December: Day 21: Teaching 2: Saint Peter, Metropolitan of Moscow

December: Day 21: Teaching 2:
Saint Peter, Metropolitan of Moscow
 
(On the Sin of Slander Against the Church's Shepherds)

By Archpriest Grigory Dyachenko

I. Saint Peter, Metropolitan of Moscow, whose memory is celebrated today, was born of pious parents who lived in the Volyn region in the second half of the 12th century. He diligently began to study literacy and the law of God, but was unsuccessful. One day, he saw an elder in a dream who touched his tongue, after which his abilities were revealed. At the age of twelve, Peter entered a monastery. He combined his devotion to prayer and fasting with iconography. Thus, his abilities were occupied with sacred subjects, leaving no room in his soul for secular and sinful matters. Concerned for the welfare of the Church and the Fatherland, Saint Peter, consecrated as Metropolitan and settling not in Kiev but in Vladimir on the Klyazma River due to Tatar raids, served as a peacemaker for the princes and an intercessor before the Tatar khans.

At this time, while Saint Peter's election as Metropolitan was being widely praised, Bishop Andrei of Tver, descended from the house of Lithuanian princes and coveting the Metropolitan see himself, rebelled against him. He sent the Patriarch a false denunciation of the Saint, which prompted the Patriarch, "confused in his thoughts," to send a trusted representative to Russia to investigate the matter. A synod was convened in northern Pereyaslavl on this matter. Among the bishops present were Symeon of Rostov and Prokhor, then abbot of the Caves Monastery, the sons of the Grand Prince, Alexander and Dmitry, and many other princes. A great commotion arose among them when the denunciation was read, the absurdity of which was obvious to those who knew the Saint, although some present were inclined to believe it.

How did Saint Peter accept this test?

"Brothers!" he addressed the assembly with his usual gentleness and humility, "I am no better than the Prophet Jonah... throw me out of your midst, if such confusion has arisen because of me."

But everyone demanded that the informer either personally prove the truth of the accusation he had leveled against the Metropolitan, or face severe condemnation. During the explanation of the matter, Bishop Andrei was accused of slander, and then the Saint defended him and forgave him, saying: "Peace be with you, my child! It is not you who are to blame, but the ancient hater of men, the mastermind of slander... From now on, beware of lies, and may the Lord forgive you for the past!"

When Grand Prince Ivan Danilovich Kalita founded his capital in Moscow, Saint Peter moved his residence there from Vladimir and foretold the regal grandeur of Moscow and the might of its tsars and Russia against their enemies. Raising his hands to heaven and with prayer on his lips, the Saint died peacefully on December 21, 1326. His relics rest in Moscow's Dormition Cathedral.

II. It is worthy, brethren, of our deep attention that a slander was leveled against such a great archshepherd in piety and wisdom as Saint Peter, which, as was to be expected, turned out to be completely unfounded before the impartiality of the ecclesiastical court.

And in our time, so often, so openly, so loudly, slanders are hurled at the shepherds and archshepherds of the Church, and, moreover, at the most active, the highest, the very best... What is this phenomenon, and how should we relate to it? These are questions that are never without significance and are especially important in our troubled times.

"Peace be with you, my child; it was not you who did this, but the devil," said Saint Peter to his slanderer. These words of the great Saint not only exemplify how Christian love should view the sins of one's neighbor, but also provide the key to resolving the confusion within the Church caused by slander.

Of course, “everyone who commits sin is of the devil” (1 John 3:8), and the devil is in any case the first culprit of sin.

a) But there are sins in which the inherent kinship with dark forces is revealed with particular clarity. "No, it seems impossible that a person could decide to commit such a black deed on their own. He is a slave in someone else's hands, guided by another dark force." Such a sin is slander. To knowingly lie in condemnation of another, to try to take from them the highest treasure in life – an honorable name, to fill their heart with the cruelest venom, to deprive them of the peace, calm, and joy rightly earned through good deeds, to be the cause of their troubled and agonizing days, of sleepless, dreadful nights, and slowly, drop by drop, to drain and destroy the very life within them – who could consciously choose to do this? There is no doubt that if these evil people could see with the eyes of their soul and perceive all the ugliness of their vile deed, they themselves would be the first to turn away from it and say: "No, we did not want this, we could not have done it!"

b) And against whom are these evil slanders composed and spread? Against all true Christians, and especially against those who preach the word of truth to us, who impart to us the gifts of God's grace, who raise their holy hands in prayer for our health and salvation! Where is the heart, where is the conscience of people?! These evil people, in their blindness through evil passions, who have opened their hearts to the devil, know that the shepherds they slander have no other weapons against them than love, blessing, and forgiveness. They know and perhaps imagine how the shepherd they slander will stand before the Lord and pray for them. Yes, everyone knows this well, and yet, being obedient tools of the devil, they hurl their poison-soaked arrows! Where is the sense of honor and even outward decency!

c) If such is the origin of slander in general and of church shepherds in particular, then it is understandable why the most worthy shepherds are the targets of the slanderers' most furious attacks: their work is the most unpleasant for the enemy of our salvation. To humiliate their great achievement, to hinder the effect of their words, to diminish the power of their influence, to deprive them of healing peace, necessary rest, at least to punish them, to somehow take revenge on them for their good deeds: these are the true goals of slander, so often hidden from those through whose lips it moves and multiplies! Consider: which of the ancient shepherds in particular did slander attempt to denigrate? None other than, for example, Athanasios the Great, Basil the Great, and others like them. But what is the holiness of any person, no matter how lofty, in comparison with the supreme holiness of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself? So, did slander spare Him? No: even Him, and especially Him, the Originator of our salvation, she sought to vilify and denigrate. Did those whom they serve, whose will they carry out, ever think of those who once said of the Lord Savior: "This one we have found perverting our language, forbidding Caesar to give tribute" (Luke 23:2), or: "He casts out demons by the ruler of the demons" (Matt. 9:34)?

d) And this reproach of malicious slander, endured by the Lord Savior, became, as it were, the natural lot and necessary sign of His true and faithful servants, the heralds of His word, the dispensers of His grace. "No disciple is above his teacher, nor a servant above his master... If they have called the lord of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of his household" (Matthew 10:24-25). The Savior warned His faithful disciples in advance not to seek approval or praise for their achievements here, but rather to expect precisely this humiliation through slander. "Blessed are you, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for My sake." Their reward is there, and the more slander detracts from the glory of their achievements on earth, the greater will be their glory in heaven. “Rejoice and be glad, for great is your reward in heaven” (Matthew 5:12).

e) But will it be good for those who, in such cases, serve as instruments of evil forces? We know the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, spoken of those who insult the preachers of truth and salvation: "It will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for these people" (Matthew 10:15). Consider where you are going, where your enemy is leading you; abandon your destructive path and turn to repentance while your day still lasts! Not only do not slander yourselves, but do not listen to slanderers.

III. Fellow Christians! Let us pray with all our hearts to Christ's Saint Peter, who once suffered from human slander: may he preserve and protect our shepherds from evil slanders and insults and, if this is necessary for the elevation of their struggle, may he implore them the strength and courage to bear these attacks of human untruth with composure and love! Let us also pray for ourselves, that He may preserve us in faith and piety, lest we fall into the grave sin of condemning our pastoral fathers and become participants in slander, that is, instruments of the devil, the age-old slanderer, who through slander seeks to sow discord in the Church, to separate the shepherds from their flock, and thereby deprive Christians of eternal salvation. Let us also pray for the enemies and offenders of our shepherds, that He may enlighten them with the fear of God's judgment, may He open the eyes of their souls to their evil deeds, and may He convert and direct them to the path of truth and justice! Amen. 

 

Source: A Complete Annual Cycle of Short Teachings, Composed for Each Day of the Year. Translated by John Sanidopoulos.