Matrona din Moscova

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Sf. Matrona din Moscova

Sfânta Matrona din Moscova (născută Matrona Dmitrievna Nikonova, în rusă: Блаженная Матрона Московская, 1881 - 2 mai 1952) este o renumită sfântă făcătoare de minuni a Bisericii Ortodoxe Ruse care a avut darul vederii duhovnicești și pe acela al vindecării bolnavilor încă din copilărie. Prăznuirea ei în Biserica Ortodoxă se face la 2 mai. Citirile care se fac pentru ziua ei de prăznuire sunt Galateni 3:23-29 și Luca 7:36-50.

Există o relatare conform căreia Sfântul Ioan din Kronstadt, recunoscând-o cu duhul, fără să o cunoască, pe tânăra Matrona în vârstă de 14 ani într-o mulțime de pelerini care veniseră să-l vadă, a cerut tuturor să se dea la o parte și să o lase pe fată să se apropie de el. În timp ce ea se îndrepta spre el, el a exclamat: „Iată succesoarea mea, al optulea stâlp al Rusiei.” Până în ziua de azi, nimeni nu poate explica semnificația acelei fraze rostite de el. Totuși, faptul că Sfântul Ioan din Kronstadt, cunoscut pentru darul său de vedere duhovnicească, a remarcat-o pe Matrona în mulțime și a căutat să vorbească cu ea, mărturisește că el a recunoscut pecetea sfântă asupra ei și modul în care ea va sluji Rusia și poporul ortodox rus în timpul persecuției Bisericii din perioada Uniunii Sovietice.

Cuprins

• Primii ani ai vieții
  • Botezul și copilăria
  • Darurile vederii duhovnicești și a vindecării
• Revoluția rusă și viața în Uniunea Sovietică
  • Războiul al II-lea mondial
  • Împotriva duhorilor necurate
• Moartea
• Moștenirea și proslăvirea
• Imnografie
• Referințe
• Note
• Legături externe
• Surse

Primii ani ai vieții

Matrona a fost al patrulea copil al lui Dumitru și Natalia Nikonov, născută în satul Sebino în provincia Tula, la ceva mai mult de 300 km sud de Moscova, într-o foarte săracă familie de țărani.

Nikonovii trăiau într-o sărăcie atât de mare încât întretinerea unui al patrulea copil păreau imposibile. Premergător nașterii bebelușului, Natalia a decis să îl trimită la un orfelinat sponsorizat de prințul Golitsin din satul vecin Buchalki, unde copiii nevoiași și cei ilegitimi erau crescuți pe cheltuiala prințului. Cu toate acestea, la scurt timp după aceea, mama sa și-a schimbat decizia după ce a avut un vis profetic. Fiica sa nenăscută i-a apărut Nataliei sub forma unei păsări albe de o frumusețe sfântă, cu un chip uman și ochii închiși, așezându-se pe brațul ei. Acceptând visul ca pe un semn, femeia temătoare de Dumnezeu a hotărât să păstreze copilul, care s-a născut într-adevăr complet orb, cu pleoapele ferm închise peste orbite goale. De asemenea, bebelușul avea un semn din naștere reliefat, în forma unei proeminențe în formă de cruce pe piept. Mama sa a considerat acest lucru ca fiind un semn de la Dumnezeu.

Botezul și copilăria

As is the custom, she was baptized 40 days after birth. When the local clergyman Vasily Troitsky dipped her into the font, a column of light, sweet-scented steam rose up from the font to the ceiling. The clergyman was amazed, and said: “I have christened many an infant, but have never seen anything like this! This infant shall be a saint!”. The child was christened Matrona, in honor of the venerable Matrona, a Greek zealot of the 5th century.

A friend of Natalia’s later related that when the child was still nursing, her mother complained, “What can I do? The baby doesn’t take my breast on Wednesday and Friday – she just sleeps all day and it is impossible to wake her up.”

The blind Matrona had been endowed by the Lord with spiritual foresight. Already in her infancy, at night, when everyone was asleep, the girl somehow made her way into the holy corner where the icons stood, took them down from the shelf, and attempted to converse with them. Her parents were most surprised when they found their little daughter occupied in this manner for the first time.

As she grew, village children often made fun of Matrona, mocking her with cruel games. They would hit her with stinging nettles, knowing that she couldn’t see, and once they put her into a pit, watching curiously as she felt her way out of it and shuffled home. Because of these “games,” Matrona stopped playing with other children and stayed at home.

The Nikonov home was situated near the beautiful Church of the Dormition of the Mother of God, which served seven or eight surrounding villages. Matrona’s parents were known for their piety and, as they often attended Divine services together, Matrona “grew up” in church. When Natalia didn’t know where the young girl was, she often found her there, standing quietly in her usual place, behind the door near the west wall. She knew the church prayers and hymns and often sang along with the choir.

Darurile vederii duhovnicești și a vindecării

Pe măsură ce mica Matrona creștea, a început brusc să manifeste darul vederii spirituale. Rudeniile sale își aminteau că, încă din copilărie, nu doar că percepea păcatele și greșelile oamenilor, dar chiar și gândurile acestora. Ea simțea pericolele care se apropiau și prezicea dezastre naturale și tulburări sociale.

Într-o zi de sărbătoare, mama ei se pregătea pentru biserică și începea să-l cheme pe soțul ei să meargă cu ea. Dintr-un anumit motiv însă, el a refuzat, spunând că va citi și va cânta rugăciunile acasă. Între timp, mama ei stătea în biserică, adânc tulburată de absența vizibilă a tatălui la slujbă. Din cauza acestei preoccupări, se ruga aproape în mod absent. Când s-a întors acasă de la biserică, Matrona s-a întors către ea și a spus: „Nu ai fost la biserică, mamă.” „Ce vrei să spui, nu am fost la biserică?” a întrebat mama surprinsă. „Tocmai m-am întors de la biserică — vezi?” Fata însă a remarcă: „Acum tata – el a fost la biserică, dar tu nu ai fost acolo!” Cu vederea ei spirituală, fata văzuse că mama era doar „fizic” la slujbă, în timp ce în duh era în afacerea bisericii.

La vârsta de 7 ani, pe lângă darul vederii spirituale, Matrona a dezvoltat darul tămăduirii. Acest fapt a devenit cunoscut pe scară largă, iar de atunci casa Nikonovilor a început să atragă bolnavi și afligți din toată regiunea, care veneau acolo zilnic cu speranța că fetița va face o minune pentru ei. Oamenii o rugau pe Matrona să se roage pentru ei și să-i vindece de bolile lor, iar prin rugăciunile ei, mulți oameni au primit vindecare de boli și mângâiere în durere. Veneau din satele din jur, iar mai târziu chiar și din alte districte și regiuni, pe jos, cu căruța sau în trăsuri. Matrona se ruga adesea pentru invalizii la pat, care se ridicau în picioare, vindecați. Ca mulțumire, lăsau mâncare și daruri pentru părinții ei, așa că, în loc să fie o povară, Matrona a ajuns să devină principalul susținător al familiei.

Matrona spunea rugăciuni peste apă și le dădea celor care veneau la ea. Consumul acestei ape și stropirea cu ea proteja de diverse pericole. Conținutul acestor rugăciuni este necunoscut, dar, desigur, la acea vreme era greu de obținut apă sfințită de un preot care avea dreptul canonic să îndeplinească acest rol. Se știe, însă, că vindecările miraculoase nu se petrec doar prin cantități mici de apă sfințită binecuvântată în biserică, ci și prin fântâni și izvoare asociate cu oameni drepți care și-au petrecut viața în rugăciune lângă aceste fântâni, precum și prin fântâni aproape de locurile unde au apărut icoane sfinte.

La vârsta de 17 ani, Matrona a pierdut brusc folosirea picioarelor. Din acel moment și până la sfârșitul zilelor sale nu a mai putut să meargă. Cu toate acestea, nu s-a plâns niciodată de soarta sa, acceptând cu smerenie această povară grea de la Dumnezeu. Unii s-au întrebat de ce Dumnezeu a permis aceasta, dar din perspectiva rușilor evlavioși, trebuie doar să privim cum Domnul a testat pe cei aleși în Vechiul și Noul Testament pentru a înțelege că un astfel de eveniment nu contrazice nici puterea, nici bunătatea Sa. Nu doar că viața spirituală a Matronei nu a fost împiedicată de acest eveniment, dar aceasta a servit pentru a slăvi pe Dumnezeu prin răbdarea ei. Așadar, până la sfârșitul zilelor sale a rămas așezată. „Șederea” ei în diverse case și apartamente unde găsea adăpost a continuat pentru încă cincizeci de ani.

Revoluția rusă și viața în Uniunea Sovietică

Sfânta Matrona din Moscova.

Când era încă adolescentă, Matrona a prezis Revoluția din Rusia. Ea a descris în detaliu cum bisericile vor fi profanate și jefuite, cum credincioșii vor fi persecutați și ce luptă sângeroasă se va desfășura pentru pământ.

Matrona însăși a fost forțată să ducă o viață rătăcitoare în anii sovietici. În 1925, la vârsta de 40 de ani, a fost nevoită să părăsească satul natal din cauza celor doi frați ai săi, Mihail și Ivan, care erau comuniști convinși și, ca atare, atei. Cei doi erau iritați de șirul nesfârșit de oameni nevoiași și suferinzi care veneau la gospodăria lor din cauza Matronei. În plus, având în vedere persecuțiile la care autoritățile revoluționare îi supuneau pe creștinii ortodocși, frații se temeau pentru propriile vieți și pentru viețile familiei și rudelor lor.

Din acest motiv, Matrona, cu ajutorul prietenilor, a ajuns la Moscova, unde avea rude și cunoștințe. A fost nevoită să se mute dintr-un apartament în altul, evitând confruntările cu autoritățile atee. Domnul a vegheat asupra ei; ea știa întotdeauna dinainte când veneau să o aresteze și astfel putea să se mute și să evite capturarea. Prietenii săi reușeau întotdeauna să o ducă într-un loc sigur la timp. Într-o perioadă în care alți credincioși erau trimiși în lagărele de muncă staliniste sau în exil din cauza credințelor lor, nimeni nu a trădat vreodată locația Matronei. Oamenii continuau să vină la ea pentru sfaturi și pentru a căuta ajutor în necazurile lor.

Viața Matronei a urmat, în mare parte, același tipar ca întotdeauna: ziua primea vizitatori, iar noaptea se ruga. În acest fel și-a petrecut anii.

A story, related by her biographer, Zinaida Zhdanova, tells how Matrona told Zinaida's mother, Evdokia, described as being a plain 28-year-old, that she would marry a handsome nobleman. Evdokia moved to Moscow and became a cook at the house of a rich nobleman whose son, Vladimir, was betrothed to one Shukhova. Shortly thereafter, Vladimir is said to have had a dream in which a voice told him to marry a woman named Evdokia. The next morning he asked if there was such a woman in the household, met her, and nearly fainted. Later, he was sent for training to Perm with Evdokia, and Zinaida was born shortly thereafter.

Although blind, Blessed Matrona was always surrounded with icons. In Moscow, in the room in which she lived for a long period, there were icon corners with icons from floor to ceiling, and glowing icon lamps before them. One woman, working in the Church of the Deposition of the Robe in Moscow often came to Matrona and later recalled how Matrona told her, “In your church I know all the icons and where they are.” People were astonished to learn that Matrona had a visual conception of the world, like those with sight. Zenaida Vladimirovna Zhdanova once said sympathetically, “It’s a pity, Matushka, that you can’t see the beauty of the world,” to which Matrona answered, “Once, God opened my eyes and showed me the world and His creation. I saw the sun and the stars in the sky and everything on the earth, the beauty of the earth, mountains, rivers, the green grass, flowers and birds.”

In an even more remarkable example of her clairvoyance, she helped a college architecture student revise a paper required for graduation by describing in detail some of the great architectural achievements in Florence and Rome, including the Palazzo Pitti.

Zinaida Zhdanova referred to the Blessed Matrona as “the epitome of the angel–warrior incarnate, with sword of fire in hand fighting evil powers”. Matrona was born a Saint, something that set her apart from other Orthodox zealots, who with their deeds over time were granted the gift of Saintliness from the Lord. Obviously, this helped her manage the torrent of sorrow and grief that countless visitors inundated her with daily. People who came to her for help were Muscovites and from other towns, representing diverse stratum of society: some were common folk, others, intelligentsia and military folk. There were so many of them! At times the Blessed Matrona received up to forty people a day! At times she consoled a crying person by taking their head into her hands and simply holding them thus, praying all the while. And the person would leave thus fortified spiritually, although they had just been close to utter despair.

Războiul al II-lea mondial

During the Great Patriotic war of 1941-1945 Matrona told Zinaida Zhdanova that she made invisible visits to the front to help soldiers. In those years she was often people’s only source of information regarding their relatives and friends. She replied to people’s questions saying: “Alive! Wait for him (her).” Or “They’ve died. Arrange for the burial service.”

Împotriva duhorilor necurate

Sf. Matrona făcătoarea de minuni din Moscova

Matrona cured people of various torments, cast on them by demons. Once four men brought an old lady to her, who was waving her arms like a windmill. After Matrona read some prayers over her, the woman grew calm and stopped waving her arms. On another occassion, a lady suddenly fell ill with epilepsy; during her attacks, she fell to the floor, foaming at the mouth and squirming and arching convulsively. They brought her to Matrona. The latter sat tensely, leaning forward and stretching out her little hands, and then pronounced: “Oh, what a big demon they’ve sent into her!” Reading the necessary prayers over the head of the unfortunate possessed woman, Matrona addressed the woman with the words: “I shall not cope with your demon alone. If you help me, then you shall live. You need to take the sacrament every Sunday”. And that is what the woman did.

Matronushka was forced not only to treat the victims of witchcraft, but to fight with those practicing sorcery. She frequently mentioned that she was waging a struggle against witches and other evil powers and that struggle was taking up a lot of her strength. Of sorcerers, Matrona said, “To those who enter willingly into union with the powers of evil, dedicating themselves to witchcraft, there is no escape. It is forbidden to go to these old women for counsel – one heals and the other causes harm.” Folk medicine and pagan spiritual practice continued to be widely practiced in Soviet Russia, particularly in the form of fortune telling and a pagan approach to natural healing. Matrona helped many victims of these practitioners.

The help that Matrona gave to the ill had nothing to do with charmers, fortune-tellers, and so-called folk healers and other magical dealings, in which the ‘healer’ is in contact with dark forces, but was of a true Christian nature. The righteous Matrona was therefore hated by sorcerers, as is witnessed by those who knew her well during the Muscovite period of her life. Above all Matrona prayed for people. As a righteous one of God, richly endowed with gifts from on high, she asked of the Lord miraculous help for the suffering. Her help was also unmercenary, and she took nothing from anyone.

Militant atheism, the growth of estrangement and malice, the rejection of traditional faith by millions of people, and life without repentance led to heavy spiritual consequences. Matrona felt and understood this well. On the days when political demonstrations were held, Matrona urged everyone not to go outside, but to close their windows and doors. Hordes of demons, she said, occupied the entire area, filling the air and troubling people. Perhaps, here, Blessed Matrona, who often spoke allegorically, wanted to remind those around her of the need to guard the ‘windows of the soul’ – as the Holy Fathers sometimes call the senses, from evil spirits.

Thinking of the years after the revolution, Zenaida Zhdanova once asked Matushka, “How can God allow so many churches to be closed and destroyed?” Matushka replied, “It is the will of God to reduce the number of churches because there will be few believers and no one to serve.” Later, she said,

“The people are under hypnosis, they are not themselves, a terrible power has come into being…This power exists in the air and penetrates everything. In earlier times, swamps and impenetrable forests were the habitations of these forces because people were going to churches, they wore crosses and their homes were defended by icons, lampadas and blessings. Before, demons could only fly near these houses, but now they inhabit both houses and people because of unbelief and apostasy from God.”

Moartea

Holy relic of St Matrona of Moscow.

She is said to have predicted her own death three days in advance, accepting all visitors during those final days. She gave all the necessary instructions, asking to have her funeral service in the Church of the Deposition of the Robe on Donskaya Street, where Fr. Nikolai Golubstov served. She also asked that people not bring plastic flowers and wreaths to her funeral. Until the end, she frequently had confession and Holy Communion. She was very humble and like ordinary sinful people, she was afraid of death and did not hide her fear from those who were close to her.

She predicted that several years after her death her grave would become a site of pilgrimage, and so it happened. Following her death in 1952, her grave-site became a pilgrimage site, and more than thirty years after Matrona’s repose, her gravesite at Danilov Monastery's cemetery continued to be one of the holy places of Orthodox Moscow, where people from every corner of Russia and abroad come with their sorrows and sicknesses.

On March 8, 1998 the appropriation of the holy relics of the Blessed Matrona took place. A year later on May 2, 1999, she was canonized as a Saint of the Church of Russia with Patriarch Alexei II (Ridiger) presiding.

At the request of the nuns of the Moscow Pokrovsky (Convent of the Holy Intercession of the Mother of God), who cared for her grave, the relics were transferred to that Convent. From then on the Convent has become a site of pilgrimage for people not only all across Russia, but from all over the world. The nuns carefully collect and write down all testimonies of miraculous help received by people from the Blessed Matrona.

Moștenirea și proslăvirea

St. Matrona led an ascetic life on her bed of pain. She fasted constantly, slept little, her head resting on her chest, and her forehead had a small depression by the innumerable signs of the Cross that she made.

Matushka didn’t give sermons, she didn’t play the role of a teacher. She gave concrete advice on how to deal with this or that situation, and always prayed and blessed. In general she was not talkative; her answers were brief.

The life of St. Matrona reminds us that all of us are called to a life of holiness and that this is possible for all of us. She was not a nun, never attended a seminary, in fact was an illiterate, peasant woman yet was so filled with the grace of the Holy Spirit that she was able to see people's needs and sins, predict the future, and perform countless miracles even after her death. The Bible teaches that when a person is cleansed of their sinful passions and is filled with the Holy Spirit the presence of the Spirit produces certain "gifts" or "fruit". These include the ability to read the hearts of people, perform miracles, and predict future events, as well as having the characteristics of love, joy, peace, patience and kindness. St. Matrona was immersed and "marinated" in the divine services of the Church, spending countless hours in her village church along with several hours daily of her own private prayer.

She was Orthodox in the deep traditional meaning of the word. Her loving compassion for people and her fidelity to the Holy Orthodox Church was the focus of her spiritual life. Her ascetic labor stemmed from the root of centuries of traditional piety, and this is precisely what happens to those who appeal to her for help: they are confirmed in Orthodoxy and a daily life of prayer. Hundreds of thousands of Orthodox people know of Matrona, or ‘Matronushka’ as many Russians lovingly call her. Everyone who asks for her protection and intercession before God with faith and love feels that she helps now, just as she did in her earthly life.

The Blessed Matrona, just like any true Christian zealot, taught people Christianity not so much by words, as by the deeds of her whole life. Physically blind, she taught and continues to teach people true spiritual vision.

“Blessed Matrona, you who have great boldness before God, pray for us sinners!”

Imnografie

Tropar
Chosen by the Holy Spirit from thy swaddling clothes O blessed eldress Matrona,
Thou didst receive bodily weakness and blindness from God for spiritual cleansing,
Thou wast enriched with the gift of foresight and wonderworking and hast been adorned with an incorruptible crown from the Lord.
Wherefore, we offer thee crowns of praise, in gratitude crying out:
Rejoice O righteous mother Matrona, fervent intercessor before God for us!

Icos 1
An angel in the flesh wast thou revealed to be, O blessed Matrona, fulfilling the will of God. Though thou wast born in bodily blindness yet the Lord who maketh wise the blind and loveth the righteous enlightened thy spiritual eyes that thou mightest serve His people and the things of God were made manifest through thee.
Wherefore with love we sing to thee such things as these:

Rejoice, chosen one of God from thy youth;
Rejoice, thou who didst shine forth with the grace of the Holy Spirit from thy cradle.
Rejoice, thou who wast enriched with the gift of miracles even as a child;
Rejoice, thou who wast filled with wisdom from God most high.
Rejoice, thou who foresawest the will of God with noetic eyes;
Rejoice, thou who didst put to shame the wise of this age who are blinded in mind.
Rejoice, thou who ledest deluded souls back toward God;
Rejoice, thou who assuagest sorrow and affliction.
Rejoice O righteous mother Matrona, fervent intercessor before God for us.

Legături externe

• https://doxologia.ro/sfanta-matrona-din-moscova

Surse

• BLESSED MATRONA OF MOSCOW: SAINT AND WONDERWORKER. (.PDF). The Road to Emmaus. Vol. VIII, No. 1, Winter 2007 (#28).

Compiled and translated by Thomas and Sonia Hulbert, from the Russian editions:

• The Life and Miracles of the Righteous St. Matrona of Moscow. Women’s Monastery of the Protection of the Mother of God in Moscow, 2000.
• Memoirs of Zenaida V. Zhdanova. The Life of Blessed Matrona of Moscow and Her Miracles in the 20th and 21st Centuries. Comp. by A.Khudoshin, Kiev, 2005.
• Personal testimonies from many Orthodox Christians whose lives have been touched by St. Matrona.

• St. Matrona of Moscow. The Self-Ruled Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America.

• From Volume Four of the Synaxarion. Compiled by Hieromonk Makarios of Simonos Petra, Mount Athos.

• Fr. Edward Pehanich. The Blind Saint With Sight: St. Matrona of Moscow (1885-1952). American Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Diocese of the U.S.A.
• Tatyana Shvetsova. SAINT BLESSED MATRONA. The Voice of Russia. May 11, 2007 15:12 Moscow Time.
• Blessed Matrona, Orthodoxy and the World, Russian Orthodox Church Website.
• Matryona Nikonova at Wikipedia.
• Great Synaxaristes: Format:El icon Ἡ Ὁσία Ματρώνα ἐκ Ρωσίας. 2 Μαΐου. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ.