А готово ли его сознание? Ведь верующий не обязательно в монастыре должен быть. Верующие могут и в миру жить, и оставаться добрыми христианами нашей Церкви. Жизнь в обители сегодня – Расскажите, какие сейчас работы ведутся в монастыре? Мы уже начинаем привыкать, что в Раифе что-то появляется новое к престольному празднику. – Планируется полностью завершить косметический ремонт. Планируем строительство башни угловой, где теплица. Уже есть проект и разрабатывается план – скоро начнут строить. Будет восстановлена последняя башня монастырской стены, которая была полностью разрушена. And during this year, on the occasion of the 400th anniversary of the monastery, many events have already been held: exhibitions and conferences, and you have a permanent column in your newspaper, and the Raifsky Almanac is published. Well, and, of course, there will be a festive service. The 400 years of the monastery is still a significant date. WISH Dear brothers and sisters! I would like to wish you peace and tranquility of the soul. Enemy number one is acceptance of thoughts. These are the machinations of the enemy of the human race. I wish you to learn to recognize where the light is, where the dark is. So that there is no sin of despondency, dissatisfaction with life. Peace to you in your soul! Olga Krestinina, 2013 Appealing to visitors In memory of Archimandrite Vsevolod The Raifa Monastery is 400 years old. And even those 70 years of atheism, when it was closed, seem, in comparison with hundreds of years, to be grains. Has the tradition of spiritual work interrupted in prayer, worship, in the pastoral care of believers? Go >> Newspaper The first issue of the Raifsky Vestnik newspaper was published in April 2001 and was timed to coincide with the tenth anniversary of the restoration of the monastery. Choir of the monastery An integral part of the spiritual life of Raif monastery in the first days of its recovery is the quartet " parable ." The saturation of the vocal chord sound, beautiful intonation, and the intertwining of voices resemble the sound of a string quartet. We sing repentance to You May the soul rejoice Go >> Children's Corps Visiting Raifa, one cannot but pay attention to boys of different ages, dressed in black cassocks. These are former "difficult" teenagers and abandoned children, whom the monastic brotherhood accepted into their families. Go >> © Raifsky Mother of God Monastery, 2008-2014. 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