Anatoly Berestov is a religious and public figure

This man turned 78 years old, but at the same time he retained the cheerfulness of the body and clarity of mind. Anatoly Berestov is a well-known and authoritative person among believing people, today he has helped hundreds of sick and needy. By education Berestov was a medical doctor and once held the position of the chief children's neurologist in Moscow. Many know Anatoly Berestov not only as spiritual mentor and priest, but also as the strongest physician of a neurologist who understands a number of mental pathologies, and also in the nature of human addictions. The rehabilitation center he created helps hundreds of drug addicts and alcoholics cope with their addictions.

Despite the fact that Berestov was brought up in the classical communist family of atheists, various miracles and God's providences often occurred in his life, which helped him turn to faith.

Family and childhood of the future hieromonk

Anatoly Berestov was born in Moscow on September 11, In addition to him, there were 2 other brothers in the family: Mikhail and Nikolay. Berestov grew up as an ordinary child and did not stand out particularly among his peers.

The boy's family was completely unbelieving. At school, children were taught communist atheism, and going to church was considered a stupid and shameful affair.

The prophetic joke

Being an adult, Anatoly Berestov remembered a very revealing story from his childhood, when his own words, dropped around the church as a joke, became prophetic. Once, together with his brother Mikhail, he walked past the church after school and saw how the people emerging from there carried twigs of birch. This act seemed very amusing to two inexperienced guys, and Anatoly jokingly told his brother that when they grow up, he will become a priest and the brother a monk. The guy could not even imagine then that by these words he had determined his future life and the fate of his brother Mikhail.

After graduation, Berestov entered the feldsher school and began to work in his specialty. Then he was called up for military service and served in the city of Podolsk. Receiving leave, he came to Moscow and was sure to visit his parents' home.

Fateful prediction of a nun

By that time Anatoly's brother - Mikhail Berestov - had become a believer and turned to the church. On this ground, brothers often argued, since Anatoly refused to take religion seriously. During one of the next discussions, Mikhail said that he no longer wants to argue with his brother about God, for soon Tolik himself will understand everything and know the truth.

Shortly before the meeting with his brother, Mikhail happened to visit the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, where he met with a nun. She said that soon Brother Anatoly would become a believer. Since the nun in his environment was a fairly authoritative person, Michael decided not to rush things and not to press on his brother. He just gave him the Gospel, hoping that Anatoly will read it in time.

Decision to serve God

Meanwhile, Anatoly Berestov seriously took a great interest in medicine and decided to receive higher education in this field. For this he entered the Second Moscow Medical Institute. The young man was studying well and was one of the best students. During the second year of the curriculum, he was recommended to read one of the works of Vladimir Lenin entitled "Marxism and Empirio-Criticism."

The book had no effect on Anatolia. Instead of strengthening the basis of atheism and communism in the boy's mind, it caused him complete misunderstanding. Berestov began to wonder that if this work is recognized as the top of philosophy, then what is the meaning of life.

It was during this period that he remembered the gospel that his brother had given him. Anatoly came home with the firm intention to read it, but, unfortunately, he could not find the book in the house. After searching all the places where it could theoretically be, the future priest decided to mentally turn to God and asked him to give him any sign. Literally immediately after that there was a knock at the door, and on the threshold was a neighbor who came to return the same Gospel. She said that she took him to read from Michael and forgot about him, and now just remembered and came to return the book.

For Berestov this was a kind of sign, he read the whole book and believed absolutely everything that was written there.

A successful career in medicine

Simultaneously with the knowledge of God's teaching, Anatoly continued to study at the institute. When he was in his sophomore year, the educational institution learned that the guy was visiting the temple. This was the reason for organizing a special meeting. The student wanted to be expelled from the institute, believing that visiting the temple was immoral behavior, unacceptable for a medical student. But his classmates stood up for the protection of the young man, who, fortunately, felt that excluding a talented student because of his faith was at least foolish.

Thus, Anatoly Berestov stayed at the medical institute. After the release of his career was very successful. As the main direction, he chose neuropathology. In 1966 he became an intern, then a graduate student. Further, he became an assistant professor of medical sciences, and soon a professor. For a long time he taught at the Medical Institute. Since 1985, for the entire 10 years, Berestov has held the post of the chief neuropathologist of Moscow.

The personal life of a priest

The history of marriage and further marital life in the future priest also was not without miracles. After graduating from medical school, he was in love with his future wife and was determined to marry her. At this time, his spiritual mentor was one well-known elder from the Trinity-Sergius Lavra. He strongly advised Anatolia to abandon the idea of marrying, but to choose the path of a monk, since such a share is destined for him. But the young man did not intend to surrender and took the blessing for marriage from a high-ranking bishop.

Then the elder-confessor said that with his wife Berestov will live only 10 years, and then she will die, leaving him two children. Paradoxically, all the words of the old man turned out to be prophetic. Berestov's wife died in 1977. Many years later, in 1991, Anatoly received a deacon and began to serve in the Tsaritsyno temple. Two years later, in 1993, he was nevertheless tonsured as a monk, and in 1995 he was ordained as a hieromonk.

Appointment to a managerial post

Since 1991, the priest has experience in managing rehabilitation centers. It was in this year that he was appointed director in the children's center for the rehabilitation of patients with cerebral palsy. However, until 1996, Father Anatoly Berestov did not leave medicine - in the status of a professor of science he worked at the Department of Nervous Diseases at the Medical Institute.

Rehabilitation center of Anatoly Berestov

Over time, he had the idea to create his own center, where it would be possible to provide spiritual and psychological help to those who suffered from various occult organizations and sects, which in the late 90's in the country appeared very much.

In 1996, Hieromonk Anatoly Berestov received for this good cause the blessing of the Most Holy Patriarch. In this way, the Spiritual Counseling Center of the name of the righteous John of Kronstadt was created. As originally intended, it provided assistance to all those who were victims of pseudo-visionaries, Satanists and other sectarians. People who for a long time fell under hypnosis and mass zombification, turned to the Christian faith and received spiritual food for healing. Since the head of the center was a neuropathologist with considerable experience, he understood and knew how to provide psychological rehabilitation to such victims, and, if necessary, psychiatric help.

Multidisciplinary assistance to those in need of healing

In 1998, an unusual event took place in the center: many people came to the rehabilitation, who suffered from the activities of one of the satanic sects. The problem was that almost all the victims were drug addicts. After this incident, Anatoly Berestov, whose center before this case was engaged only in spiritual rehabilitation, realized that he must provide assistance to drug addicts and alcoholics. Since then, he has developed a special program for drug and alcohol addicts, which has been successfully used for more than 10 years. The most surprising is that, according to Berestov, after the rehabilitation, healing occurs in more than 90% of all cases.

Not just a spiritual savior, but also a high-class physician

The most common and terrible diseases of our time are HIV and cancer. Those who faced such a disaster, are looking for all kinds of support, and Anatoly Berestov's center provides it. Despite the fact that it is very difficult for a simple person to believe in such statements, the priest says that their center has experience in the treatment of AIDS. During multiple prayers, the disease recedes, and HIV infection passes into a kind of "dormant" state, which allows the infected person to live a long and fulfilling life. Berestov states that at one time he counted 18 people who came to the center with this terrible disease and were healed, and after 1997 he simply stopped doing such statistics.

The same happens with patients with oncology. In addition to healing prayers, Father Anatoly offers those who turned to him for help, consultations of their fellow cancer surgeons, because in the medical field Berestov had strong ties, and he is considered a highly authoritative neurologist to this day.

Books written by a priest

Anatoly Berestov is a priest and an active public figure who manages to publish his own books. This amazing person has a number of author's publications in the field of pediatric neurology and pediatrics. He also wrote a lot of author's works, which are devoted to such current social problems as drug addiction, alcoholism, occultism. And, like a real doctor, of course, in his works he could not help but touch on such a problematic issue as the relationship between church and medicine.

Among his works published in different periods of time, the following are very popular among readers:

• "Conversations with an Orthodox doctor."
• "Spiritual foundations of drug addiction".
• "Sorcerers in the Law."
• "Occult defeat of man."