May 28
(A discourse about the shoemaker whom the emperor’s scribe found at midnight praying in the Church of the Most Holy Theotokos in Chalkoprateia.)
By Archpriest Victor Guryev
To you, simple folk, our word shall be addressed, and this is what we shall say to you. In order to turn you away from the thought that one can be saved only in a monastery or in some desert, today we propose that you listen to an incident which happened to a certain inhabitant of Constantinople.
“One night,” he says, “I went to church to pray. At midnight I saw near it a man who, standing at the church doors, prayed for a long time and with tears. Then the church doors opened before him by themselves, and he entered in. After praying fervently in the church, he came out, and the church doors again closed behind him by themselves. Marveling at this vision, I followed him and learned where he lived.
A few days later I visited him and said: ‘On Friday I saw you praying in church, and I saw that the church doors both opened and closed before you by themselves; therefore I have come to you so that you might reveal to me your virtues, that I may learn to imitate them and through you obtain forgiveness of sins.’
The pious man, after remaining silent for a little while, answered me: ‘My lord, I know of no virtue in myself; but since you earnestly ask me to tell you about my life, I will fulfill your desire, but only on the condition that until my death you tell no one what you hear from me. You see that I am a craftsman and am occupied with making shoes. Whatever I earn by my labor, I divide into three parts: one I spend on my own needs, another I distribute to the poor, and with the third I buy materials for my work. My wife and I fast every day until evening, and we spend all the nights in prayer. My wife remains a virgin to this day, and for twenty-seven years we have preserved strict chastity together, and the Lord has kept us in virginity until now.’
Hearing this, I glorified God and went to my house. Now, after the death of that pious man, I tell everyone what I saw and heard from him, for the salvation of their souls.”
What does this account teach you, simple folk?
First, it teaches fervent prayer. These simple people, husband and wife, prayed by day and prayed by night. Do likewise yourselves. “Pray without ceasing and give thanks for everything,” the Holy Apostle Paul teaches us.
Second, the account teaches you to be merciful. The husband and wife of whom you heard gave the third part of their earnings to the poor. Give them something yourselves as well. Your hard-earned coin, given to a beggar, will be a sacrifice most pleasing to God and therefore also salvific for you.
Third and finally, the account teaches you to preserve the purity of the marriage bed. To keep it pure and to abstain from it on days dedicated to special service to God is an indispensable duty of all married couples.
Remember, then, these instructions, taken from simple folk just like yourselves, and act according to them. Then you too shall be heirs of the Kingdom of God. Amen.
Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
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