The origin of the honest and life-giving Cross of the Lord

The memory of August 1

The Feast of the Honorable Cross was established on August 1st in Greece by Patriarch Luke of Constantinople [Luke Christoverge <unk> Patriarch Constantinople 1156-1169] under King Manuel [Manuil Komnen <unk> Greek Emperor 1143-1180], and in Russia by Metropolitan Kiev.

Constantine [Constantine II, Metropolitan of Kiev, arrived in Kiev from Greece in 1167; mentioned in the chronicle as early as 1169] and Nestor, bishop of Rostov [Nestor <unk> the sixth bishop of the Rostov diocese is mentioned in the chronicle as early as 1149; in 1156].

Nestor, slandered before the metropolitan by his household, fell under the ban; in 1157 he was acquitted before the metropolitan, but in the same year due to disputes about the fast on Wednesday and Friday he was exiled from the cathedral by Andrey Bogolubsky.

Andrey Bogolovsky <unk> son of the great prince Yuri Vladimirovich and grandson of the famous Vladimir Monomakh <unk> was born probably in 1111. He was killed on June 30, 1175.]

King Manuel and Prince Andrew, who were in peace and brotherly love, happened to go to war on the same day: the first from Constantinople against the Saracens [Saracins <unk> Muslims], and the second from Rostov against the Bulgarian.

(The Grand Duke lived at that time in Rostov: Bulgarians were called pagans, who lived on the lower Volga, hence they got their name).

The Lord God gave them a complete victory over their enemies: the Greek king defeated the Saracens [Clear indications for the feast of the Most Merciful Saviour and the Most Holy Mother of God on the occasion of the victory over the Saracens of Emperor Manuel do not exist either in Greek historians or in the liturgical Greek books.

But in the history of Emperor Manuel, who fought many wars with different nations, there are instances that should have moved the king to give special thanks to God for the successful conclusion of the war and the deliverance from the dangers.

It was a fierce war between King Manuel and the Turkish Sultan or Saracens, and the king himself commanded the army, repeatedly exposing himself to extreme dangers.

It was in September, the campaign, of course, had begun earlier in August. After this war the Greeks had two successful battles with the Saracens, and one of them under the leadership of the king himself.

These events, combined with the news from Russia of God's help in the war against the Bulgarians, could have inclined King Manuel to establish a common Christian feast for Spasus, which had already begun in Tsaregrad with the consecration of water on August 1.

But the services of Spasus in the Greek monuments of agiology have not been found until now.] , and prince Andrei the God-loving defeated the Bulgarians and subjugated them to himself, turning them into his tributaries.

<unk> When Andrew went to war, he used to take with him an icon of the Most Holy Mother of God, holding in her hands the Eternal Child, our Lord Jesus Christ, and the image of the Holy Cross of Christ, which was carried among the troops by two priests.

Before his speech, he prayed earnestly to Christ and the Mother of God and shared the Divine Mysteries of Christ.

And he armed himself with these invincible weapons more than with swords and spears, and he trusted in the help of the Most High more than in the might and in the number of his army, and he knew the saying of David, who said, He looketh not on the strength of the horse, nor delighteth in the feet of man; but the pleasure of Jehovah is in them that fear him,

Those who hope in his loving kindness . " - Ps. 146:10-11.

The prince also exhorted his soldiers to pray and by the example of his own devout prayers, and direct command, and all, falling on their knees, prayed with tears before the icon of the Most Holy Mother of God and the honest Cross of Christ.

O Lord, who hast borne Christ our God, all who trust in thee shall not perish, and I, thy servant, by the grace of God, have in thee a wall and a covering, and the cross of thy Son as a weapon against the enemy.

Pray to the Saviour of the world, whom you hold in your hands, that the power of the cross may be like fire to devour the enemies who wish to fight with us, and that your almighty presence may help us to overcome them.

After a fervent prayer, they all took the holy icon and the Holy Cross and went fearlessly to the enemies: the Lord helped them with the power of the cross and the Blessed Virgin Mary helped them, interceding for them before God.

Constantly keeping this custom before every battle, the great prince did not change it before the battle against the Bulgarians: he went out, having, like the king Constantine [St. Constantine Equal to the Apostles <unk> his memory on May 21.] in ancient times, in front of the troops the Cross of the Lord.

After the battle with the Bulgarians, the Russian army turned the latter into flight and, pursuing them, captured five cities; among them was the city of Briahimov on the river Kama.

When they returned to their camp after the battle with the unbelievers, they saw that from the icon of the Mother of God and the Child Christ came bright, like fire, rays that illuminated the entire army; it was the first day of August.

The spectacle stirred the spirit of courage and hope in the great prince, and he again turned his regiments in pursuit of the Bulgarians; he burned most of their cities, paying tribute to the survivors, and desolated the whole land; after this victory, the great prince returned home triumphant.

<unk> The Greek king Manuel, who went out with his army against the Saracens, on the same day saw a similar miracle, <unk> the rising of the icon of the Virgin Mary with the Saviour, which was with the Holy Cross, among the troops, rays shining all over the regiment, and on that day he defeated the Saracens.

The king and the prince announced, praising God, with special messages to each other about the demoniacs with the help of God's victories and about the miraculous light emanating from the icon of the Savior.

After consulting with the older bishops, in gratitude to Christ the Saviour and His Most Holy Mother, they established the feast on the first day of August.

In remembrance of the power of the cross, with which they defeated their enemies, they ordered the priest to take the Holy Cross from the altar and place it in the midst of the church for worship and worship by Christians and to glorify the crucified Lord Jesus Christ.

In addition, the bishops ordered that the water be sanctified on this day, which is why the holiday got its name <unk> the raising of the Holy Cross, because the Holy Cross is solemnly carried along with other holy icons to rivers, wells and springs.

<unk> Let us celebrate, brothers, in praise and thanksgiving to Almighty God and our Savior Jesus Christ and to His most holy Mother, the Virgin Mary, reverently honoring the honourable Cross of Christ; but let us celebrate with reverence, pleasing God, being in peace and love among ourselves, doing works of mercy.

To do good and to keep away from sin, remembering the fear of God, so that, pleasing to our Creator and Lord, we may be given eternal rejoicing with all the saints after the day when the sign of the Son of Man appears in heaven (Matthew 21:30), <unk> the righteous cross of Christ, before the coming of the Judge of the living and the dead,

When he shall come with power and great glory, to give light and gladness unto all the righteous.

And when the judgment is finished, he will appear to all the saints, leading them into the heavenly kingdom, and all the saints will be blessed, rejoicing forever; to them, through the prayers of the Most Holy Lady of our Goddess, may our merciful Savior, Christ, count us sinners.

It should be noted that on August 1st, the Orthodox Church celebrates two solemnities, which are different in their origin: 1) the origin of the honest and life-giving Cross of the Lord and 2) the feast of the All-Merciful Savior and the Most Holy Mother of God.

The Greek clock book, published in 1897, explains the origin of the first holiday: "Because of the diseases that often occurred in August, the custom of carrying an honest tree of the cross on the roads and streets to sanctify places and to repel diseases has long been established in Constantinople.

The day before (31 July), wearing it out of the royal treasury, they laid it on the holy table of the great church (i.e. St. Sophia). From this day on and on until the Assumption of the Mother of God, making lights throughout the city, they offered it to the people for worship.

On August 14, the Cross returned to the royal palace.

"This custom in conjunction with another custom of Constantinople <unk> to consecrate in the palace church of Constantinople on the first day of each month (except January when the consecration is made on the 6th, and September when it was made on the 14th) and served as the basis for the feast in honor of St.

In the 9th century, this custom of wearing down the wood from the king's palace to the church of St. Peter's was practiced.

Sophia before August 1; the canon for the feast of the Cross on July 31, written for this occasion (the canon begins with the words: The Divine Cross before August) is attributed to George, the eponym of Amastrid, who lived in the VIII century and was twice in Tsaregrad.

In the Ordinary of Emperor Constantine Porphyrod (912-959), there are detailed rules for when to carry the Cross out of the palace before August 1 there was no service of the Cross, which appears in the XIV-XV centuries with the introduction of the Jerusalem Charter.

The feast of the All-Merciful Savior and the Most Holy Mother of God was established in Greece and Russia around 1168 in memory of the signs from the honest icons of the Savior and the Mother of God during the battles of the Greek king Manuel (1143-1180 with the Saracens) and the Russian prince Andrey the God-loving with the Bulgarians in 1164.

Save, O Lord, Thy people, and bless Thy riches, victories to the goodly emperor our Nicholas Alexandrovich over the oppressed, and Thy preserving Thy dwelling by Thy Cross.

Lord, by Your grace, by Your grace, by Your grace, by Your grace, by Your grace, by Your grace, by Your grace, by Your grace, by Your grace, by Your grace,

O Lord of mercy, grant us mercy, grant us mercy, grant us mercy, grant us mercy.

Every evil, all-merciful Savior, I would do, and in despair I would roar, but I cry from the wall of my heart, and I cry to You, the Word: hasten the generous, and seek our help, as merciful.