What are the artistic techniques in literature? Literary and poetic devices

Saint Methodius was the eldest of seven brothers, Saint Constantine (Cyril was his monastic name) the youngest. While in military service, Saint Methodius ruled in one of the subordinate Byzantine Empire Slavic principalities, apparently in Bulgarian, which gave him the opportunity to learn the Slavic language. Having lived there for about 10 years, Saint Methodius then became a monk in one of the monasteries on Mount Olympus.

From an early age, Saint Constantine was distinguished by great abilities and studied together with the young Emperor Michael from the best teachers of Constantinople, including Photius, the future Patriarch of Constantinople. Saint Constantine perfectly comprehended all the sciences of his time and many languages; he especially diligently studied the works of Saint Gregory the Theologian, and for his intelligence and outstanding knowledge Saint Constantine received the nickname Philosopher (wise). At the end of his studies, Saint Constantine accepted the rank of priest and was appointed custodian of the Patriarchal Library at the Church of Saint Sophia, but soon left the capital and secretly entered a monastery. Found there and returned to Constantinople, he was appointed teacher of philosophy at the higher school of Constantinople. The wisdom and strength of faith of the still very young Constantine were so great that he managed to defeat the leader of the iconoclast heretics, Annius, in a debate. After this victory, Constantine was sent by the emperor to debate about the Holy Trinity with the Saracens (Muslims) and also won. Having returned, Saint Constantine retired to his brother, Saint Methodius on Olympus, spending time in unceasing prayer and reading the works of the holy fathers.

Soon the emperor summoned both holy brothers from the monastery and sent them to the Khazars to preach the gospel. On the way, they stopped for some time in the city of Korsun, preparing for the sermon. There the holy brothers miraculously found the relics of the Hieromartyr Clement, Pope of Rome (November 25). There, in Korsun, Saint Constantine found the Gospel and the Psalter, written in “Russian letters,” and a man speaking Russian, and began to learn from this man to read and speak his language. After this, the holy brothers went to the Khazars, where they won the debate with Jews and Muslims, preaching the Gospel teaching. On the way home, the brothers again visited Korsun and, taking the relics of Saint Clement there, returned to Constantinople. Saint Constantine remained in the capital, and Saint Methodius received the abbess in the small monastery of Polychron, not far from Mount Olympus, where he had previously labored.

Soon, ambassadors from the Moravian prince Rostislav, oppressed by the German bishops, came to the emperor with a request to send teachers to Moravia who could preach in the native language of the Slavs. The emperor called Saint Constantine and told him: “You need to go there, because no one will do this better than you.” Saint Constantine, with fasting and prayer, began a new feat. With the help of his brother Saint Methodius and the disciples Gorazd, Clement, Savva, Naum and Angelar, he compiled the Slavic alphabet and translated into Slavic the books without which the Divine service could not be performed: the Gospel, the Apostle, the Psalter and selected services. This was in 863.

After completing the translation, the holy brothers went to Moravia, where they were received with great honor, and began to teach Divine services in the Slavic language. This aroused the anger of the German bishops, who performed divine services in the Moravian churches on Latin, and they rebelled against the holy brothers, arguing that Divine services could only be performed in one of three languages: Hebrew, Greek or Latin. Saint Constantine answered them: “You recognize only three languages ​​worthy of glorifying God in them. But David cries: Sing to the Lord, all the earth, praise the Lord, all nations, let every breath praise the Lord! And in the Holy Gospel it is said: Go and learn all languages...” The German bishops were disgraced, but became even more embittered and filed a complaint to Rome. The holy brothers were called to Rome to resolve this issue. Taking with them the relics of Saint Clement, Pope of Rome, Saints Constantine and Methodius went to Rome. Having learned that the holy brothers were carrying special holy relics, Pope Adrian and the clergy went out to meet them. The holy brothers were greeted with honor, the Pope approved worship in the Slavic language, and ordered the books translated by the brothers to be placed in Roman churches and the liturgy to be performed in the Slavic language.

While in Rome, Saint Constantine fell ill and, informed by the Lord in a miraculous vision of his approaching death, he took the schema with the name Cyril. 50 days after accepting the schema, on February 14, 869, Equal-to-the-Apostles Cyril died at the age of 42. Retreating to God, Saint Cyril commanded his brother Saint Methodius to continue their common cause - the enlightenment of the Slavic peoples with light true faith. Saint Methodius begged the Pope to allow his brother's body to be taken away for burial in native land, but the pope ordered the relics of St. Cyril to be placed in the church of St. Clement, where miracles began to be performed from them.

After the death of Saint Cyril, the pope, following the request of the Slavic prince Kocel, sent Saint Methodius to Pannonia, ordaining him archbishop of Moravia and Pannonia, to the ancient throne of Saint Andronicus the Apostle. In Pannonia, Saint Methodius, together with his disciples, continued to spread divine services, writing and books in the Slavic language. This again angered the German bishops. They achieved the arrest and trial of Saint Methodius, who was exiled to prison in Swabia, where he endured much suffering for two and a half years. Released by order of Pope John VIII and restored to his rights as an archbishop, Methodius continued his evangelical preaching among the Slavs and baptized the Czech prince Borivoj and his wife Lyudmila (September 16), as well as one of Polish princes. For the third time, German bishops launched a persecution against the saint for not accepting the Roman teaching about the procession of the Holy Spirit from the Father and from the Son. Saint Methodius was summoned to Rome, but justified himself before the pope, preserving the purity of the Orthodox teaching, and was again returned to the capital of Moravia - Velehrad.

Here, in last years During his life, Saint Methodius, with the help of two disciple-priests, translated the entire Old Testament into the Slavic language, except for the Maccabean books, as well as the Nomocanon (Rules of the Holy Fathers) and the patristic books (Paterikon).

Anticipating the approach of his death, Saint Methodius pointed to one of his disciples, Gorazd, as a worthy successor. The saint predicted the day of his death and died on April 6, 885 at the age of about 60 years. The funeral service for the saint was performed in three languages ​​- Slavic, Greek and Latin; he was buried in the cathedral church of Velehrad.

And Methodius were born in the Byzantine city of Thessaloniki (Thessaloniki, Slavic. "Thessaloniki"). Their father is named Leo, " good kind and rich”, was a drungari, that is, an officer, under the strategos (military and civil governor) of the theme of Thessalonica. Their grandfather (it is not clear by father or mother) was a major nobleman in Constantinople, but then, apparently, fell out of favor and ended his days in obscurity in Thessalonica. The family had seven sons, including Methodius (researchers do not know whether this was a baptismal name or given upon tonsure) is the eldest, and Konstantin (Kirill) is the youngest of them.

According to the most widespread version in science, Cyril and Methodius were of Greek origin. In the 19th century, some Slavic scholars (Mikhail Pogodin, Hermengild Irechek) defended their Slavic origin, based on their excellent command of the Slavic language - a circumstance that modern scholars consider insufficient for judging ethnicity. Bulgarian tradition calls the brothers Bulgarians (to which, until the twentieth century, the Macedonian Slavs were also counted), relying in particular on the prologue “Life of Cyril” (in a later edition), where it is said that he “came from Soloun Grad”; This idea is readily supported by modern Bulgarian scientists.

Thessalonica, where the brothers were born, was a bilingual city. In addition to the Greek language, they sounded the Slavic Thessalonica dialect, which was spoken by the tribes surrounding Thessaloniki: Dragovites, Sagudati, Vayunits, Smolyans and which, according to the research of modern linguists, formed the basis of the language of translations of Cyril and Methodius, and with them the entire Church Slavonic language . An analysis of the language of translations of Cyril and Methodius shows that they spoke Slavic as their native language. The latter, however, does not yet speak in their favor. Slavic origin and apparently did not distinguish them from other residents of Thessaloniki, since the “Life of Methodius” ascribes to Emperor Michael III the following words addressed to the saints: “You are a villager, and all the villagers speak purely Slovenian.”

Years of study and teaching

Both brothers received an excellent education. Methodius, with the support of his family friend and patron, the great logothete (head of the state treasury) eunuch Theoktistus, made a good military-administrative career, culminating in the post of strategist of Slavinia, a Byzantine province located in Macedonia. Then, however, he took monastic vows.

Kirill, unlike his brother, initially followed the spiritual and scientific path. According to the “Life”, compiled among his immediate disciples, from the very beginning of his teaching in Thessalonica, he amazed those around him with his abilities and memory. Once in his youth, while hunting, he lost his beloved hawk, and this made such an impression on him that he abandoned all fun and, having drawn a cross on the wall of his room, delved into the study of the works of Gregory the Theologian, to whom he composed a special poetic praise. Under the patronage of the logothete Theoktistus, he headed to Constantinople, where, according to his life, he studied with the emperor (but the young Michael was much more younger than Konstantin, perhaps in reality he was supposed to help train the child emperor). Among his teachers are the greatest scientists of that time, the future Patriarch Photius I and Leo the Mathematician. There he (according to the author of the “Life” allegedly at three months) studied “To Homer and geometry, and Leo and Photius, dialectics and all philosophical sciences in addition: rhetoric, and arithmetic, and astronomy, and music, and all other Hellenic arts". Subsequently, he also mastered Aramaic and Hebrew. At the end of his studies, he refused to begin a very promising secular career by entering into an advantageous marriage with the goddaughter of the logothete (along with which, to begin with, “archontia” was promised, that is, the control of one of the semi-autonomous Slavic regions of Macedonia, and in the future the post of strategist), and therefore was sent along the path of church service (since Constantine was only 15 years old at that time, he had to go through several more preliminary steps in the church hierarchy before becoming a priest) and entered service as, in the words of his life, “a scribe at the Patriarch's in Hagia Sophia." The “reader of the patriarch” (the patriarch was Photius, Constantine’s teacher) can be understood as a chartophylax (the head of the office of the patriarch, literally “keeper of the archive”), or maybe a bibliophilax - the patriarchal librarian; B. Florya prefers the second option, since the young deacon did not have any administrative experience for such a responsible position as the patriarch's secretary. However, at some point he unexpectedly abandoned his post and hid in the monastery. After 6 months, he was found by the patriarch’s envoys and begged to return to Constantinople, where he began teaching philosophy at the same Magnavra University where he had recently studied (since then the nickname Constantine the Philosopher has been established for him). If you believe the Life of Constantine, then he defeated the famous leader of the iconoclasts, the former Patriarch John the Grammar (in the Life he appears under the contemptuous nickname “Annius”); however, modern researchers almost unanimously consider this episode to be fictitious.

Khazar mission

Finding the relics of St. Clement, Pope

Konstantin-Kirill played a leading role in this event, which he himself later described in “The Homily for the Finding of the Relics of Clement, Pope of Rome,” which came down in a Slavic translation. At the same time, the acquisition itself took place with the participation of high-ranking representatives of the Constantinople clergy and the local bishop. E. V. Ukhanova believes that both the acquisition of the relics and their subsequent transfer by Constantine-Cyril to Rome (see below) were not only acts of piety, but also political acts of the Constantinople court, aimed at reconciling Constantinople with the Roman throne in two moments when this seemed possible: during the election of Photius as patriarch (before his famous break with Pope Nicholas I) and after the removal of Photius by the new emperor Basil the Macedonian.

Moravian Mission

If you ask the Slavic literati, saying: “Who created the letters for you or translated the books?”, then everyone knows and, answering, they say: “St. Constantine the Philosopher, named Cyril - he created the letters for us and translated the books, and Methodius, his brother. Because those who saw them are still alive.” And if you ask: “at what time?”, then they know and say: “that in the time of Michael, king of Greece, and Boris, prince of Bulgaria, and Rostislav, prince of Moravia, and Kocel, prince of Blaten, in the year from the creation of the whole world.” .

If you ask the Slovenian boukar, saying: “Who made the letters, or the books?” - Then they all say and answer: “St. Constantine the Philosopher, called Kiril, create for us letters and lay down the books, and Methodius his brother. The point is, those who are still alive will have seen them.” And if you ask: “at what time?” then they lead and say: “In the time of Michael, the Tsar of Grichsk, and Boris, the Prince of Bulgaria, and Rastitsa, the Prince of Moravia, and Kocel, the Prince of Blatnsk, in the year from the creation of the whole world.”

Thus, the creation Slavic alphabet can be attributed to the year 863 after the Nativity of Christ, according to the Alexandrian chronology, used at that time by Bulgarian chroniclers.

Experts have still not come to a consensus as to which of the two Slavic alphabets - Glagolitic or Cyrillic - was the author of Konstantin. Chernorizets Khrabr, however, mentions that Cyril's alphabet had 38 characters, which indicates the Glagolitic alphabet.

Rome trip

Before his death, fearing that Methodius would return to the monastery on Olympus, he said to his brother:

“Here, brother, you and I were like two oxen in harness, plowing one furrow, and I was near the forest<, дойдя борозду,>I fall, finishing my day. And although you love the mountain very much, you cannot leave your teaching for the sake of the mountain, for how else can you better achieve salvation?”

Original text(Old Slav.)

“Behold, brother, I am the wife of Bekhov, weighing down the reins alone, and I am falling in the forest, having ended my days. And if you love the mountain as great, then do not destroy the mountain for the sake of leaving your teaching, otherwise you may be saved.”

The Pope ordained Methodius as Archbishop of Moravia and Pannonia.

Return of Methodius to Pannonia

In 879, German bishops organized new process against Methodius. However, Methodius brilliantly justified himself in Rome and even received a papal bull allowing worship in the Slavic language.

In 881, Methodius, at the invitation of Emperor Basil I of Macedon, came to Constantinople. There he spent three years, after which he and his students returned to Moravia (Velegrad). With the help of three students, he translated the Old Testament and patristic books into Slavic.

In 885, Methodius became seriously ill. Before his death, he appointed his student Gorazda as his successor. On April 4, Palm Sunday, he asked to be taken to church, where he read a sermon. On the same day he died. Methodius' funeral service took place in three languages ​​- Slavic, Greek and Latin.

After death

After the death of Methodius, his opponents managed to achieve a ban Slavic writing in Moravia. Many students were executed, some moved to Bulgaria (Gorazd-Ohridski and Kliment-Ohridski) and Croatia.

Pope Adrian II wrote to Prince Rostislav in Prague that if anyone begins to treat books written in Slavic with contempt, then let him be excommunicated and brought before the court of the Church, for such people are “wolves.” And Pope John VIII in 880 wrote to Prince Svyatopolk, ordering that sermons be delivered in Slavic.

Disciples of Saints Cyril and Methodius

The above-mentioned disciples are revered in the Balkans as the seventh saints.

Heritage

Cyril and Methodius developed a special alphabet for writing texts in the Slavic language - Glagolitic. Currently, the viewpoint of V. A. Istrin prevails among historians, but is not generally recognized, according to which the Cyrillic alphabet was created on the basis Greek alphabet disciple of the holy brothers Clement of Ohrid (which is also mentioned in his Life). Using the created alphabet, the brothers translated the Holy Scriptures and a number of liturgical books from Greek.

It should be noted that even if the Cyrillic letterforms were developed by Clement, he relied on the work of isolating the sounds of the Slavic language done by Cyril and Methodius, and it is precisely this work that is main part any work to create a new written language. Modern scientists note high level this work, which gave designations for almost all scientifically distinguished Slavic sounds, to which we apparently owe to the outstanding linguistic abilities of Konstantin-Kirill, noted in the sources.

Sometimes it is argued about the existence of Slavic writing before Cyril and Methodius, based on a passage from the life of Cyril, which talks about books written in “Russian letters”:

"And the Philosopher found here<в Корсуни>The Gospel and the Psalter, written in Russian letters, and I found a man, the speaker speech. And he talked with him and understood the meaning of the language, correlating the differences between vowels and consonants with his language. And offering up prayer to God, he soon began to read and speak. And many were amazed at this, praising God.”

Original text (old Slavic)

“You will find that Gospel and Psalter, written in Russian letters, and you will find a person who speaks with that conversation. And having talked with him, I received the power of speech, applying different writings, vowel and consonant, to my conversation. And holding a prayer to God, he soon began to clean and say. And I am amazed at him, praising God.”

However, it does not follow from the passage that the “Russian language” mentioned there is Slavic; on the contrary, the fact that Konstantin-Kirill’s mastery of it is perceived as a miracle directly indicates that it was not a Slavic language. It should be remembered that during the time of Cyril and Methodius and much later, the Slavs easily understood each other and believed that they spoke a single Slavic language, which is also agreed by some modern linguists who believe that the unity of the Proto-Slavic language can be spoken of until the 12th century . Most researchers believe that the fragment either speaks of the Gospel in the Gothic language (an idea first expressed by Safarik), or that the manuscript contains an error and instead of “Russian” it should be considered “Surian,” that is, “Syrian.” In support, they point out that the author makes a special distinction between vowels and consonants: as is known, in Aramaic writing, vowel sounds are indicated by superscripts. It is also significant that the entire fragment is given in the context of a story about Constantine’s study of the Hebrew language and Samaritan writing, which he began in Korsun, preparing for the debate in Khazaria. Metropolitan Macarius (Bulgakov) also points out that in the same life it is repeatedly emphasized that Constantine was the creator of Slavic letters and before him there were no Slavic letters - that is, the author of the life does not consider the described “Russian” letters to be Slavic.

Reverence

They are revered as saints in both the East and the West.

Widespread veneration of Cyril and Methodius begins with mid-19th century, when the names of the Slavic first teachers become a symbol of self-determination of the cultures of the Slavic peoples. The first celebration of the day of memory of Cyril and Methodius took place on May 11, 1858 in Plovdiv, and the Greeks did not participate in the celebrations. The celebration itself had the character of a symbolic act of confrontation with the Greek hierarchy of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, which was then subordinate to the Bulgarian Church.

The first practical steps towards the resumption of church veneration of the Slavic first teachers were taken by Bishop Anthony of Smolensk (Amphitheaters), who in the summer of 1861 addressed the Chief Prosecutor of the Synod with a report in which he drew attention to the fact that in the Menaions on May 11 there was no service to Cyril and Methodius, and in There is no troparion or kontakion for them in the Monthly Word. That is, in the liturgical practice of countries that used liturgical books printed in Russia (Serbia, Bulgaria and Russia), no special service was performed for the Slavic primary teachers. Such a service had to be compiled and put into liturgical use. The initiative was supported by Metropolitan Filaret (Drozdov).

Two years after these celebrations, the “Cyril and Methodius Collection” was published, published under the editorship of M. P. Pogodin, which included the publication of a significant number of primary sources related to the activities of Cyril and Methodius, including ancient services to the Slavic first teachers. Also included here were articles emphasizing political aspect Cyril and Methodius celebrations.

The holiday in honor of Cyril and Methodius is a public holiday in Russia (since 1991), Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and the Republic of Macedonia. In Russia, Bulgaria and the Republic of Macedonia the holiday is celebrated on May 24; in Russia and Bulgaria it is called , in Macedonia it is the Day of Saints Cyril and Methodius. In the Czech Republic and Slovakia the holiday is celebrated on July 5th.

In Bulgaria there is the Order of Cyril and Methodius. Also in Bulgaria, back in the communist period, a public holiday was established - the Day of Slavic Literature and Culture (coinciding with the day of the church commemoration of Cyril and Methodius), which is widely celebrated today.

In mid-July 1869, in the centuries-old forest across the Tsemes River, Czech settlers who arrived in Novorossiysk founded the village of Mefodievka, which was named in honor of St. Methodius.

To the cinema

• Cyril and Methodius - Apostles of the Slavs (2013)

see also

• Day of Slavic Culture and Literature (Day of Cyril and Methodius)

Notes

1. Duychev, Ivan. Bulgarian Middle Ages. - Sofia: Science and Art, 1972. - P. 96.
2. THE LIFE OF CONSTANTINE-KIRILL
3. “I had a great and famous grandfather, who sat near the Tsar, and he willingly rejected the glory given to him, was quickly expelled, and came to another land, impoverished. And give birth to that one,” the life quotes the words of Constantine himself - see THE LIFE OF CONSTANTINE-KIRILL
4. Tahiaos, Anthony Emilius-N. Holy brothers Cyril and Methodius, enlighteners of the Slavs. Sergiev Posad, 2005. P. 11.
5. Cyril and Methodius, Equal to the Apostles, Slovenian teachers
6. Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001-05, s.v. "Cyril and Methodius, Saints"; Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica Incorporated, Warren E. Preece - 1972, p.846
7. // Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron: in 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - St. Petersburg. , 1890-1907.
8. Cyril and Methodius// New encyclopedic dictionary. Volume 21. 1914
9. E. M. VERESCHAGIN From the history of the emergence of the first literary language of the Slavs. Translation technique of Cyril and Methodius)
10. Cyril and Methodius Encyclopedia., Sofia., BAN publication (Bulgarian Academy of Sciences), 1985
11. S. B. Bernstein. Slavic languages. Linguistic encyclopedic dictionary. - M., 1990. - P. 460-461

Koloskova Kristina

The presentation was created on the topic: “Creators of the Slavic alphabet: Cyril and Methodius” Goal: to attract students to independently search for information, develop students’ creative abilities.

Download:

Preview:

To use presentation previews, create an account for yourself ( account) Google and log in: https://accounts.google.com

Slide captions:

Cyril and Methodius. The work was completed by a student of grade 4 “a” of the Municipal Educational Institution “ high school No. 11" Kimry, Tver region Kristina Koloskova

"And the native Rus' of the Holy Apostles of the Slavs will glorify"

Page I “In the beginning was the word...” Cyril and Methodius Cyril and Methodius, Slavic educators, creators of the Slavic alphabet, preachers of Christianity, the first translators of liturgical books from Greek into Slavic. Cyril (before taking monasticism in 869 - Constantine) (827 - 02/14/869) and his older brother Methodius (815 - 04/06/885) were born in the city of Thessaloniki in the family of a military leader. The boys' mother was Greek, and their father was Bulgarian, so from childhood they had two native languages ​​- Greek and Slavic. The brothers' characters were very similar. Both read a lot and loved to study.

Holy brothers Cyril and Methodius, educators of the Slavs. In 863-866 the brothers were sent to Great Moravia to expound Christian teaching in a language understandable to the Slavs. Great teachers translated the books of the Holy Scriptures, using Eastern Bulgarian dialects as the basis, and created a special alphabet - the Glagolitic alphabet - for their texts. The activities of Cyril and Methodius had a pan-Slavic significance and influenced the formation of many Slavic literary languages.

Saint Equal to the Apostles Cyril (827 - 869), nicknamed the Philosopher, Slovenian teacher. When Konstantin was 7 years old, he saw prophetic dream: “Father gathered everyone beautiful girls Thessaloniki and ordered to choose one of them as his wife. Having examined everyone, Konstantin chose the most beautiful; her name was Sophia (Greek for wisdom).” So, even in childhood, he became engaged to wisdom: for him, knowledge and books became the meaning of his whole life. Constantine received an excellent education at the imperial court in the capital of Byzantium - Constantinople. He quickly studied grammar, arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, music, and knew 22 languages. Interest in science, perseverance in learning, hard work - all this made him one of the most educated people Byzantium. It is no coincidence that he great wisdom nicknamed the Philosopher. Saint Equal to the Apostles Cyril

Methodius of Moravia Saint Methodius Equal to the Apostles Methodius entered early military service. For 10 years he was the manager of one of the regions inhabited by the Slavs. Around 852, he took monastic vows, renouncing the rank of archbishop, and became abbot of the monastery. Polychron on the Asian shore of the Sea of ​​Marmara. In Moravia he was imprisoned for two and a half years and dragged through the snow in the bitter cold. The Enlightener did not renounce his service to the Slavs, but in 874 he was released by John VIII and restored to his episcopate rights. Pope John VIII forbade Methodius to perform the Liturgy in the Slavic language, but Methodius, visiting Rome in 880, achieved the lifting of the ban. In 882-884 he lived in Byzantium. In mid-884, Methodius returned to Moravia and worked on translating the Bible into Slavic.

Glagolitic is one of the first (along with Cyrillic) Slavic alphabets. It is assumed that it was the Glagolitic alphabet that was created by the Slavic enlightener St. Konstantin (Kirill) Philosopher for recording church texts in the Slavic language. Glagolitic

The Old Church Slavonic alphabet was compiled by the scientist Cyril and his brother Methodius at the request of the Moravian princes. That's what it's called - Cyrillic. This is the Slavic alphabet, it has 43 letters (19 vowels). Each has its own name, similar to ordinary words: A - az, B - beeches, C - lead, G - verb, D - good, F - live, Z - earth and so on. ABC - the name itself is derived from the names of the first two letters. In Rus', the Cyrillic alphabet became widespread after the adoption of Christianity (988). The Slavic alphabet turned out to be perfectly adapted to accurately convey the sounds of the Old Russian language. This alphabet is the basis of our alphabet. Cyrillic

In 863, the word of God began to sound in Moravian cities and villages in their native Slavic language, writings and secular books were created. Slavic chronicles began. The Soloun brothers devoted their entire lives to teaching, knowledge, and service to the Slavs. They did not attach much importance to wealth, honors, fame, or career. The younger, Constantine, read a lot, reflected, wrote sermons, and the eldest, Methodius, was more of an organizer. Constantine translated from Greek and Latin into Slavic, wrote, creating the alphabet, in Slavic, Methodius “published” books, led a school of students. Konstantin was not destined to return to his homeland. When they arrived in Rome, he became seriously ill, took monastic vows, received the name Cyril, and died a few hours later. He remained to live with this name in the blessed memory of his descendants. Buried in Rome. The beginning of Slavic chronicles.

Spread of writing in Rus' Ancient Rus' read letters and books. Historians and archaeologists believe that total There were approximately 100 thousand copies of handwritten books before the 14th century. After the adoption of Christianity in Rus' - in 988 - writing began to spread faster. The liturgical books were translated into Old Church Slavonic. Russian scribes rewrote these books, adding features of their native language to them. This is how the Old Russian literary language was gradually created, works of Old Russian authors appeared (unfortunately, often nameless) - “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign”, “The Teachings of Vladimir Monomakh”, “The Life of Alexander Nevsky” and many others.

Yaroslav the Wise Grand Duke Yaroslav “loved books, read them often both night and day. And he gathered many scribes and they translated from Greek into the Slavic language and they wrote many books” (chronicle of 1037) Among these books were chronicles written by monks, old and young, secular people, these are “lives” historical songs, “teachings”, “messages”. Yaroslav the Wise

“They teach the alphabet and shout at the top of their voices” (V.I.Dal “ Dictionary living Great Russian language") V.I. Dal In Ancient Rus' there were no textbooks yet; education was based on church books, and it was necessary to memorize huge texts-psalms - instructive chants. The names of the letters were learned by heart. When learning to read, the letters of the first syllable were first named, then this syllable was pronounced; then the letters of the second syllable were named, and the second syllable was pronounced, and so on, and only after that the syllables were formed into a whole word, for example BOOK: kako, ours, izhe - KNI, verb, az - GA. That's how difficult it was to learn to read and write.

IV page “Renaissance” Slavic holiday» Macedonia Ohrid Monument to Cyril and Methodius Already in the 9th – 10th centuries, in the homeland of Cyril and Methodius, the first traditions of glorifying and venerating the creators of Slavic writing began to emerge. But soon the Roman Church began to oppose the Slavic language, calling it barbaric. Despite this, the names of Cyril and Methodius continued to live among Slavic people, and in the middle of the 14th century they were officially ranked among the saints. In Russia it was different. The memory of the Slavic enlighteners was celebrated already in the 11th century; here they were never considered heretics, that is, atheists. But still, only scientists were more interested in this. Wide celebrations of the Slavic word began in Russia in the early 60s of the last century.

On the holiday of Slavic writing on May 24, 1992, a Grand opening monument to Saints Cyril and Methodius by sculptor Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Klykov. Moscow. Slavyanskaya Square

Kyiv Odessa

Thessaloniki Mukachevo

Chelyabinsk Saratov Monument to Cyril and Methodius was opened on May 23, 2009. Sculptor Alexander Rozhnikov

On the territory of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, near the Far Caves, a monument was erected to the creators of the Slavic alphabet, Cyril and Methodius.

Monument to Saints Cyril and Methodius The holiday in honor of Cyril and Methodius is a public holiday in Russia (since 1991), Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and the Republic of Macedonia. In Russia, Bulgaria and the Republic of Macedonia the holiday is celebrated on May 24; in Russia and Bulgaria it is called Day Slavic culture and writing, in Macedonia - the Day of Saints Cyril and Methodius. In the Czech Republic and Slovakia the holiday is celebrated on July 5th.

Thank you for your attention!

Cyril and Methodius.

Cyril (in the world Constantine; 827-869) and Methodius (in the world Michael; 815-885), brothers from the city of Thessaloniki - educators of the Slavs, creators of the Slavic alphabet, preachers of Christianity.

Canonized and revered as saints in both the East and the West.

Cyril and Methodius came from the Byzantine city of Thessaloniki. Their father was a drungari under the military commander of the city. There were seven sons in the family, with Methodius the eldest and Cyril the youngest.

According to one version, they came from a pious Slavic family who lived in the Byzantine city of Thessaloniki. From a large number historical sources, mainly from " Brief Life Clement of Ohrid", it is known that Cyril and Methodius were Bulgarians.

According to another version, Cyril and Methodius were of Greek origin.

There is an alternative theory of the ethnic origin of Cyril and Methodius, according to which they were not Slavs, but Bulgars (proto-Bulgarians). This theory also refers to the assumptions of historians that the brothers created the Glagolitic alphabet - an alphabet more similar to the ancient Bulgarian than to the Slavic.

The brothers were natives of the city of Thessaloniki, which at that time was part of the Slavic territory and was cultural center Macedonia. Ancient Thessaloniki was a bilingual city, in which, in addition to the Greek language, a Slavic dialect was heard.

Before becoming a monk, Michael made a good military-administrative career, culminating in the post of strategos of Slavinia, a province located in Macedonia.

Konstantin was a very educated person for his time. Even before his trip to Moravia, he compiled the Slavic alphabet and began to translate the Gospel into the Slavic language.

Scientists have not come to a consensus about the role of Cyril and Methodius in the spread of Christianity in the Bulgarian Khanate. Skeptics believe that the brothers, during the baptism of Khan Boris, were carrying out a Moravian mission and could not participate in this event. At the same time, Bulgarian researchers have a different opinion.

The sister of the Bulgarian Khan Boris was held hostage in Constantinople. She was baptized with the name Theodora and was raised in the spirit of the holy faith. Around 860, she returned to Bulgaria and began to persuade her brother to accept Christianity. Boris was baptized, taking the name Mikhail. Saints Cyril and Methodius were in this country and with their preaching they greatly contributed to the establishment of Christianity in it. From Bulgaria, the Christian faith spread to its neighboring Serbia. In 863, with the help of brother Methodius and his disciples, he compiled the Old Slavonic alphabet and translated the main liturgical books into Bulgarian from Greek. The time of the invention of the Slavic alphabet is evidenced by the legend of the Bulgarian monk Chernorizets Khrabra, a contemporary of Tsar Simeon, “On Writings”.

Thus, the creation of the Slavic alphabet can be dated back to 863 after the Nativity of Christ.

In 862, ambassadors from the Moravian prince Rostislav came to Constantinople with the following request: “Our people profess the Christian faith, but we do not have teachers who could explain the faith to us in our native language. Send us such teachers.” The emperor and patriarch rejoiced and, calling the holy Thessalonica brothers, invited them to go to the Moravians.

In Moravia, Cyril and Methodius continued to translate church books from Greek into the Slavic language, taught the Slavs to read, write and conduct worship in the Slavic language. The brothers stayed in Moravia for more than three years, and then went with the students to Rome to the Pope. Among some theologians of the Western Church, there is a point of view that praise to God can only be given in three “sacred” languages: Hebrew, Greek and Latin. Therefore, Cyril and Methodius, who preached Christianity in Moravia, were perceived as heretics and summoned to Rome. After Cyril handed over to Pope Adrian II the relics of St. Clement he had found on his Chersonesos journey, he approved the service in the Slavic language, and ordered the translated books to be placed in Roman churches. Methodius was ordained to the rank of bishop.

In Rome, Constantine fell seriously ill, at the beginning of February 869 he finally fell ill, took the schema and the new monastic name Cyril, and died 50 days later (February 14). He was buried in Rome in the Church of St. Clement.

Since 870, the activities of Methodius and his disciples took place in very difficult conditions. The Latin-German clergy in every way prevented the spread of the Slavic language as the language of the church.

In 879, the German bishops organized a new trial against Methodius. However, Methodius brilliantly justified himself in Rome and even received a papal bull allowing worship in the Slavic language.

In 881, Methodius, at the invitation of Emperor Basil I of Macedon, came to Constantinople. There he spent three years, after which he and his students returned to Moravia. With the help of three students, he translated the Old Testament and patristic books into Slavic.

In 885, Methodius became seriously ill. Before his death, he appointed his student Gorazd as his successor. On April 19, Palm Sunday, he asked to be taken to church, where he read a sermon. On the same day he died. Methodius' funeral service took place in three languages ​​- Slavic, Greek and Latin.

CYRILL AND MEFODIUS, Slavic educators, creators of the Slavic alphabet and literary language, the first translators from Greek into Slavic, preachers of Christianity, saints equal to the apostles.

According to the lives, brothers Cyril (before taking monasticism - Constantine) [about 827, Thessaloniki (Thessaloniki) - 14.2.869, Rome] and Methodius (name unknown before taking monasticism) [about 815, Thessaloniki (Thessaloniki) - 6.4.885, Velegrad ] came from the family of drungaria (Byzantine military leader and mid-ranking administrator). Methodius in his youth entered the public service, ruled a region with a Slavic population for some time, then retired to a monastery. Constantine was educated in Constantinople, among his teachers was the future Patriarch of Constantinople, Saint Photius. Having completed his education, Constantine took the position of librarian of the Church of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople, or, according to another version, the position of skeuphylax (cathedral sacristan). Leaving the capital, he settled in one of the monasteries of Asia Minor. For some time he taught philosophy in Constantinople, and participated in polemics with the iconoclasts (see Iconoclasm). In 855-856, Constantine took part in the so-called Saracen mission to the capital of the Arab Caliphate, where, according to his life, he conducted theological discussions with Muslims. In 860-861, as part of a diplomatic mission, he traveled to the Khazar Kaganate and conducted polemics with Jews and Muslims. During this journey, Constantine found near Korsun (see Chersonesus) the relics of the holy martyr Clement I, Pope of Rome; He took some of the relics with him.

"Cyril and Methodius". Icon by G. Zhuravlev (1885). Samara Diocesan Church History Museum.

According to the lives of Cyril and Methodius, an embassy from the Great Moravian prince Rostislav, who arrived at the end of 862 to the Byzantine Emperor Michael III, asked to send a “teacher” to Moravia to expound the Christian faith in the Slavic language. The mission was entrusted to Constantine and Methodius, who knew the Slavic language well. In Constantinople, in preparation for the trip, Constantine compiled an alphabet (Glagolitic) for the Slavs, which is an independent graphic system. The Glagolitic alphabet is based on the phonemic principle: in general, it is characterized by a one-to-one correspondence between the phoneme and the letter. Having created an alphabet and a writing system, Constantine began to translate the liturgical Gospel from Greek. The first recorded Slavic phrase (John 1:1) in Glagolitic looked like

(in Cyrillic - from time immemorial ѣ word). The main merit of the enlightenment brothers is that thanks to their works, on the basis of the unwritten Slavic dialect, a book-written language suitable for translation was developed Holy Scripture and liturgical texts, capable of conveying the most complex theological ideas and features of Byzantine liturgical poetry (see Old Slavonic language, Church Slavonic language).

“Bishop Methodius dictates the text of the Slavic translation to the scribe.” Miniature of the Radziwill Chronicle. 15th century

At the end of 863, Constantine and Methodius went to Great Moravia, where they continued their translation work. The Apostle, the Psalter, a number of liturgical texts, the essay “Writing about the Right Faith” were translated into the Slavic language (the translation is based on the “Great Apologetician” by Nikephoros of Constantinople) - summary the main tenets of Christian doctrine, and also compiled a poetic preface to the Gospel (“Proclamation”). At the same time, local residents were actively trained in Slavic writing. The success of the missionaries displeased the German priests who served in the Moravian churches in Latin. In disputes with Constantine and Methodius, they argued that worship could be performed only in one of the three languages: Hebrew, Greek and Latin, on which, according to the Gospel, the inscription was made on the cross over the crucified Jesus Christ (Luke 23:38). Since the territory of Great Moravia was under the jurisdiction of the Roman Church, Constantine and Methodius were summoned to Rome. The brothers brought part of the relics of the holy martyr Clement I to Rome, which predetermined the favor of Pope Adrian II towards them; he approved the books they translated, approved Slavic worship and ordained Methodius to the priesthood. While in Rome, Constantine fell ill, took the schema with the name Cyril and soon died. By order of the pope, he was buried in the Basilica of St. Clement.

Returning with his disciples to Moravia, Methodius enlisted the support of princes Rostislav and Kocel, again went to Rome, where no later than the end of the summer of 869 he was installed as archbishop of the restored Sirmian diocese, which included Great Moravia and Pannonia, and continued to strengthen and spread Slavic writing and worship. Methodius's activities continued to provoke opposition from the German clergy, who, taking advantage of the successes of the East Frankish king Carloman in the war with Rostislav, achieved his arrest and trial. For two and a half years, Methodius and his closest disciples were imprisoned in Ellwangen Abbey (according to another version - Reichenau). Thanks to the intercession of Pope John VIII in the spring of 873, Methodius was released and returned to the see. However, the opposition of the German clergy did not stop. Methodius was accused of rejecting the doctrine of the Filioque. In 880 he was summoned to Rome, where he was acquitted, after which he returned to Moravia.

Methodius directed his efforts towards organizing a full-fledged church life and disseminating Byzantine legal norms in Great Moravia. For this purpose, he translated the Nomocanon and compiled “The Law of Judgment for People” - the first Slavic legal collection. On the initiative of Methodius, and possibly with his participation, the life of Cyril and the service to him were written (originally on Greek). In the last years of his life, according to his life, Methodius, with the help of two assistants, translated the entire Old Testament (except for the Maccabean books), as well as the “books of the fathers” (in all likelihood, the Patericon) into Slavic. Shortly before his death, he named Gorazd, one of his students, as his successor. Methodius was buried in the cathedral church of Velehrad, the capital of Moravia (the grave has not survived). Soon after the death of Methodius, his students were expelled from Moravia, and most of them (Clement of Ohrid, Naum of Ohrid, Konstantin of Preslav) ended up in Bulgaria, where the tradition of Slavic writing was continued.

The veneration of Cyril and Methodius probably began immediately after their death. Their lives and services to them were created in the 9th century. The names of Cyril and Methodius appear in the monthly book of the Assemanian Gospel (1st half of the 11th century). The early veneration of Cyril and Methodius in Rus' is evidenced by the inclusion of their names in the month books of the Ostromir Gospel (1056-57) and the Archangel Gospel (1092). At the end of the 17th century, during the correction of the Menaion (see Book on the right), the names of Cyril and Methodius were excluded from church calendar. The renewal of veneration dates back to the mid-19th century and is associated with ideas that were relevant at that time Slavic unity. The days of memory of Cyril and Methodius were included in the Russian Orthodox Church calendar in 1863.

Images of Cyril and Methodius are quite widespread. Cyril is depicted in monastic attire - in a dark tunic and mantle with a hood, Methodius - in bishop's vestments. The earliest depiction of Cyril and Methodius is considered to be the miniature “Transfer of the Relics of St. Clement, Pope of Rome” from the Menology of Basil the Great (between 976 and 1025, Vatican Library). Sometimes a 9th century fresco of the Basilica of St. Clement in Rome is cited as the earliest image. In Rus', images of Cyril and Methodius have been found since the 15th century among the miniatures of the Radziwill Chronicle and in the minea icons, which depicted saints of the entire month. In Russian iconography, their images have become especially popular since the mid-19th century.

Days of remembrance according to the Russian calendar Orthodox Church- February 14(27) (Equal-to-the-Apostles Cyril), April 6(19) ( Holy Methodius), May 11(24) (Equal-to-the-Apostles Methodius and Cyril); according to the calendar of the Roman Catholic Church - February 14. Since 1991, Russia has established an annual secular holiday, the Day of Slavic Literature and Culture, which falls on the day of church memory of Cyril and Methodius.

Lit.: Lavrov P. A. Kirilo and Methodology in Old Slavonic writing Kiev, 1928; aka. Materials on the history of the emergence of ancient Slavic writing. L., 1930; Kirilo-Metodievsk encyclopedia. Sofia, 1985-2003. T. 1-4; Vereshchagin E. M. History of the emergence of the ancient common Slavic literary language. Translation activities of Cyril and Methodius and their students. M., 1997; Florya B. N. Tales of the beginning of Slavic writing. St. Petersburg, 2004; Tahiaos A.-E. N. Holy brothers Cyril and Methodius, educators of the Slavs. Sergiev Posad, 2005.