The life and deeds of Archbishop Gennady of Novgorod. Rare liturgical texts

On December 17 we remember Gennady Novgorodsky. The Russian people owe him three important deeds. Collection and publication of the first complete Bible in the native language. Detection and fight against the most dangerous heresy, capable of defeating the state and changing the course of history. And – the abolition of the “end of the world” in the 15th century.

Since 1472, Gennady has been the archimandrite of the Chudov Monastery in the Moscow Kremlin. A zealot of strict statutory worship.

In 1483, Saint Gennady began to build a stone refectory church in the Chudov Monastery in honor of his revered Saint Alexy, Metropolitan of Moscow, founder of the monastery, whose relics are now in the Epiphany Cathedral.

On December 12, 1484, Archimandrite Gennady was consecrated Archbishop of Novgorod. Reverent for the memory of the great Saint Alexy, Gennady, and being in Novgorod, did not cease to take care of the construction of a temple named after him in Moscow.

The time of holy Archbishop Gennady's ministry in Novgorod coincided with a formidable period in the history of the Russian Church. Jewish preachers, who came to Novgorod under the guise of traders, began sowing the tares of heresy and apostasy among the Orthodox since 1470. False teaching was spread secretly.

The danger threatened not only Novgorod piety, but also the very capital of Orthodoxy, Moscow, where the leaders of the Judaizers moved back in 1480.

In September 1487, Gennady sent to Moscow, Metropolitan Gerontius, the entire search file in the original, along with a list of apostates he had discovered and their writings. The fight against the Judaizers became the main subject of the archpastoral activity of Saint Gennady.

The struggle between Saint Gennady and St. Joseph Volotsky with a strong attempt by opponents of Orthodoxy to change the entire course of the history of the Russian Church and the Russian state. Through the labors of the holy confessors, the struggle was crowned with the victory of Orthodoxy.

This was facilitated by the works of Saint Gennady in studying the Bible. Heretics, in their wicked speculations, resorted to distorted texts of the Old Testament books. They differed from those accepted by the Orthodox Church. Archbishop Gennady took on the enormous task of bringing correct lists into a single set Holy Scripture.

Until that time, biblical books were copied in Rus', following the example of Byzantium, not in the form of a whole set, but in separate parts - the Pentateuch or the Octateuch. Kings, Proverbs and other teaching books. Psalms, Prophets, Gospels and Apostles.

The sacred books of the Old Testament were especially often subject to accidental and intentional damage. Saint Gennady wrote about this with sorrow in a letter to Archbishop Joasaph.

In 1499, the first complete set of Holy Scripture in the Slavic language was published in Rus' - the Gennadian Bible, as it is respectfully called by the name of its compiler, which became an integral link in the continuity of the Slavic translation of the Word of God.

The memory of Saint Gennady is also preserved in his other work for the good of Orthodox Church. At the end of the 15th century, the menacing thought of the imminent end of the world, which was expected after the seventh thousand years from the creation of the world, loomed over Russian minds. After the end of the peace circle in 1408, Rus' did not dare to continue the Easter celebration beyond 1491. In September 1491, the Bishops' Council of the Russian Church in Moscow, with the participation of St. Gennady, determined: To write Paschal for the eighth thousand years. On November 27, 1492, Metropolitan Zosima, a participant in the Judaizer heresy, in Moscow set out the Paschal for only 20 years.

Saint Gennady soon finished compiling his Paschal, which, unlike the Metropolitan's, was continued for 70 years. Under the general title “The beginning of Paschal, shifted to the eighth thousand years.”

In the Theological Interpretation of Paschal, based on the Word of God and the testimony of the Holy Fathers, the Saint wrote:

– It is not proper to fear the end of the world, but to wait for the coming of Christ at all times. As long as God deigns the world to endure, so long will the passage of time last. Times were arranged by the Creator not for Himself, but for man. Let man understand the changing times and honor the end of his life. No one knows about the timing of the completion of God’s creation, neither the Angels, nor the Son, but only the Father. Therefore, the holy fathers, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, outlined the peace circle precisely as a circle. The Saint contrasted the heretical temptations about calculating dates with the path of constant spiritual sobriety, consecrated by the Church.

Saint Gennady outlined the theological foundations of Paschal. He explained how, with the help of Alpha, the great peace circle, one can bring out Easter for the future, as long as necessary.

Having left his archpastoral ministry, from 1504 the Saint lived in retirement in the Kremlin Miracle Monastery, where he peacefully reposed in the Lord on December 4 (17), 1505.

The holy relics of Archbishop Gennady were placed in the Church of the Miracle of St. Michael the Archangel in Khoneh. In the place where the relics of Saint Alexy, Metropolitan of Moscow, who was especially revered by him, had previously rested.

For Saint Gennady of Novgorod, the main work of his life was the fight against the Jewish heresy

In addition, having gathered biblical scholars around him, the saint collected all the books of Holy Scripture in a single set, and blessed the translation again from Latin language those of the Holy Books that he did not find in the handwritten tradition of the Slavic Bible, and in 1499 the first complete set of Holy Scripture in the Slavic language - the “Gennadian Bible” - was published in Rus'.

« Savvaty was always on Valaam, I was his student, and he was an elder to me,” said the blessed one. Gennady to Solovetsky Abbot Dosifei. – Then, from 1480, we see Gennady Gonzov, “a high-ranking, intelligent, virtuous and knowledgeable man in the Scriptures,” as the archimandrite of the Chudov Monastery. In 1482, together with the Rostov Archbishop Joasaph, the former Prince of Obolensky, he took the side of the Grand Duke in a dispute about walking around the church during the consecration of a new temple; the dispute ended with a concession to the metropolitan’s convictions; and before that he was subjected to severe punishment. Gerontius for allowing the monks of the Chudov Monastery to drink Epiphany water after meals, but at the request of the Grand Duke and the boyars he was soon forgiven. In 1483, he began to build the first stone church in the Chudov Monastery, in honor of St. Alexis, and first of all, in place of the dilapidated refectory, he built a new stone one. The construction of the huge stone temple could not be completed soon; Meanwhile, on the 9th day of 1484, Blessed Gennady was consecrated Archbishop of Novgorod. Revered by the great saint of Russia, Gennady did not abandon his concerns about the temple in honor of his name. He instructed pious and knowledgeable people to complete the construction and decoration of the temple, providing funds for this from himself.

The main work of his life was the fight against the Jewish heresy - a fight that continued throughout the 19 years of his archpastoral service. As soon as he arrived in Novgorod (at the beginning of 1485), he learned that the heresy of the Judaizers was secretly operating here. The blessed saint burned with zeal for the holy truth of Christ. “Having been let in,” says the reverend. Joseph, against the evil heretics, he rushed at them like a lion, from the thicket of the Divine Scriptures and from the red high mountains the teachings of the prophets and apostles; he tore with his nails the vile wombs filled with Jewish poison, crushed and tormented with his teeth, and killed on a stone.” The first information about the heresy reached the archbishop almost by accident. Four members of the society, in a drunken state, reproaching each other for secret affairs, discovered the existence of an unholy society. The zealous archpastor began a search. Testimonies were taken from those accused of heresy and those involved in the case; witnesses to blasphemous cases were questioned; it was already becoming visible that the heresy had grown into a vast society and its wickedness against Christianity should terrify every sincere Christian. But four, given bail, fled to Moscow without waiting for the end of the research. The saint immediately sent a search to the Metropolitan and the Grand Duke upon his report; he begged to take proper measures against the terrible evil. At the council of 1488, three convicted of heresy were recognized as worthy of excommunication and civil execution, and the fourth was declared free from trial, since there was only one witness against him; nevertheless, they were returned to their archpastor for admonitions and further investigation of heresy, while it was ordered that the unrepentant be sent to a civil court. It was difficult for Gennady to bring the matter to an accurate knowledge; the society kept its affairs in the strictest secrecy; The heretics even renounced their own words with an oath, especially since they did not want to reveal the secret thoughts of society. But with the help of the civil authorities, evidence was selected, confirmed by the signatures of some of the perpetrators and witnesses; Liturgical notebooks of heretics, Paschalia compiled according to the Jewish calendar, and some special books were found. Especially much was revealed by the priest Naum, who formerly himself belonged to secret society. Gennady accepted the heretics who sincerely confessed their error to church repentance, and betrayed the others to the civil authorities. He forwarded a detailed report with testimony to the metropolitan and awaited orders, especially since some Moscow members of the society were also mentioned. This performance was no longer as successful in Moscow as the previous one. Metropolitan Gerontius died (May 28, 1489); Kuritsyn, a powerful clerk at the court, a secret member of the society, returned from Hungary and took his friends under his protection. Gennady was not invited to the general affairs of the Church. The Novgorod heretics, having learned about all this, fled to Moscow. Here, under the protection of Kuritsyn, even banned priests performed services, and Dionysius, the court archpriest taken from Novgorod, went so far as to blaspheme the holy cross in the temple. Chernets Zacharias, the main leader of the heretics, freely sent letters to the cities, where he denounced Gennady as a heretic. – The unrest grew all the more freely because after the death of Gerontius, the metropolitan see remained idle for a year and a half (until September 1490). The fiery Gennady did not remain inactive - He sent a list of previous reports to the Sarsk Bishop Prokhor, who ruled the metropolis; asked by a message from two other bishops, Niphon of Suzdal and Philotheus of Perm, to turn pastoral care to the matter of heretics; He also described to them the new audacity of the wicked. When the new Metropolitan Zosima was elected, Gennady, although dissatisfied with some of his orders, urgently asked Zosima to subject the heretics to conciliar excommunication. Gennady did not yet know that Zosima himself belonged to a secret society and was elected through the machinations of its members. But Zosima, even if he wanted to, could not then postpone the matter of heretics. The bishops who were at his installation had Gennady’s reports in their hands. The cathedral opened (October 18, 1490). Based on the investigations presented by Gennady, up to 9 people of clergy were condemned; The Grand Duke sent some to Novgorod to Gennady, and sent others into captivity. Gennady betrayed heresy to public shame: heretics were led through the streets in birch bark helmets with bast tassels, with wreaths made of straw and with the inscription: “Behold Satan’s army.” And God’s judgment stamped these people with the seal of wrath. After the conciliar condemnation, Dionysius fell into madness, shouted at different voices and died suddenly; the clerk Istoma's belly is rotten; Monk Zacharias suffered a painful death. Blessed Gennady was instructed by the council to calculate the Easter numbers for the eighth thousand years, a subject at that time that was important in many respects. On the one hand, a false belief has formed among the people that the end of Easter, located for seven thousand years, will certainly be followed by the end of the world; on the other hand, the Judaizers, having somehow become familiar with the Jewish chronology, pointed it out to the people to reinforce their ridicule of their faith. Blessed Gennady, whatever he did, did it with all the fullness of his soul. From his letter to Archbishop Joasaph, it is clear that he was deeply concerned about weakening the false rumors of the people regarding the expected end of the world and about suppressing the temptations that provided food for heresy. He was not content with a superficial look at the subject of general attention, but wanted to examine it from all sides. He wrote to his friend: “I think, according to Enoch, that the age works for man,” - time for man, and not man for time, “and 7000 years are laid down for human change,” measuring only the changes that followed with people.“According to the Theologian, we must expect death every hour.” “And even then, it seems to me,” Gennady continues, “haven’t the heretics stolen our years?” Otherwise, to what extent is Jewish chronology worthy of belief? “Is it true that according to our Easter, the time of doing was not fulfilled?” Those. should the Greek number of years be replaced by the Hebrew? “Talk about this in detail with Paisiy (Yaroslavov) and Nil (Sorsky), and write to me about it. Also, let me know if it’s possible for Paisius and Nila to visit me? It would be good to talk to them about those heresies.” Blessed Gennady in 1492 compiled a definition of Easter numbers for 70 years of the eighth thousand years and wrote the “Easter rotary key for 532 years,” in which not only in the whole eighth thousand years, but also further one can find the Easter number of both years. He sent out to his flock, along with Paschal, a district message with that main idea, that people are not allowed to know about the day and hour of Christ’s coming, and therefore it is criminal to talk about it. Blessed Gennady not only was not cruel towards heretics, on the contrary, he was very lenient, but the heretics used his lenience only for evil. The Monk Joseph of Volokolamsk testifies: “the heretics, fearing execution, began to repent with oaths; Archbishop Gennady, believing their repentance, gave them freedom, and as soon as they received it, they all rushed to flee and dispersed to many cities and villages and dispelled their wicked teaching.” The ignorance of the people at that time was fully consistent with the arrogant insolence with which those carried away by false opinions were ready to trample both conscience and the holy faith into the dirt. Less than three years had passed after the severe punishment to which the convicted heretics were subjected, when the heretics who had escaped trial with shameless impudence began to preach their wickedness again. The false belief of the simple-minded about the end of the world, which turned out to be unfounded, gave food to their insolence. “If Christ is the Messiah,” they said, “why does He not appear in glory as you expected?” They now laughed at the resurrection of the dead. In Gennady's flock, false teachers worried people in villages and monasteries. M. Zosima gave free rein to evil and even punished bold denouncers of wickedness. At the request of clerk Theodore Kuritsyn, Archimandrite Kassian, as daring as a heretic with a bad life, was sent to the Novgorod Yuryev Monastery; Hoping for the protection of Moscow, he began to gather heretics who had fled from Novgorod and did not want to look at Gennady. It’s hard to even talk about what wickedness preached, what abominations were happening in the meetings of Novgorod heretics. What was it like for a fiery zealot of Orthodoxy and a sincere shepherd of souls to look at this situation of his flock! He called the Rev. to help him. Joseph of Volokolamsk, and both of them, despite the strength of heresy at court, firmly rebelled against heresy. They finally reached the point where they Zosima (1494) laid aside his omophorion. The Novgorod archpastor, out of zeal against heresy, sent out translations of works against the Jews - the works of the translator Dimitri Gerasimov. One of his most important services to the Church of his time and subsequent times was that through his care all the books of the Holy Scriptures were collected into one general composition. On the one hand, this protected the simple-minded from deception.

into which heretics drew them, passing off forged and even fabulous works as sacred books. On the other hand, it delivered to the friends of Orthodoxy that book that was necessary for them at all times, while its hitherto fragmented parts were not easy to find even for the Novgorod archpastor himself. Work is blessed, the archpastor was highly valued in St. Churches. Of the currently known copies of the Gennadiev Bible, one belonged to M. Varlaam, who gave it to the Sergius Lavra, as an expensive contribution, for commemoration according to his soul; the other belonged to Tsar Ivan the Terrible, who sent it to the prince. Ostrozhsky to guide the publication of the Bible; the third was owned by the Ryazan bishop. - Blessed Gennady, with his zeal for Orthodoxy, was so reasonable that, feeling the need for a complete collection of books of St. scriptures, but not being able to find them all in an ancient translation from Greek, he commissioned the translation of some of them from Jerome’s Latin translation, and the translation was completed by the Slavic priest. Veniamin; The first 9 chapters of the book of Esther were translated directly from Hebrew, probably by the newly baptized Jew Daniel, who came to Gennady from Kyiv, which he himself mentioned in his letter to the metropolitan. Although the valiant warrior of Christ's truth did not have to participate in the actions of the council (from December 1504), which finally overthrew the heresy and its defenders; but he had the consolation of seeing and hearing that his exploits for the holy faith were blessed by the Church and her Lord. But when in the fall of the same year he sent his boyar to Pskov and with him hegumen Euthymy, who was the treasurer of Pskov, so that they would compile an inventory of churches and monasteries with their clergy, and Euthymy remained as his deputy in Pskov: “The Pskovites did not give in to the will him,” they did not do his will. The next year he himself went to them and, since they were worried about V ate at that time. Prince about the rights of slaves, then “he appeared at their veche meeting and, having taught a blessing to the people, for a long time offered pastoral instruction and, finally, left a letter” of the same love. The insult to the blessed archpastor was even more harsh in 1499. - As was the custom of his predecessors, he arrived in Pskov to perform pastoral prayers for his Pskov flock and then begin to consider court cases. The Pskovites extended their insolence to the point that they “forbade their priests to serve with him and the prosphora makers to prepare prosphora.” What does this mean? What is the reason for such insolence? “The Pskovites,” says the chronicle, “did not allow him to perform the conciliar service: “you,” they said, “you want to pray to God for V el.” Prince Vasily, and our mayors went to V el on this matter. Prince John." So, the fact is that the Pskovites, having declared in their council that the order of the Autocratic Sovereign about the heir to the throne was unjust, rebelled against their archpastor. They subsequently paid Vasily for this gross insult by losing their freedom.

Here is another feat of the blessed archpastor, which brings the greatest honor to both his mind and heart, and for which, however, he suffered many troubles in his time!

“I asked the Emperor,” he writes to the Metropolitan, to order the establishment of schools; For the honor of my Sovereign and for the salvation of the common, I reminded of this, and it would be easy for us. When they bring a competent protege to me, I order him to learn the litany and I do so, then, having taught him how to perform the Divine service, I release him immediately. And such people do not complain about me. - But then they bring a man to me: I order him to give the Apostle, but he doesn’t even know how to step; I order him to give the psalter, and even then he can hardly walk; I refuse him, and they shout: “This is the land, sir! We can’t find anyone who can read and write.” You see, he barked at the whole earth, as if there was not a single one who should be elected to the priesthood. They ask me: “Perhaps, sir, order me to teach.” And I order that the litanies be taught: but he doesn’t even know how to stick to a word; you tell him one thing, and he says another. I order you to learn the alphabet. After studying a little, they ask to go home, they don’t want to study. “That’s why they scold me, because of their negligence.” I can’t bet on ignoramuses. That is why I beg the Tsar to establish a school, so that with his wisdom and thunder, and with your blessing, this matter will come to order... My advice on what to teach in school is this: first the alphabet with a full interpretation and respectful words, then the psalter with investigation; if they study this, they can then study a lesson, with preparation, and canonarchy and read any book. Otherwise, ignorant men teach for money and only spoil things; moves away from the master and does not know how to do anything; - barely wanders through the book, but church order and doesn’t know at all... Will such people be Orthodox? In my opinion, they are not suitable for priests. “God said about them: “You have rejected My understanding, and I I will cast you off so that you will not be My servant.” Our lord and father! I was concerned about this before the Sovereign V el. Prince. – The late chronicler speaks with lively gratitude about the blessed one. Gennady: “he ordained priests and deacons who had studied with him for a long time; The presbyters and deacons appointed by him were so enlightened that they turned out to be lamps of the world, true shepherds and teachers of the flock entrusted to them, and all people received great benefit from them.”

In a letter (1499) to the Metropolitan, Gennady also wrote: “You, sir, spoke about subdeacons, that those who are appointed young and unmarried, but promise to maintain virginity, are given the freedom to enter the deacon and priestly ranks; but whoever gets married after that cannot receive either the deacon’s or the priest’s rank.” Gennady, for his part, proposes to introduce a rule to ordain deacons and presbyters only if they are married. Bl. the archpastor repeated his proposal at the council of 1501, and then it was decided to demand that those seeking the priesthood be married, and that widowed priests and deacons not perform the liturgy. In August 1503, Gennady signed the council’s resolution not to take duties for henchmen business neither to the bishop, nor to his treasurer and clerk (secretary), which was a useful measure against the cry of heretics.

In June 1504, the Grand Duke summoned Gennady to Moscow, and here the archbishop presented the bishop with a letter, by which he renounced the administration of the diocese and decided to “live monastically in the monastery, in submission and obedience.” The zealous archpastor had many enemies: heretics, ignorant priests with their patrons, and Pskovites. Of course, they took advantage of his clerk’s arbitrariness and slandered the blessed one. archpastor before c. Prince, and he decided to retire into solitude. He chose the Miracle Monastery as a place of solitude, where he worked so hard for St. Alexey. Here he “resigned himself to God” on December 4. 1505; His honorable body was laid in St. Michael's Church, in the very place where lay the incorruptible body of the saint. Alexy, before moving it to the new church of St. Alexia.

Blessed Scriptures Gennady are edifying for subsequent times. He did not condone the passion for ritual piety among his contemporaries and condemned those who used this passion for personal gain. Will not those who trade in external civilization turn this into an instruction for themselves? – In the addition to his Paschal it is written: “Judge both equally.” Zanežea threefold hallelujah, and in the fourth - glory to You, O God, appear trinitarian Divinity and inseparable. And a special hallelujah reveals one Divinity in two natures. Otherwise, just as a person speaks in his thoughts, so does good.” In the same Paschal, a member of the faith about the S. century. The Spirit reads like this: “and in the Holy Spirit of the Lord who gives life.

Troparion, tone 5:

You became like your ancient father,
Saint Father Gennady
collecting the holy books and disgracing the heretics
Showing zeal for God, you protected your flock,
pray now to Christ God
grant peace to the Church
and save our souls.

Kontakion, tone 4:

Like a gentle, gentle mentor
and the false accuser of the bold
The Church honors you, Saint Gennady,
In the same way, we cry out to you with love:
grant us simplicity, spirit and tenderness
and in the profession of law
keep our souls intact.

________________________________________________________________________

Service to Saint Gennady, Archbishop of Novgorod
Published based on materials from the archives of the Holy Trinity Monastery (Jordanville, USA).
Like the saints of our father Gennady, Archbishop of Novgorod, in Holy Rus' he burned the Jewish charm and sing together with the Great Martyr Barbara.
EVENING: Blessed is the man, on “Lord, I have cried,” tone 8.
By the true election of God/ let us accept the rod of holy service/ you have ruled your good people,/ having enlightened them with the light of the Holy Scriptures,/ you have appeared as a zealot of piety,/ and therefore we cry out in praise,/ to the saint of Christ, Blessed Gennady,/ pray to Christ God for the salvation of our souls.
With the true teaching of Christ / you nourished the souls of gladness / and in the darkness and shadow of death of heresy / you returned to the light of the commandments of God, / Red praise to the Russian Church / and glorious fertilizer for the lands of Novgorod, / Gennady, the blessed saint, / prayer book for our souls.
Filled with true love, / Saint Gennady of God, / in the midst of false brothers and secret apostates, / like a fragrant thorn, you flourished among thorns / and you put to shame the scoffers of the wicked, / you remained faithful even to death, / for this sake you accepted the crown of life / and prayed for our souls.
SLAVA, voice 6
The right faith was slandered in vain / and the holiness of the Lord was desecrated, / girded with Divine zeal, / you stood before the wicked in boldness with many, / like Elijah on Carmel and like your Lord on Calvary, / you ascended to the high seat / and you defeated the invisible enemy thou art,/ even though thou hast not seen the triumph of Truth on earth,/ but through thy labors and sufferings the Church has been adorned,/ in it grant us also to continually abide/ and with thee to glorify the Lord in the highest.
ON THE VERSE, tone 3 (or on litia).
Again the wicked congregation gathers / against the Lord, and against His Christ, and against His Church / imitating the ancient apostate, / again swearing at the death of the Sinless One, / but, like wax melts in the face of fire, / so it disappears from hearing your words, / to the God-wise saint Gennady,/ a great commander of the Lord.
This host of hostile gods, / keeping vain and false things, / conspires evilly against the Bride of the Lord, / and seduces those of little faith not to believe in the resurrection, / and to curse the Holy Mysteries, / and to blaspheme the teaching of Christ, / but on the rock of your confession, / like a fierce wave, it breaks, / foaming with all your shame, / and involuntarily showing the greatness of your spirit, / to the wise Saint Gennady, / the invincible commander of the Lord.
Again, the unfaithful disciple / betrays Christ to the Jews / and the apostate brings many many secret secrets. / Ole of weeping, ole of shame! / Ole of the madness of the wicked, / leading Christ and joining the Judaizers to the heresy, / but placed on guard by the Divine / about the verbal flock of the Lord / from the south You preached the coming of God/ and the one who arranged our salvation,/ to the God-wise Saint Gennady,/ the glorious commander of the Lord.
SLAVA, voice 4
Today the host of the wicked are put to shame / in your memory, most wonderful, / but the faithful rejoice in joy / and playfully glorify the Lord, / who has given us such a representative, / and a teacher, and a shepherd, and an unshakable confessor, / not deceived by the spirit of this age, / but for the truth of the one who has won the will / and the crown of heaven from the Lord.
TROPARION, tone 5
You have become like the ancient father, / Saint Father Gennady, / having collected the holy books and putting to shame the heretics, / showing zeal for God, protecting your flock, / pray now to Christ God / to grant peace to the Church / and save our souls.
IN THE MORNING:
Canon voice 4.
SONG 1. Irmos: The strong tristates were born from the Virgin, dispassionately in the depths of the soul, I pray to the tripartite flood, so that You, as in the tympanum in the mortification of the body, will sing a victorious song.
Grant me the word, O All-Powerful Savior, to glorify Your wondrous saint, who fought a good deed and is now brightly adorned with a victorious crown.
The horsemen, and tristats, and all the army of the mental Pharaoh took up arms against the Bride of Christ, driving away and dividing the property of the Lord, like self-interest, both by your word, Saint Gennady, as if you covered them with the abyss and mired them in the depths, like a stone.
Through you, the saint, as with His right hand, the Lord has erased those who resist, but now you are glorified in strength, and in the glory of heaven you rejoice, and you look upon those who exist in conditions on earth.
Theotokos: Having Thee, the Virgin, the speedy Intercessor and refuge of the weak, let us not be afraid of the evil one, let us avoid the wicked vacillations, and let us wholeheartedly hope to receive heavenly treasures.
SONG 3. Irmos: The bow of the strong is weak, and the weak are girded with strength, for this sake let my heart be strengthened in the Lord.
The marks of wickedness have strengthened themselves greatly at the thrones of the church and in the palaces of the kings, and in their pride they have spoken high and blasphemous words, but you, the saint, with your word have given affirmation in the Lord to the faithful.
The bow of the evil one is exhausted, and the body of the flattering one is exhausted to the end, but the Lord has given you the strength of a girdle against His enemies, giving you the prayer of prayer, like a fire that scorches the resistance, and bless the years of His righteous saint.
He who descended from Heaven and who ascended was preached by you, Father Gennady, who has the power to judge the end of the earth in righteousness, even though the hour of His coming is unknown, and you also count the years of the eighth thousand Paschal, O saint, so that the service of Truth may not cease until the coming of Christ.
Theotokos: Resolve our spiritual barrenness, O Virgin, and drive away the darkness of ignorance from the hearts of those overwhelmed by passions, so that we may bear undying fruit of piety.
SEDALEN, voice 4
In the infirmity of mankind, to the Ruler who crawled and by the machinations of flattering comma, you valiantly repelled the insolence of the enemy and you appeared to the Tsar as a guide to salvation, Gennady the Wise, and thus Holy Rus' was saved, strengthened by the scepter and staff of the bishop, and now pray for us, the saint, for the forgiveness of our sins grant, and now deliver your people from the bitter torment from the lawless rulers who find themselves.
GLORY, seat of the martyr, AND NOW: Theotokos.
SONG 4. Irmos: For the sake of love, generous, you became your image on your cross, and the pagans melted away, you are, more humane, my strength and praise.
You came from the south and from the Holy Virgin incarnate God before the faithful and the unfaithful, strengthening both of them, and cutting with the sword the words of God, as if to death those who had fallen and were incurably sick.
You stood in Divine watch over the flock of Christ’s sheep, until you saw the shame of the wicked, O saint, looking down on your flock, bringing praise to God who strengthened you in battle.
Ole the wickedness of the wicked, manifestly pious, but secretly Judaizing, reproaching every holy thing of the church, sludge created by a demon, but like wax from the face of fire, your words, Father, melted.
Theotokos: Hasten to the aid of those who are immersed in cruel misfortunes, O Pure Mother of the Lord, overthrow the wicked's vacillations, and intercede with those who sing.
SONG 5. Irmos: Thy Enlightenment, Lord, send down upon us and resolve us from the darkness of sins, O Good One, grant Thy peace.
From the night of the morning, your spirit to the Lord about faith, desecrated by fierce blasphemy, and you also copied the entire set of Divine Scriptures, O God-Wise One, by whom all Rus', having been enlightened, sings thanks to you.
By the dew of your words, you have given healing to those who suffer from heresy and to those who have lost their minds, O saint, but the land of the wicked has fallen, those who do not confess the Tri-radiant God-origin Light and have avenged the incarnation of the Only Begotten.
Truly, more than the resurrection of the dead, there is a great and most glorious miracle, that the one who died through evil blasphemy will again turn to piety and turn to praise, but in you, Father, who has done the most glorious, those who are on earth rejoice.
Theotokos: No one will see the Light, sweep aside the icons of Your worship, but do not give honor to the image, as the illumination of reception may be possible from the original lightness.
SONG 6. Irmos: I sank into the depths of the sea and was drowned by a storm of many sins: but as God raised up my belly from the depths, O Omni-merciful One.
The Russian Church was swallowed up in vain by the depth of malice and the abyss of blasphemy. You cried out to the Lord with all your heart, and you were heard more than hope, Father, and even now we resort to your prayer.
With your understanding you have descended to the very abyss of the enemy’s secret undertakings, so that you may raise the lost souls from the decay of the fury of the ungodly!
Those who guard the vain and false forsake the Merciful and Righteous Lord, and armed themselves with all the malice of the flattering tongue to honor Him, but you, the saint, in the voice of praise and confession, devoured the true sacrifice, and you completely overthrew the machinations of those.
Theotokos: Do not turn Your face away from us, O Lady, but look mercifully upon Your people who have sinned, even though we fall in multitudes of fierce sins, but we always seek Your mercy and You, as we glorify the Mother of God and the warm Intercessor.
KONDAK, tone 4
As a gentle, meek mentor/ and a bold, deceitful accuser/ the Church honors you, Saint Gennady,/ and we also cry out to you with love:/ grant us humility and a spirit of tenderness/ and in confessing the right/ keep our souls unharmed.
ICOS. Come, hunger for God's truth, and heavenly seeker, let us rejoice in the memory of our strong representative Gennady, and let us heed his punishment: like roaring lions and heretics, looking for someone to devour, they first attack the careless and lazy, and the secret and cold affairs of the unrepentant conveniently release and resolve , we are thus bound to ourselves by the bonds of sin, and let us fall to the good shepherd, as if a laborious heart may intercede for us from the Lord to seek the heavenly ones and in confessing the truth may keep our souls intact.
SONG 7. Irmos: Abrahamsti sometimes in Babylon the youths trampled the fire of the cave with songs crying out: Our father, God, blessed art thou.
The deception and frenzy of Christ in your days became like a furnace of fire, but now you have been ignited with the sevenfold on your Church, hasten to help us, O Saint, and cry with you: our Father God, blessed art thou.
Like Daniel in the den of lions, in the midst of the apostate walking secretly, you stopped those evil lips, Father Gennady, and now you have come forth into the uneven light: our father, God, blessed are you.
You turned the flame kindled by the madness and bullshit of man into the spiritual dew of Orthodoxy, and you taught us to cry out: our father, God, blessed are you.
Theotokos: You, the Most Pure Lady, like the prophet of the ancients who fulfilled the aspirations of the ancients, we sing with silent songs: truly you who clothed God in flesh and bestowed Him with man, blessed art thou.
SONG 8. Irmos: O Omnipotent Savior of all, who was pious in the midst of the flame, you descended to water it, and taught you to sing: bless all your deeds, sing to the Lord.
Then and as a robber who approached, enraged by the incorruptible wealth of mental piety of dogmas, you forbade the saint with rebuke, but you taught the faithful to sing: bless all your deeds, sing to the Lord.
If the True Messiah has not come, you are waiting for Him in vain, you will be an enemy and a criminal in your sins, until He comes into the fire and sends you away unlighted. Do not forbid us to cry out everlastingly: bless all your deeds, sing praises to the Lord.
Theotokos: Bring, O Good Prayer to the Lord, accept the prayer book and Thy saint Gennady, who moved by Thy love, teaches us to bless and sing to Thee forever.
SONG 9. Irmos: Eve, through the illness of disobedience, instilled an oath, but You, Virgin Mother of God, through the vegetation of womb-bearing and the blessing of the world, you have flourished, therefore we all magnify You.
In our sins, let us die, the oaths of Eve’s heir, even if by warm faith and all kinds of zeal, we will accept the Preached One from you, the saint, and work for that One, as the Savior and the Enlightener and the strong Helper, and the righteous Rewarder, who has an abyss of generosity.
Be a warm representative for us, Gennady, protect your flock from the wolves that are destroying it, and moreover, nourish your hungry souls with the word of the Divine, so that we all magnify you.
Trinitarian: Whoever believes in the One Godhead, who rejects the Trinitarian godliness, has found his father not in heaven, but in the underworld of the earth, who has neither created nor begot a single creature, but from his womb he brought forth every lie, and his sonship was given as a gift to those who favored untruth.
Theotokos: With the light of Your Son, enlighten our souls and illuminate our thoughts, O Good Lady, with a pure heart and with lofty thoughts we all magnify You.
Svetilen: Today, great Novograd, be enlightened, sing spiritual songs in the memory of your chairman Gennady in the face of your saints who have risen, in them is your praise and affirmation.
ON PRAISE, voice 4.
Praise the Lord in His strength,/Praise His wonders in His service,/how He stood against the host of evildoers,/like a stone of the sea against many waters,/and He left us a good inheritance to eat/the dogmas of our fathers, valuable wealth/for the enlightenment and salvation of our souls.
Praise the Lord with a trumpet voice, / Praise in songs of thanksgiving / Saint Gennady of the Lord, / who gave the complete set of Divine Scriptures for the edification of his people, / to drive away slander and heretical blasphemies, / for the enlightenment and salvation of our souls.
Praise the Lord in tympanum and face, / Now sing to His saint, / Saint Gennady the wise, / the praise of the bright land of Novgorod / and all Russia, mentor and representative, / strengthening your people in piety / and teaching them to see through the machinations of the enemy / into enlightenment and salvation our souls.
Praise the Lord with good cymbals / and on the bright days of Easter, / when every breath praises the Creator, / and remember His saint Gennady, people, / on the eighth millennium Paschal was made for us, / and we also hold fast to the traditions about it, / and the church calendar, / times and years in His power, and not in ours, Who has placed / gloriously unceasingly / for the enlightenment and salvation of our souls.

Message from Archbishop Gennady of Novgorod to Bishop Prokhor of Sarsky. 1487

“The Message of Gennady to Prokhor of Sarsky” is the first of the letters sent by the Novgorod ruler in connection with the issue he raised in 1487-1488. the case of the Novgorod heretics. As I. Khrushchov already noted, this “Message” was written even before Ivan III made a decision in the case of iconoclast priests (February 1488) and before Gennady himself sent a message to Niphon of Suzdal (January 1488). (See I. Khrushchov. Studies on the writings of Joseph Sanin. St. Petersburg, 1868, pp. XVIII and XXII. See RIB, vol. VI, columns 754-760; cf. below, p. 312.) “Message of Gennady Prokhor" has not yet been published in full. Some excerpts from it were given by I. Khrushchev in the description of “Sources” for his book “Studies on the Works of Joseph Sanin” (pp. XVI-XVIII). The “Message” has reached us in the following lists: 1) GPB, Q.XVII. 64 (from the collection of F. Tolstoy, department II, No. 68); 4°; ser. XVI century (on the first sheets of paper by Nifont Kormilitsyn, who was Archimandrite Novospassky in 1543-1554). Collection. L. 317 vol. - “Message to Prokhor Sarsky.” A detailed description is in the “Detailed description of the Slavic-Russian manuscripts of F. A. Tolstoy” - K. Kalaidovich and P. Stroev (M., 1825, p. 256) and in I. Khrushchov (cit. cit., pp. XII-XIX); 2) BIL, Music. No. 3271; 4°; con. XV century See about this collection below, pp. 386-388 and 388-390. Only a part of the “Message to Prokhor” has been preserved here (ll. 6-7 vol.). 3) State Historical Museum, Synod. No. 562; 4°; beginning XVI century Collection (see about it in the archaeographic introductions to monuments No. 1-6). L. 182 vol. - “Message to Prokhor.” 4) TsGADA, collection. Mazurina (f. 196), No. 1054; 8°; ser. XVI century Collection. L. 88 vol. - “Message to Prokhor of Sarsky” (there is a gap inside the text of the message). The publication is based on list Q.XVII.64 (D); corrections - according to the list of Muses. No. 3271 (B) and Mazur. No. 1054 (A). [**] Letter from Archbishop Genady of Novgorod to Bishop Prokhor of Sarsky, the most luminous and God-loving, and about the holy soul, brother and fellow servant Prokhor, Bishop of Sarsky and Podonsk, with this writing we send worthy spiritual love to your love for God, as if you will be in all-spirited health, both spiritually and physically. Contribute to Christ's God and His Most Pure Mother of Her Honorable Image to help Christ's Named One Orthodox Christian against those who blaspheme against our Lord Jesus Christ and who have dishonored the image of our most pure mistress, the Mother of God, the Novgorod heretics, the Jewish philosophists. The essence of these heretics is covered with the oath of reproach of the Markian and Mesalian verbs. These, when asked, reject their commands and shamelessly and zealously swear and curse all those who philosophize or those who philosophize and turn around without fear, as if they were the orders of those who hate. We remember this for your love of God, which is not weightless and for this reason it was said that they will be found comfortably, just as they have the books lying in the patriarchy: whoever does not reject to the extent of suppression having divided and cursed himself has not yet lost his mind, what was written on them the word will be fulfilled: “Immerse, O Lord, and divide their tongues.” You will find these chapters about the Markyans in your rules. If there are no rules in yours, then the rules are written in the Grand Duke. Yes, you sent a letter, and the original to the Metropolitan, what Naum the priest said, and the notebooks, why they prayed in the Jewish way, and there you will see everything that was done, and how the psalms were converted to their custom. And priest Naum wouldn’t have made penance, and wouldn’t have wanted to join Christianity again, otherwise how could he have powerfully learned from their oath how they are rejecting their commands? Yes, that they serve the Divine Liturgy unworthily is revealed in Chapter 12, and that they swear without fear, otherwise the same heresies are revealed in Chapter 19. Yes, there are heresy-mesalians, they all philosophize, only to deceive people with the Jewish decalogue, as if they think they are pious. Yes, that charm here spreads not only in the cities, but also throughout the village. And all this comes from priests who were put in priesthood by heretics. Yes, wherever they are among the Orthodox, and they show themselves to be the same. If they see someone from the simple ones, they are ready to catch themselves. Yes, for this reason they put them in the priesthood, so that they can attract anyone as powerfully as possible into their heresy, even before they are able to keep the spiritual children. And whoever is protected by faith and strong in the Orthodoxy of Christianity, they are hidden from him, and they are revealed to him. If someone is weak and lazy, and is prone to the sinful yoke, they show him as a weak apostate to the faith and accept him into their heresy. But what he sinned, or fornication, or adultery, or committed other sins, is conveniently forgiven, not according to the church canon. What if someone from the Orthodox, in reproach, rises up against them about their heresies, and they mark off their heresies, and they curse everyone who does such things, and they move around without fear, but they do it themselves, and they do not commit a sin to themselves in that oath . Otherwise, how can they be powerfully milked, if not Christ God frees them from this heresy through the prayers of his most pure mother, and the thunderstorm and search of the Grand Duke, and the feat of our lord father Gerontius, Metropolitan of All Rus', and your love of God, together with the archimandrites and celebrants, I remember to the great sovereign, so that the sovereign of his great-grandfather, the Great Prince Vladimer, confirmed the faith, and freed Orthodox Christianity from heretical delusions, and in the future he will receive an incorruptible crown with the Orthodox Tsar Constantine together with his great-grandfather Vladimer, who baptized the entire Russian land? If they commit a mistake, I fear the wrath of God, I ask you, O lover of God, with tenderness, so that you show this feat more thoroughly, together with the archimandrites and the prosthetists, to receive the bribe from the Lord God. And they want to say that the numbers set in the Sixth Krill are 276 nineteens, otherwise they did it for Christian delusion - they want to say: the years of the Christian chronicler have shortened, but ours remain. Otherwise, they want to reveal that charm as our Paschalia comes out, I have already passed it through trials, and it is written by me. Otherwise, the numbers that are set, 276 nineteen years, will be 5228. And therefore, otherwise they still do not have the coming of Christ, otherwise they are waiting for the Antichrist. Otherwise, great beauty! And I found in the scriptures that which king was after whom, and how long the king lived, and which patriarch was in Jerusalem, or the pope in Rome according to whom he was, and how many years who lived, and their bishops write, not patriarchs. Otherwise it is written: worldly years 5000 and six hundred and 21, and from the divine incarnate 121 years, the Roman bishop 9 Ugiin 4 years, and the bishop of Jerusalem 14 Joseph 2 years, and the bishop of Jerusalem 15 Judas, then they were baptized from the Jews under that Judas Andrean , the final and final captivity of the city and the Jews happened quickly. Yes, for this reason, the first bishop Marco, about 8 years old, was from the tongue of the uncircumcised. Otherwise it is written there 5000 years and 6 hundred and 21 in the summer and their captivity was the last. And from here to these places the gods remain in wrath for 400 years and 1000. Moreover, they are reckless, corrupting our glory, as it is written about them: neither entering themselves, nor leaving those who want to enter. But what years that the heretics of the Jews stole from us the numbers, and in those years which kings and popes and patriarchs were written by name, and then where to accommodate them? And that they have studied the Six-Winged One and thereby deceive Christianity, I think it’s like they’re bringing down a sign from heaven, but it didn’t happen according to their design! The hexagon is taken from astronomy, like a drop from the sea. And then the law of the stars was given to Seth, the third son of Adam. Yes, then the righteous Enoch wrote down the days and hours and years, and then Noah was betrayed to the last generation. Abraham went to Egypt and taught the Egyptians land surveying and earthly calculations. And then the Jews learned this from them. And in every language, that is, and in Christianity, the teachers of this were great - John Chrysostom, Basil of Caesarea, Gregory the Theologian. And in Gregory’s Life of Akragan it is written: dondezhe de arithmitia and geomitry and music and astronomy all the way to the end. For this reason, for the sake of remembering your love for God, these abominable teachings, contrary to the divine commandment, are being put aside by the Jews. And about the flight of death, God powerfully applies and lays it down. And I explain to the theologian Gregory, and in the Mirror I obey the wise man, I bring testimony to the same Gregory: when the upper world is filled, then expect the end. And the righteous Enoch wrote: “Before all things had not been, God set up the created age and then created all creation, visible and invisible, and for all this made man into his image, and then for the sake of God divided the age of man into seasons and years into months and into days and hours, and may man understand the change of times and honor the end of his life. And when the creation that God created ends, then times will perish, and there will be no more years, then days and hours will not be counted, but the age will become one.” And the rest is not weightless, but the mercy of the Lord God the Almighty and His Most Pure Mother and our humble prayer, and may blessing always be with your holiness and love of God. Amen.

Notes

So A; T about on the field attributed to wedge. So A; T it has been revealed that there are no heresies, but there is an insertion mark in this place At this point the text in A is interrupted. The text begins in B T Christian summer on the field; B in text So B; T Usiin T captivity inserted into the field; B in text B circumcised So B; T astromea. Text A continues from here. B theologian; And so. So BA; T from the Lord The text ends in B !] T after mercy alone scraped out

Gennady (Gonzov)(+ 1504), Archbishop of Novgorod, Saint. The first prominent opponent of the Judaizer heresy. Commemorated on December 4 (December 17), in the Cathedrals of Moscow Saints, Novgorod Saints and Novgorod Saints.

He came from the Gonzov family and was, according to contemporaries, “a man of dignity, intelligent, virtuous and knowledgeable in the Holy Scriptures.” The initial obedience took place in the Valaam monastery under the spiritual guidance of St. Savvaty of Solovetsky.

Since 1472 - Archimandrite of the Chudov Monastery in Moscow. A zealot of strict statutory worship, in 1479-1481 Archimandrite Gennady, together with Vassian, Archbishop of Rostov, and then with his successor Joasaph, defended the ancient charter in the dispute that arose about the procession " salting"at the illumination of the new temple.

In 1483, Saint Gennady began to build a stone refectory church in the Chudov Monastery in honor of his revered Saint Alexis, Metropolitan of Moscow (+1378), founder of the monastery.

His position as the Novgorod archbishop was surrounded by significant difficulties: he was the second person to occupy the department by appointment from Moscow. The last archbishop to be elected by the people's veche was Theophilus, who, being suspected of being loyal to Lithuania, was captured in 1480 and imprisoned in one of the Moscow monasteries, from where he only sent a letter of abdication in 1482. After him, the Trinity Elder Sergius was installed, whose personal character and tactless attitude towards Novgorod shrines further complicated the already difficult position of the representative of the Novgorod church.

Gennady immediately declared himself a zealous servant of Moscow and persistently set about carrying out the political and church aspirations of the central government in the Novgorod diocese, although here he had to meet stubborn opposition from the local clergy, to whom Moscow rule caused sensitive material damage confiscation of part of the church and monastery lands and the rich Sofia treasury. St. Gennady acted slowly and carefully, but firmly and consistently. Little by little, he ensured that the local clergy became accustomed to the veneration of Moscow saints and saints and introduced prayers for the sovereign into daily services.

In one of his first letters, St. Gennady expressed a program for the relationship of the clergy to government power: the clergy must carry out the orders of this government, because the Moscow sovereigns “ obedience is more important than many virtues"; but at the same time, great sovereigns must recognize the leadership role of the clergy and submit to it - a point of view wholly accepted and developed by the Josephite clergy.

St. Gennady owns the statutory instruction on the liturgical veneration of Russian saints. Reverent for the memory of the great Saint Alexy, Gennady, and being in Novgorod, did not cease to take care of the construction of the temple named after him: “ And there was enough silver to build that temple and meal and chambers.«.

The fight against the heresy of the Judaizers

The time of the priesthood in Novgorod of the holy Archbishop Gennady coincided with a formidable period in the history of the Russian Church - the spread of the heresy of the Judaizers. Jewish preachers, who came to Novgorod under the guise of traders, began sowing the tares of heresy and apostasy among the Orthodox since 1470. False teaching was spread secretly.

The first news of the heresy reached Saint Gennady in 1487: four members of a secret society, in a drunken stupor denouncing each other, discovered the existence of an ungodly heresy before the Orthodox. As soon as this became known to the saint, the zealous archpastor immediately began a search and with deep sorrow became convinced that the danger threatened not only local Novgorod piety, but also the capital itself, where the leaders of the Judaizers had moved back in 1480. In September 1487, he sent to Moscow, Metropolitan Gerontius, the entire search file in the original, along with a list of apostates he had discovered and their writings. The fight against the Judaizers became the main subject of the archpastoral activity of Saint Gennady.

The fight against heresy was carried out not on the basis of theological disputes and denunciations, but through administrative measures. Although St. Gennady was an educated man for his time, but his theological erudition was not outstanding. He considered theological debates with heretics to be directly harmful and in his letter to the council of bishops he expressed the idea that a council on faith should not be allowed, since “our people are simple, they do not know how to speak from ordinary books: so that no speeches about faith should be made with them.” " A council against heretics is needed, but not for a debate about faith, but in order to “execute them, burn them and hang them.” Gennady even tried to organize an exemplary auto-da-fé: when the council of 1490 sentenced some heretics to imprisonment and sent them to Novgorod, the saint ordered to meet them outside the city, dress them in birch bark helmets with the inscription “behold Satan’s army,” put them on horses facing the tail and in this form, drive through the streets, and then light their helmets.

However, all energetic measures against heretics recommended by St. Gennady, did not come true, since the heretics found support in Moscow and lived there quietly. Then St. Gennady turned to another measure - to a spiritual weapon.

Since among the clergy not only there were not enough trained people, but there were even few literate ones, St. Gennady petitioned Metropolitan Simon to establish schools. Measures to improve religious education among the clergy and people could not, of course, give quick results. To combat heresy, the saint turned for help to the abbot of the Volokolamsk monastery, Joseph of Volotsky, who became the most prominent fighter for Orthodoxy.

The saint invites to himself the learned elders Paisius Yaroslavov and Nil Sorsky - “ talk about those heresies“, searches through monasteries for books needed to fight heretics; It is curious that the Orthodox did not have many such books, not even the archbishop himself, but the heretics did have them.

"Gennadievskaya Bible"

The main task of Gennady, the compilation of the Slavic codex of biblical books, was partly connected with the same goal - to fight heresy with spiritual weapons. Until this very time, neither Russian writing nor the South Slavs had a biblical canon. Biblical books were copied in Rus', following the example of Byzantium, not in the form of a whole set, but in separate parts - the Pentateuch or Octateuch, Kingdoms, Proverbs and other teaching books; Psalms, Prophets, Gospels and Apostles. Biblical books, like any other, were offered to the ancient Russian reader in various collections, very diverse in content - together with and next to the works of the church fathers, lives, various teachings, often with apocryphal works or even directly with secular stories like “Alexandria”. It was too difficult for the literate masses to navigate among this literary chaos of collections, and this determines the significance of the work of St. Gennady. He was the first to isolate biblical books from the chaotic written mass of collections, collect them into one codex, and thereby lay the foundation for the Slavic Bible.

The sacred books of the Old Testament were especially often subject to accidental and intentional damage. Saint Gennady wrote about this with sorrow in a message to Archbishop Joasaph: “ They keep the Jewish heretical tradition - they distorted the psalms of David or the prophecies". Gathering around him scientists and biblical scholars, the saint collected all the books of the Holy Scriptures in a single set, blessed again to translate from Latin those of the Holy books that were not doomed to him in the handwritten tradition of the Slavic Bible, and in 1499 the first complete the body of Holy Scripture in the Slavic language - the “Gennady Bible”, as it is respectfully called by the name of its compiler, which has become an integral link in the continuity of the Slavic translation of the Word of God.

Work of St. Gennady composed an era in the history of the biblical Slavic canon and formed the basis of subsequent printed publications. The Code, however, was not even distinguished by the unity of the text in terms of language; some books were included there in the most ancient, perhaps even the original Cyril and Methodius translation, others in a significantly updated or even later text; some, finally - probably not at all found by Gennady in the Russian writing of that time - were translated on his instructions from Latin, from the Vulgate, and part of one book - even directly from Hebrew. It is impossible not to especially note the strong influence of the Vulgate in the work of the saint; St. Gennady took it as his main guide instead of the Greek Bible. The arrangement, the very order of the books, their division into chapters are done according to the Vulgate and in accordance with the Vulgate; Preliminary articles about books and prefaces to them are borrowed from the same Vulgate. The Vulgate does not contain 3 Maccabees at all; it is not in Gennady’s code either. At the same time, the saint also uses the German Bible, which was already in print at that time. The work of Gennady Novgorodsky is, therefore, in highest degree a curious fact of the influence of the West in our country.

Along with the preparation of the Bible, the circle of church scribes under Archbishop Gennady carried out extensive literary work: the “Fourth Novgorod Chronicle” was compiled, brought up to 1496, numerous handwritten books were translated, corrected and rewritten. Solovetsky abbot Dosifei, who arrived in Novgorod on monastic affairs, worked for several years (from 1491 to 1494) with St. Gennady, compiling a library for the Solovetsky monastery. At the request of the saint, Dosifei wrote the life of the monks Zosima and Savvaty. Most of the books copied with the blessing of the saint of Novgorod (more than 20) for the Solovetsky monastery have been preserved as part of the Solovetsky collection of manuscripts.

Easter

The memory of Saint Gennady is also preserved in his other work for the benefit of the Orthodox Church. At the end of the 15th century, the menacing thought of the imminent end of the world, which was expected after the seventh thousand years from the creation of the world, loomed over Russian minds. After the end of the peace circle in 1408, Rus' did not dare to continue the Easter celebration beyond 1491. In September 1491, the Bishops' Council of the Russian Church in Moscow, with the participation of St. Gennady, determined: “ Write Easter for the eighth thousand years". November 27, 1492 Metropolitan Zosima " in Moscow laid out the Paschal for 20 years at the cathedral"and instructed Bishop Philotheus of Perm and Archbishop Gennady of Novgorod to compile each their own Paschal for conciliar witnessing and approval on December 21, 1492. Saint Gennady finished compiling his Paschalia, which, unlike the Metropolitan’s, was continued for 70 years, and, distributing to the dioceses the accepted Paschalia approved by the Council for 20 years, he added his own to it, along with the interpretation on it and the District Charter, under the general title " The beginning of Easter, shifted to the eighth thousand years". In the theological interpretation of Paschal, based on the Word of God and the testimony of the holy fathers, the saint wrote: “ It is not proper to fear the end of the world, but to wait for the coming of Christ at all times. As long as God deigns the world to stand, so long will the passage of time last". Times were arranged by the Creator not for Himself, but for man: “ May man understand the change of times and honor the end of his life". About the timing of the completion of God’s creation, “no one knows, neither the Angels, nor the Son, but only the Father.” Therefore, the holy fathers, by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, outlined the peace circle precisely as a “circle”: “ These perpetrators are endless, endless«.

The saint opposed the heretical temptations about calculating dates, the path of constant spiritual sobriety, sanctified by the Church. Saint Gennady sets out the theological foundations of Paschal, explaining how, with the help of Alpha, the great peace circle, one can bring Paschal to the future, as far as necessary. The Paschal of St. Gennady, according to his testimony, was not compiled by him anew, but was derived on the basis of a previous tradition - in particular, on the basis of the Paschal written for the years 1360-1492 under St. Basil Kalik, Archbishop of Novgorod (+1352). According to the rules for working with Paschalia, approved by Saint Gennady, later, in 1539, under Archbishop Macarius of Novgorod, a Paschalia was compiled for the entire eighth thousand years.

For nineteen years the struggle of Saint Gennady and Saint Joseph continued against the strongest attempt of the opponents of Orthodoxy to change the entire course of the history of the Russian Church and the Russian state. Through the labors of the holy confessors, the struggle was crowned with the victory of Orthodoxy.

According to the Rev. Joseph of Volotsky, “ this archbishop, having been released against the evil heretics, rushed at them like a lion from the thicket of the Divine Scriptures and the red mountains of prophetic and apostolic teachings«.

The high spiritual life and prayerful inspiration of the saint is evidenced by the prayer he composed in 1497 to the Most Holy Theotokos. In addition to the well-known messages to Metropolitans Zosima and Simon, Archbishop Joasaph, Bishops Nifont and Prokhor, messages to the Council of 1490, Archbishop Gennady wrote the church “Ustavets” and “Tradition to the monks” living according to the rules of skete life.

Removal from the pulpit and death

The system of Moscow collections from the clergy in favor of the Novgorod ruler was streamlined through the efforts of the archbishop. Gennady. In 1503, he was summoned to a council in Moscow, where the issue of not charging fees for appointment to church-hierarchical positions was discussed and resolved in the affirmative. But Archbishop Gennady, according to the chronicle, began to take bribes from priests for more than before, for which in 1504 Grand Duke and the metropolitan brought him down from the pulpit. In June of the same year, he submitted a letter of abdication to the Metropolitan and settled in the Chudov Monastery, where he peacefully reposed in the Lord on December 4, 1504.

In the Degree Book we read:

Archbishop Gennady remained in the archbishopric for nineteen years, many corrections were made about church splendor and about priestly deanery, and heretics were disgraced, and Orthodox faith confirm, then the miracles of the Archangel Michael and St. Alexis the Metropolitan and the miraculous, where before they were in the archimandrites, remained in the monasteries for half a third summer, then they reposed to God.

The holy relics of Archbishop Gennady were placed in the Church of the Miracle of St. Archangel Michael in Khoneh, in the place where the relics of Saint Alexy, Metropolitan of Moscow, who was especially revered by him, had previously rested.

Troparion to Saint Gennady, Archbishop of Novgorod

Troparion

voice 5

You have become like the ancient father, Saint Father Gennady, having collected the Holy Books and put to shame the heretics, showing zeal for God, protecting your flock, and now pray to Christ God to grant peace to the Church and save our souls.