Father Herman in the Holy Trinity-St. Sergius Lavra: proofreading

Three days a week, special services are held in one of the temples of the Trinity-St. Sergius Lavra. The governor of the monastery father Herman begs, smears the world and sprinkles the holy water of the raging people. Curious and mentally ill here is better not to look. Diseases of the spirit are treated here.

Unexplained symptoms

Quite often, the patients treated by Father Herman are people with unexplained diseases. A person melts before your eyes, loses strength, barely walks, but no doctor can determine the cause and make a diagnosis. Another case is a constant longing, depression, down to the desire to leave life against the backdrop of a completely prosperous fate. Or, on the contrary, causeless outbursts of rage and irritation, reaching a riot in a person, usually calm and balanced. There may be seizures, seizures, symptoms of epilepsy or schizophrenia, but without any signs of organic damage to the psyche.

There is such a disease - obsession

The solution can be found in the church. Sharply negative reaction to all attributes of the church service - incense, holy water, cross, prayers, icons, relics - is evidence that man is guided by a power alien to him. Even more shock can be experienced by someone who, having entered the temple, suddenly croaks or begins to foul language. All this happens apart from his will.

So the person is faced with the fact that her soul is controlled by some other force, regardless of whether she believes in her existence or not. The testimony that Father Herman conducts shows the nature of this force with utmost clarity. "Come away from me, pop!" - a tiny little girl can yell with a bass, and a six-year-old kid can hit a priest who sprinkles holy water with such force that he throws a meter by three. A low, spiteful, aggressive impure force - demons, demons - is the source of mysterious diseases of the human spirit, called obsession.

How to become demoniacs

The first reason that people find themselves in the power of a demonic power is disbelief in the spiritual world: neither in God, nor in the devil. Because of atheistic education, one generation of atheists was replaced by another, accumulating the baggage of sins, - Father Herman explains, the spread of obsession among the post-Soviet population. An unbaptized person initially lives by passion, does not recognize the commandments of God, does not receive the protection of the Holy Spirit and falls into the power of the spirit of the unclean.

The believer knows the commandments and follows them. But under the influence of evil spirits, baptized people back away from God, commit sinful deeds. However, they have the opportunity to repent and reconnect with Him in the sacrament of the sacrament. The same one who does not resist temptations, sins and does not repent, loses power over his soul, gives it to the power of demons. They settle in the heart of such a person at the time of consciously commit an unscrupulous act.

Another set of reasons for obsession is called Archimandrite Herman. This coding, appeal to psychics, witchcraft practices. In fact, it is "the infusion of an evil spirit with the full consent of the patient and under his receipt."

But to drive the wicked spirit out of the soul is no longer in the power of the sinner himself. Here we need strong prayer assistance from the outside, it's something that Father Herman has. Sergiev Posad - a place where thousands of unfortunate rush in the hope of regaining power over their souls.

Exorcism - the expulsion of demons

The Trinity-St. Sergius Lavra is one of the few places in Russia where sufferers with obsession and insanity can receive help. The expulsion of demons in church practice is called exorcism. In the Gospel times, it was only available to Jesus Christ. The Savior taught his disciples: "This kind is cast out only by prayer and fasting" (MF.17,21). That is, only a man of strong faith and holy life can help in the liberation of his neighbor from evil spirit.

From the first centuries of Christianity, practice was established: to expel unclean spirits to receive blessing from the church hierarch, whose rank is not lower than the episcopal. In Russia, from the 14th century, prayer was extended to exorcise demons from the liturgical book of Metropolitan Peter of Kiev Metropolitan Peter Mogily. Exorcism in Russia was called a scrolling - this is a special service for the exorcism of demons. Now the rank of the report is included in a large treasury of Orthodox clergymen, it is recognized by the Orthodox Church, but not everyone is allowed to study it. Not every one, well, even if one in a thousand.

Do we need exorcists?

Opponents of the rank of exorcism in the practice of the Orthodox Church are categorically: "Father German's father's copy is a service that can not be visited by anyone." Numerous arguments are given, it is asserted that the Russian church never knew this rank. And what do the opponents propose to read to the people who got into trouble? Those who are already here on earth saw themselves in hell and in the power of demons. Pray, fast, go to church, repent, take communion, visit holy places - in a word, correct and hope for the mercy of God.

Yes! Now he is obsessed and ready to do anything he has neglected, but the power that controls him will not allow him to approach God. Not every priest in the parish has a prayer for the return of the prodigal son to the bosom of the church. We need a special service and people who are able to do it without harm.

Where can help

Father Herman Chesnokov is considered the leading exorcist in Russia, and the Trinity-St. Sergius Lavra is the most famous place where the spiritually ill receive help. Even in Soviet times he studied here the abbot Hegumen Adrian. About thirty years ago Father Herman received a blessing from this patriarch. The Lavra, however, is not the only place where they contribute to spiritual healing. 100 kilometers from Moscow, in the village of Shugaevo, serves Fr. Panteleimon, in Bashkortostan is known about. Simon, conduct readings in the Borovsky monastery of Kaluga and in the Gornalsky - Kursk region; In the Nizhny Novgorod region, such services are managed in the Ouran Monastery, and in Penza - in Holy Christmas, that in the village of Treskino. In the rural churches of the Vladimir region and Tatarstan there are priests who use the rank of the readings to help people. In total there are up to 25 priests in Russia practicing this service, collecting a huge number of people. "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few" (Matthew 9:37). In the face of these priests, the Orthodox Church stretches out its hand to people trapped in enemy captivity. Why are there so few of them?

Did a good deed - prepare for the temptation

In one popular Orthodox book is the story of the priest, who once risked healing a devilish girl. I could not resist the requests of unfortunate parents. After a week of strengthened fasting and prayer, he held the rank of the proofreading of the treasurer - and the unclean spirit left the child.

The feeling of joy was accompanied by an innocent thought: "And I'm not so simple, I can do something." The desire to disperse and rest after the exertion of spiritual forces is also quite understandable - and the priest with the newspaper in his hands went into the reading of the city news. Looking up from an interesting article, he clearly saw who had left the girl. The demon, looking straight in the eyes, studied him carefully. Not remembering himself from horror, the priest rushed to the spiritual father, who did not even ask for a blessing on this service. It must be thought that the spiritual father's prayers softened the punishment: the priest was robbed, beaten, lost all his teeth.

"Without me you can not do anything"

Absolute humility, which excludes any thought of its involvement in success, is a condition of protection from an attack of evil spirits. Humility is an experienced knowledge of your infirmity, a servant is absolutely sure that only Christ heals. "I do not cast out demons, I read a prayer asking God to help," Father Herman explains. Reviews about his service may be different, but that he is a strong prayer book, recognize everything. He develops the idea further: the service of the reading-book does not have a special philosophy and does not require supernatural abilities, it does it not by calling and personal attraction, but by obedience. The same attitude towards the rank of the patronymic from Father Simeon from Bashkortostan is only spiritual hygiene, because my hands are we are brushing our teeth.

Another component of security, protection from the attack of demons - the maximum distance from all worldly. In a monastery it is easier to do. People in the world need to be more careful. "Television is the source of spiritual damage," Father Hermann believes, and includes him among the most common causes of obsession.

Obedience, humility, renunciation of the world with its passions - it would seem, there is nothing supernatural, but so few servants to whom it is possible!

The secular life of Alexander Chesnokov

Divine craft is in everyone's life, but not everyone can follow it. A series of miracles was seen in his life by Father Herman - his biography contains many seemingly incompatible facts.

Military service in Central Asia in a special border area. Times were troubled - there was a war in Afghanistan. For military operations to detain spies Alexander Chesnokov (worldly name of Father Herman) they even wanted to present to the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. Than not the beginning of a successful military career? But the applicant was not a member of the CPSU and, apparently, did not intend to join it. The next stage is studying at the Moscow Road Institute, a prestigious Soviet university. He studied at the Faculty of Economics. Cars, economics are an education that could provide interesting work and a successful life both in the Soviet and post-Soviet societies. Unexpectedly for relatives and friends it is interrupted.

"My life is a series of miracles"

On the advice of the spiritual father Alexander becomes a student of the theological seminary, and then the academy. Professor MDA A. Osipov recalls that at his seminars Chesnokov did not stand out with special knowledge, he was a simple listener, he did not go into the subtleties of theology. And in the last year of study, a student Alexander becomes a novice Laura, trying on a monastic life.

When the question of the future life came up: to become a monk or priest in the world, there was an "episode with salt". It shows a direct indication of the will of God. Half an hour before the final answer, Alexander, sitting in the cell, thought: "If you stay in the Lavra, let someone ask something for me." Immediately there was a knock at the door, and a familiar hieromonk asked him for salt. The question was settled, on the same day Alexander took tonsure. The acquaintance of the hieromonk only shrugged his shoulders: "I did not ask for any salt!" At present the hero of the Soviet Union, the exorcist Father Herman, who failed. Sergiev Posad - the place of his permanent residence and service.

Our service is both dangerous and difficult

Every week on Thursday, Friday and Saturday at noon in the Peter and Paul Church, next to the Trinity-St. Sergius Lavra, the rank of exorcism is committed. Previously, it was held in the gate church of St. John the Forerunner inside the monastery. Several hundred people of minutes 10-15 wait tensely for the priest. This is a delay - the beginning of preparation for a difficult service.

The appearance of the priest is accompanied by noise and murmur in the crowd, here and there crying, threatening somewhere, hearing growling, meowing, crowing, barking - everything reveals the presence of evil spirit. The service of Father Herman begins with a long sermon. It lasts 1.5-2 hours, and some leave already with it. The rest listen, holding their breath, because as everyone learns in the accusations of the priest, his life story.

The recitation of prayers to the expulsion of unclean spirits begins. This is the culmination of worship, and the demons begin to rave: they howl, growl, swear, squeal. In the temple there are assistants to the priest, who by his sign deduce "simulators" - people playing in public. On the confession of Fr. Herman, he knows after what kind of prayer demons come out.

Then follows the anointing with the world, the sprinkling of holy water - these actions impure spirits have physical resistance, it takes a considerable effort to the shrine touched the body of the raging man. "Go, depart, Satan ... We cast out thee in the name of God!" At the end of the prayer about. Herman recalls that it is desirable to visit the report three times, and then necessarily participate in the sacraments of soborhood, confession, communion.

"The way that leads to everlasting life is narrow"

Besnovanie and obsession - this is a lesson given by God to a man who has gone too far along the wide path of sin. It is an opportunity to see in the earthly life, whose will is fulfilled by the sinner. Father German's father's copy is a chance to break free from the demonic captivity and begin life according to God. Repentance, confession, communion, prayer and following the commandments is the path of personal struggle for our salvation.