June: Day 1: Teaching 1:
Venerable Agapitus the Unmercenary of the Kiev Caves
(Lessons From His Life:
a. Healing Diseases is a Gift From God, and
b. In Illness One Must Resort to God in Prayer)
By Archpriest Grigory Dyachenko
Venerable Agapitus the Unmercenary of the Kiev Caves
(Lessons From His Life:
a. Healing Diseases is a Gift From God, and
b. In Illness One Must Resort to God in Prayer)
By Archpriest Grigory Dyachenko
I. Venerable Agapitus, celebrated today, labored in the Kiev Caves, under the guidance of Venerable Anthony. To his difficult monastic labors the Venerable One added the labor of gratuitous service to those suffering from illness. If any of the brethren fell ill, the Venerable One immediately hastened to provide assistance and remained at the sick person’s bedside until the patient recovered. The Venerable One served the sick brother with all zeal, personally lifting him from his bed, laying him down, carrying him from one place to another, and all this was accompanied by prayer for the healing of the sick person.
The means used by the Venerable One for healing were the simplest, and even ordinary plants used for food were given to the sick and, by the power of faith and prayer of the Venerable One, provided real help in the most serious illnesses. The fame of the healing power of Venerable Agapitus spread far, and many sick people came to him and received benefit. But he always refused those who begged him to come to the city or the surrounding areas to heal the sick, strictly keeping to his monastic vow not to leave the monastery and fearing that by gaining human glory he would harm his salvation; for he deeply believed that the power of healing lies not so much in medical skill as in the gracious help brought down by humble prayer. Thus, when the Chernigov prince Vladimir Vsevolodovich, being seriously ill and hearing about the successes of the healing of Venerable Agapitus, sent to ask him to come to him, the Venerable One resolutely refused, but with a boyar sent by the prince he sent a plant from his farm, and the sick man quickly and completely recovered. The prince himself came to the Kiev Caves Monastery to thank his deliverer, but the Venerable One hid and, not accepting the gifts from the prince, said to those who brought him them: “I have never taken anything from anyone; for it is not my art, but the power of Christ that heals the sick.” This unmercenrary doctor and man of prayer died in extreme old age around 1095 A.D. and was buried in the Antoniev Cave.
II. a) From the example of Venerable Agapitus and other God-glorified unmercenary physicians, we must be convinced that the healing of diseases is not only an art, but rather a gift from God, the acquisition and distribution of which must be accomplished with faith, prayer and in the spirit of Christian love. Without a reverent thought about God, the only omnipotent helper, in whose power is the life and death of all creatures, the work of healing cannot be accomplished successfully. “The Lord gives wisdom, and from Him knowledge and understanding” (Prov. 2:6). No human mind is capable of penetrating into the mysterious depths of human nature, and no art can grasp and subjugate that vital force that produces certain changes in the human body. No human wisdom can “make one hair white or black” (Matt. 5:36). Therefore, if God blesses medical science with success, then this is a gift from God, and the doctor is nothing more than an intermediary instrument of God’s goodness and mercy to the human race.
b) Knowing for sure that illnesses are healed not so much by human skill as by the gracious power of Christ, we must, while using earthly medical help, at the same time intensify our prayers to the heavenly Physician of our souls and bodies and place our hope in Him. Since the root cause of all illnesses is sin, then first of all we must pay attention to this cause and, with prayer, with repentance for our sins, ease the suffering heart. “My son!" says the Wise One, "in your illness do not be negligent, but pray to the Lord, and He will heal you, leave your sinful life and correct your hands and cleanse your heart from every sin” (Sir. 38:9, 10). Then, after true repentance, it is necessary to approach the most holy Mystery of Communion of the Body and Blood of Christ for the healing of soul and body. When the illness gets worse, one must resort to collective prayer, with the performance of the Mystery of Unction according to the word of the Apostle James: “Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the presbyters of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick man, and the Lord will raise him up: and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him” (James 5:14, 15). Amen.
Source: A Complete Annual Cycle of Short Teachings, Composed for Each Day of the Year. Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
