Homilies from the Menaion for Every Day of the Year: October 22

 

The Month of October

Day 22

53. On the Mercies of the Queen of Heaven Toward Our Fatherland

(The Kazan Icon of the Mother of God)

Today, brethren, we intend to set before you the truth that the mercies of the Queen of Heaven toward our fatherland are innumerable.

Behold, today we recall how, in 1612, under Prince Pozharsky, a small handful of exhausted soldiers, encouraged by the sole hope of the intercession of the Mother of God, was inspired with steadfast courage, advanced to destroy the enemy, and defeated them. Thus, the Orthodox faith of our Church remained intact, the succession to the throne remained secure, and the people's possessions were wrested from the greedy hands of the Poles and Russian traitors. Moreover, the former lost all hope of ruling, while the latter lost the ability to wreak havoc in Russia.

And all this took place after the true sons of Russia had entrusted themselves and their homeland entirely to the protection of the Sovereign Lady. Thus, today we recall Her benefaction, especially memorable because She bestowed it upon us at that disastrous time when our fatherland seemed to stand quite literally on the brink of utter destruction.

But, brethren, was this the only benefaction that the Queen of Heaven bestowed upon our homeland? Was She not, both before and afterward, always our greatest Deliverer and Savior? And was She not always for us an impregnable wall and a strong defense? Yes, brethren, indeed She was. Now, both to Her glory and for your instruction, we shall endeavor to set this before you in the present discourse.

Behold, by God’s permission and on account of our sins, the fearsome Tamerlane (1395) enters our lands and spreads terror everywhere. The people cry out with wailing and tears: “Mother of God, save the Russian land!” And their cry is heard. Tamerlane sees a high mountain, and from its summit come toward him hierarchs bearing golden staffs. Above them, in radiant splendor, is a noble and majestic Woman, surrounded by multitudes of warriors like flashes of lightning, rushing threateningly toward him. Terrified, he orders his troops to retreat from the borders of Russia, to the great astonishment of all.

Behold, Akhmat, the khan of the Golden Horde (1480), undertakes a campaign against Moscow, and once again the Russians turn to prayer to the Mother of God. Once again, this prayer saves them, and Akhmat, having somehow received word that the Russians had penetrated his Horde, is overcome with terror and flees in disorder with his multitudes of troops (see the Lvov Chronicle, pp. 174–175).

Behold, the Kazan khan Mehmed Giray (1521), accompanied by the Crimean, Nogai, and Kazan Tatars under his command, approaches Moscow amid clouds of smoke and the glow of burning settlements. Once again, our ancestors have recourse to their Great Protectress, and once again She manifests Her mercy and assistance to them. “And the Tatars,” says the chronicler, “saw a Russian army that appeared twice as great and told the khan. He sent one of his close attendants to ascertain the truth. The man returned trembling and crying out: ‘O king! Why do you delay? Let us flee! An immeasurable multitude of troops is coming against us from Moscow.’ And … they fled” (see Stepennaya Kniga, book 2, p. 200, and Russkie Vremennik, p. 280).

Behold, during the reign of Theodore Ioannovich, two enemies attack Russia: the Swedish king marches against Novgorod, while the Crimean prince Naradyn and his brother march against Moscow. The Tsar goes to the Cathedral of the Annunciation, takes from it the wonderworking icon of the Mother of God, and with it processes around the walls of the Kremlin and along the ranks of his soldiers. The prayer of the pious Tsar is heard. During the night, he receives a revelation from the Queen of Heaven that, through the power of Her Son and God and by Her intercession, the enemies will be defeated. And so it comes to pass. Early the next morning, Naradyn attacks the Russians and fights them for an entire day. But suddenly he is seized by great fear, and, driven by an unknown divine power, he turns with his troops and flees in disgrace. Some time later, wishing to avenge his defeat, Naradyn marches against Moscow again in the same year. But here, too, he suffers another defeat, being struck, as the account relates, “by the mighty right hand of the Son of God, through the intercession of the Mother of God, the Most Pure Theotokos.”

Behold, during the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich, the Tatars also attack the Kursk region, devastate and burn many villages and towns, and take many Russians captive. The Tsar fervently prays before the icon of the Mother of God of the Don, and with the help of the Queen of Heaven he likewise defeats and drives away the Tatars and recovers the spoils they had taken.

But now, at last, we come to the time of the invasion of the Twelve Nations against us.* Who does not know that throughout this invasion and the entire Patriotic War, the wonderworking icon of the Mother of God of Smolensk was carried before the Russian regiments, before battles and during them, and that the Russian soldiers surely offered fervent prayers to the Mother of God before it? And surely it was these very prayers, and nothing else, that brought about the following: we, who at first were pursued and afflicted, ultimately entered the land of our enemies—the place where the hydra of impiety and lawlessness had arisen—and appeared not only as conquerors, but also as joyful heralds of peace for all Europe.

Thus, brethren, the event commemorated by today’s feast, together with the events preceding the year 1612 and those of the years that followed, convinces us that the Queen of Heaven has always been ready to bestow great mercies upon our fatherland and has indeed bestowed them. But, of course, all the events mentioned do not exhaust the multitude of the other innumerable benefactions bestowed upon us by the Sovereign Lady. To confirm this truth, it is enough to say that there is not a single city in our fatherland that does not possess a visible pledge of Her invisible intercession—Her wonderworking icons—before which the same miracles that astonish us in historical accounts continue to take place to this day.

If this is so, then all these things convince us that the Queen of Heaven is for us a pillar of fire, guiding us who dwell in darkness, and our shelter, wider than a cloud; that She intercedes for us against our enemies and delivers us from calamities; that we are all Her beloved children, though we are sinners; that Her mercies toward us are innumerable; and that, therefore, we must all always be grateful to Her.

And let us be grateful. Let us always preserve in our minds and hearts, with particular care, the memory of Her great benefactions. In accordance with the rule of the Holy Church, let us “honor the days of Her commemoration, glorify Her with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, with contrition of heart and mercy toward the poor, because such service is also most pleasing to God” (An Exact Exposition of the Orthodox Faith, book 4, chapter 15).

Finally, let us always conduct ourselves in such a way that we may continue to be worthy of the mercies of the Mother of God in the future. Amen.

Questions for Discussion 53:

1. By what were the small handful of our exhausted troops under Prince Pozharsky encouraged in 1612, so that they were inspired with steadfast courage?

2. With what words did the Russian people cry out during Tamerlane’s invasion in 1395?

3. From whom did Akhmat, the khan of the Golden Horde, receive word that the Russians had penetrated his Horde, causing him to flee in disorder with his troops?

4. With what did Tsar Theodore Ioannovich process around the walls of the Kremlin and the ranks of his soldiers when the Swedes and the Crimean prince Naradyn attacked Russia?

5. Whose prayers were offered before the wonderworking icon of the Mother of God of Smolensk during the Patriotic War against the Twelve Nations in 1812–1814?

 

Source: The Cheti-Minei: Homilies for Every Day of the Year (Book 1: September, October, November) by Archpriest Viktor Guryev. Publication of the Russian Panteleimon Monastery on Mount Athos, 1896. Translated by John Sanidopoulos. 

 

*  Refers to Napoleon’s invasion of Russia in 1812.