The hallmark of the hope of young men is nourished. The hopes of the young men are nourished
How the prophetic Oleg is getting ready now
Take revenge on the foolish Khazars,
Their villages and fields for a violent raid
He condemned him to swords and fires;
With his squad, in Tsaregrad armor,
The prince rides across the field on a faithful horse.
From the dark forest to meet him
An inspired magician is coming,
An old man obedient to Perun alone,
10 Testaments of the future messenger,
He spent his entire century in prayers and fortune-telling.
And Oleg drove up to the wise old man.
“Tell me, magician, favorite of the gods,
What will happen to me in life?
And soon, to the joy of our neighbors-enemies,
Will I be covered with grave soil?
Reveal to me the whole truth, do not be afraid of me:
You will take a horse as a reward for anyone.”
“The Magi are not afraid of mighty lords,
20 But they do not need a princely gift;
Their prophetic language is truthful and free
And friendly with the will of heaven.
The coming years lurk in darkness;
But I see your lot on your bright brow.
Now remember my words:
Glory is a joy to the warrior;
Your name is glorified by victory;
Your shield is on the gates of Constantinople;
Both the waves and the land are submissive to you;
30 The enemy is jealous of such a wondrous fate.
AND blue sea deceptive shaft
In the hours of fatal bad weather,
And the sling and the arrow and the crafty dagger
The years are kind to the winner...
Under the formidable armor you know no wounds;
An invisible guardian has been given to the mighty.
Your horse is not afraid of dangerous work;
He, sensing the master's will,
Then the humble one stands under the arrows of enemies,
40 Then he rushes across the battlefield.
And the cold and the lashing are nothing to him...
But you will receive death from your horse."
Oleg grinned - however
And the gaze was darkened by thoughts.
In silence, leaning his hand on the saddle,
He gets off his horse, gloomy;
AND true friend with a farewell hand
And he strokes and pats the cool guy’s neck.
"Farewell, my comrade, my faithful servant,
50 The time has come for us to part;
Now rest! no one will step foot
Into your gilded stirrup.
Farewell, be comforted - and remember me.
You, fellow youths, take a horse,
Cover with a blanket, a shaggy carpet,
Take me to my meadow under your lips;
Bathe; feed with selected grain;
Give me spring water to drink.”
And the youths immediately departed with the horse,
60 And they brought another horse to the prince.
The prophetic Oleg feasts with his retinue
At the clink of a cheerful glass.
And their curls are white as morning snow
Above the glorious head of the mound...
They remember days gone by
And the battles where they fought together...
“Where is my friend? - Oleg said: -
Tell me, where is my zealous horse?
Are you healthy? Is his running still as easy?
70 Is he still the same stormy, playful person?“
And he heeds the answer: on a steep hill
He had long since fallen into deep sleep.
Mighty Oleg bowed his head
And he thinks: “What is fortune telling?
Magician, you lying, crazy old man!
I would despise your prediction!
My horse would still carry me.”
And he wants to see the horse's bones.
Here comes the mighty Oleg from the yard,
80 Igor and old guests are with him,
And they see - on a hill, on the banks of the Dnieper,
Noble bones lie;
The rain washes them, the dust covers them,
And the wind stirs the feather grass above them.
The prince quietly stepped on the horse's skull
And he said: “Sleep, lonely friend!”
Your old master outlived you:
At the funeral feast, already nearby,
It’s not you who will stain the feather grass under the ax
90 And feed my ashes with hot blood!
So this is where my destruction was hidden!
The bone threatened me with death!“
From dead head grave serpent
Meanwhile, hissing crawled out;
Like a black ribbon wrapped around my legs,
And the suddenly stung prince cried out.
The circular buckets, foaming, hiss
At the mournful funeral of Oleg;
Prince Igor and Olga are sitting on a hill;
100 The squad feasts on the shore;
Soldiers remember days gone by
And the battles where they fought together.
How the prophetic Oleg is getting ready now
To take revenge on the foolish Khazars:
Their villages and fields for a violent raid
He condemned him to swords and fires;
With his squad, in Tsaregrad armor,
The prince rides across the field on a faithful horse.
From the dark forest towards him
An inspired magician is coming,
An old man obedient to Perun alone,
The messenger of the covenants of the future,
He spent his entire century in prayers and fortune-telling.
And Oleg drove up to the wise old man.
“Tell me, magician, favorite of the gods,
What will happen to me in life?
And soon, to the joy of our neighbors-enemies,
Will I be covered with grave soil?
Reveal to me the whole truth, do not be afraid of me:
You will take a horse as a reward for anyone.”
“The Magi are not afraid of mighty lords,
But they don’t need a princely gift;
Their prophetic language is truthful and free
And friendly with the will of heaven.
The coming years lurk in darkness;
But I see your lot on your bright brow,
Now remember my words:
Glory is a joy to the warrior;
Your name is glorified by victory;
Your shield is on the gates of Constantinople;
Both the waves and the land are submissive to you;
The enemy is jealous of such a wondrous fate.
And the blue sea is a deceptive wave
In the hours of fatal bad weather,
And the sling and the arrow and the crafty dagger
The years are kind to the winner...
Under the formidable armor you know no wounds;
An invisible guardian has been given to the mighty.
Your horse is not afraid of dangerous work:
He, sensing the master's will,
Then the humble one stands under the arrows of enemies,
It rushes across the battlefield,
And the cold and the slashing are nothing to him.
But you will receive death from your horse.”
Oleg grinned - however
And the gaze was darkened by thoughts.
In silence, leaning his hand on the saddle,
He gets off his horse gloomily;
And a faithful friend with a farewell hand
And he strokes and pats the cool guy’s neck.
"Farewell, my comrade, my faithful servant,
The time has come for us to part:
Now rest! no one will step foot
Into your gilded stirrup.
Farewell, be comforted - and remember me.
You, fellow youths, take a horse!
Cover with blanket, shaggy carpet;
Take me by the bridle to my meadow:
Bathe, feed with selected grain;
Give me spring water to drink.”
And the youths immediately departed with the horse,
And they brought another horse to the prince.
The prophetic Oleg feasts with his retinue
At the clink of a cheerful glass.
And their curls are white as morning snow
Above the glorious head of the mound...
They remember days gone by
And the battles where they fought together...
“Where is my friend? - said Oleg, -
Tell me, where is my zealous horse?
Are you healthy? Is his running still as easy?
Is he still the same stormy, playful person?”
And he heeds the answer: on a steep hill
He had long since fallen into deep sleep.
Mighty Oleg bowed his head
And he thinks: “What is fortune telling?
Magician, you lying, crazy old man!
I would despise your prediction!
My horse would still carry me.”
And he wants to see the horse's bones.
Here comes the mighty Oleg from the yard,
Igor and old guests are with him,
And they see: on a hill, on the banks of the Dnieper,
Noble bones lie;
The rain washes them, the dust covers them,
And the wind stirs the feather grass above them.
The prince quietly stepped on the horse's skull
And he said: “Sleep, lonely friend!
Your old master outlived you:
At the funeral feast, already nearby,
It’s not you who will stain the feather grass under the ax
And feed my ashes with hot blood!
So this is where my destruction was hidden!
The bone threatened me with death!”
From the dead head of the grave serpent
Meanwhile, hissing crawled out;
Like a black ribbon wrapped around my legs:
And the suddenly stung prince cried out.
The circular buckets, getting lazy, hiss
At the mournful funeral of Oleg:
Prince Igor and Olga are sitting on a hill;
The squad is feasting on the shore;
Soldiers remember days gone by
And the battles where they fought together.
From its very appearance in the Armenian media field, I have always advocated and advocates for our diplomacy to be active and work in an offensive mode, proactively, and not just periodically repel enemy challenges. Because we, unlike our diplomats, clearly understand the power of the word. And this power in formation public opinion, promoting political and other interests and other aspects should never be underestimated.
You and I could see with our own eyes a couple of days ago how heavy artillery turns out to be the right and appropriate word spoken. At the 62nd session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly in Constantinople, the representative of Armenia, Chairman of the Parliamentary Commission on Defense, National Security and internal affairs Koryun Nahapetyan, addressing Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, accused his country of providing all possible assistance to Daesh terrorists, denying the Armenian Genocide, as well as unilaterally supporting Azerbaijan in the Karabakh conflict.
This remark from the Armenian parliamentarian threw the Turkish minister into a stupor. All crimson with barely restrained anger (by the way, the face of the representative of Azerbaijan sitting next to our parliamentarian at the moment of his remark wrinkled as if she had swallowed a whole lemon), Çavuşoğlu burst into an 8-minute (!) speech, into which he simultaneously crammed all the numerous Turkish complexes associated with Armenians and Armenia.
Thanking Nahapetyan for the question, Cavusoglu told the astonished audience that, it turns out, Turkey is trying to live in peace with all its neighbors, and the understanding of peaceful principles, they say, came to the Turks along with Ataturk’s proclamation of the republic, and this understanding continues to this day.
“Without increasing tensions, we continue negotiations with Greece. Our relations with Bulgaria are very good. Our relations with Ukraine are excellent, our relations with Georgia are excellent, there are no problems. We had no problems with Russia,” said the Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs.
He also stated Turkey's respect for the territorial integrity of Syria and Iraq and its reluctance to fragment these countries. Probably, having forgotten about their own operation “Euphrates Shield” on sovereign Syrian territory, the presence of a military base in Bashiqa, as well as claims to Mosul and Aleppo voiced by a mass of Turkish officials of various ranks (including President Erdogan).
“Unfortunately, the Syrian regime has killed more than 600 thousand people,” Cavusoglu added, again forgetting to indicate how many people in Syria were killed by the Turks themselves and the thugs they nurtured.
Cavusoglu then smoothly moved on to reflecting accusations of supporting Daesh terrorists, literally saying the following:
“You represent Armenia, I am a Turk, but first we must be honest. Politicians must be especially honest. Unfortunately, our Armenian friends are dishonest. How can you say that we support Daesh? Who is currently conducting active operations against Daesh? No country has yet destroyed so many Daesh terrorists. During the last operation alone, we destroyed 700 members of this terrorist organization. And you say that we provide support to Daesh. Daesh itself declares that it hates us. Their web pages present us as the main enemy, including Recep Tayyip Erdogan, me, and our friends. We fight all types of terrorism both inside and outside the country. In addition, we block the path of foreign terrorists. 52 thousand people were banned from entering. Another 4 thousand to go today we detained them and returned them to their countries.”
“In Turkey itself, we detained 2 thousand people for connections with Daesh,” Cavusoglu continued his speech. “It is we who most effectively destroy the ideology of Daesh. These people are recruited in 125 countries through religious abuses. We say that these terrorists have nothing to do with Islam. You are now being dishonest by saying that we are supporting Daesh. We are also overcoming a period of cooling in relations with Russia. Give me the facts and I will resign today. There is no evidence of such support. You must be honest."
The Turkish minister also touched upon the Karabakh problem. True, he was smart enough only to announce false Azerbaijani theses about “UN resolutions” and “20 percent.”
“We made an offer. If you leave there (from Artsakh - Pandukht), we will open the borders. “Why are you putting forward Azerbaijan as a precondition?” - you said. We replied that Azerbaijan is our brotherly state,” the Turk commented.
Of course, Çavuşoğlu could not help but touch upon the issue of the Armenian Genocide.
“We proposed to Armenia to create a Commission of Inquiry into Genocide, but you answered: “No.” You prefer lies. You are not confident in yourself. You don't believe scientific research."
“I reject your accusations. They are typical and, unfortunately, indicate an approach that does not correspond to the truth. Our policy on this issue is extremely transparent,” Cavusoglu said at the end of his speech. And, like a true Turk, he added another portion of lies to this:
“We also record killed Armenians in the ranks of the PKK. I would like you to take note of this information."
But the Turkish hysteria did not end there just from one question from an Armenian. The boss took over the baton of hysterical “answers” to Koryun Nahapetyan and readiness to resign General Staff Turkish Armed Forces, General Hulusi Akar.
“When in the 16th century Galileo said that the Earth rotates, the whole world argued the opposite. But this did not change the fact that the Earth rotates. Therefore, even if the whole world says that there was genocide, it will not change the fact that it did not happen,” this Turkish negationist in uniform flashed his “wit.”
And as a response to Turkish aggression against Syria, the general did not find anything better than to go into complete “ignorance” - to the applause of the Turkish media. “The Turkish Armed Forces have nothing to do with Aleppo. If someone proves that we fired even one bullet, I will resign. This is a blatant lie,” Akar said.
The funny thing is that in those very minutes when both Turks - the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the General - were lying with inspiration from the rostrum of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, west of the city of Al-Bab in the very province of Aleppo, to which the Turkish armed forces “have nothing to do” ", a Turkish army tank was blown up, resulting in injuries to three soldiers of the 5th Tank Brigade of the Turkish Army. One of them, private Oguz Demir, died without regaining consciousness in a hospital in the Turkish-occupied Western Armenian city of Aintap. His funeral service took place on Sunday at the Choban Mustafa Pasha Mosque in his hometown Gebze in Kocaeli province. There, at the local cemetery, the asker was buried.
Private Demir became the 12th Turkish asker to die during the so-called Operation Euphrates Shield, which the Turkish army is conducting in Syria. Of course, without the consent of the legal authorities of the country. And all 12 Turkish askers died in Aleppo. So both high-ranking Turks - military and civilian - could safely resign right now. If only they were not Turks, whose word is not worth a penny.
About the commotion in the media of Transcaucasian Turks from Nahapetyan’s speech, I, in in this case, I won’t go into detail. Believe me, he was impressive. That's how much noise a single short, but very painful for the Turks, word from the Armenian parliamentarian caused.
Now tell me, what prevents our diplomats, politicians, and parliamentarians from driving the Turks to white heat with their speeches on a regular basis? This does not require additional financial costs. As they say, if there is a desire! In the end, such speeches have a direct impact on a neutral public, and messages heard repeatedly are recorded in memory, and sometimes subsequently find a place in various resolutions. The answer to Turkish negationists, boors and political liars should be constant reminders of who really is the owner of the lands on the other side of the Araks.
Everything is actually very simple. A Turkish diplomat mentions the “peaceful” Turkish Republic and its syphilitic creator, who is stopping us from reminding him that on the eve of the proclamation of this very republic, in Smyrna alone, the Kemalists massacred more than 200 thousand Greeks and Armenians? If one of the Turks voiced claims to Mosul and Aleppo as Ottoman heritage, we should have at the ready a reminder of the legal title of Western Armenian lands. One of the Turks blurted out about the notorious resolutions on Karabakh, who is preventing the immediate distribution of brochures with the texts of these resolutions to those present, so that those gathered could see with their own eyes the shameless Turkish lies. Who is preventing the UN’s refusal to recognize the independence of the Turkish Republic from being included in these same brochures? Northern Cyprus, decision of the European Court of Justice on this issue and other materials that openly demonstrate the aggressive nature of the Turkish state and its policies. What, the country doesn’t have hundreds of thousands of drams for a small printing run especially for diplomats? If necessary, I can contribute my own.
How often have you heard from the lips of our diplomats anything about the Woodrow Wilson Arbitration Award? By the way, a document that is not subject to cassation, and therefore retains legal force to this day.
I look forward to the day when the Armenians officials not only will they beat both Turkish genocidal entities at the diplomatic table, but they will finally dare to pose pressing questions to our Russian friends. For example, regarding the illegality and immorality of the Moscow and Kars Russian-Turkish treaties. I wait and hope that at international platforms and forums in full voice Not only the issues of the Genocide will be raised, but also the issues of fair elimination of its consequences in all spheres.
No one is saying that under our pressure the Turks will immediately concede something, but this topic will return to the mainstream of international politics, which is already important for our struggle.
In general, my (and not only my) dream is to finally see the active work of our diplomacy. “Do young men have hopes?”
How can the ship of youth, flying on scarlet sails, avoid running aground and breaking on the pitfalls? We offer another conversation from the series “From Conception to the Tomb” by the candidate of pedagogical sciences, head of the Pedagogical Office of the MDA, Abbot Cyprian (Yashchenko).
Ready for work and defense
The adolescent period can begin at either 14 or 16 years of age, depending on how mature the young person is for adult life. It’s even more difficult with the end of adolescence. How many infantile people we have who live completely dependently and cling to their parents! Such dependence can continue for decades - until a number of the most important ideological problems are resolved, primarily the question of the meaning of life.
In general, youth is not age, it is a spirit. People can be 70 years old and still be young. Others are 20 years old and feel like old people.
What can we say about physical development youth? Full maturation occurs. Teenage angularity and body imbalances are leveled out, and the person is ready to overcome physical challenges. Young men are drafted into the army - at 18 they are already ready for work and defense, they can work, or they can go to prison. How many of you were in the army, raise your hands?
Minority. Although it’s not the evening of life yet...
I also had to serve Far East, in a missile division with nuclear weapons. And our “war” was waged continuously: every day - alarm, rise, after 10 seconds everyone had to stand dressed, with weapons, then run. Whole year– all winter and all summer – we lived in tents in the forest.
I matured many years in the army. We had a fighting relationship, no hazing, thank God!
– Many mothers do not want to let their sons join the army.
– Personally, I send them to the Synodal Department for Work with the Armed Forces. So far, not a single mistake, all the guys, for whom their mothers worked hard, served either somewhere in monasteries and could pray, or in Orthodox units, or they had normal commanders and comrades.
And so, of course, calling is roulette. What kind of unit will you end up in: maybe it’s a good, combat unit, but sometimes it’s decaying, like a prison, with hazing. Or you can become a participant in hostilities. Recently I was asked to pray for Alexander. They took him into the army, they are taking him to Syria, and there is already military action there, blood is flowing. A week later they say: “Father, thank you for your prayers, they didn’t take him to Syria. They took everyone, but they didn’t take him.” The saddest thing is that young people are sent to hot spots - but they don’t know how to shoot or hide. This, of course, is difficult.
Bless the end of life
But let's return to the characteristics of youth. During this period, there is concern about one's own appearance. A pimple on your nose can be worrying young man bigger than humanity's problems. Ridicule of physical disabilities during this period can be very painful. Often such sensitivity leads to neurotic disorders and even suicidal intentions. Therefore, it is better not to notice any imperfections or physical ailments that a girl or boy has. On the contrary, reassure: “It’s okay, everything is fine.”
There was such a case in St. Petersburg: the priest said something to the girl, and she rushed into the river, leaving a note that he was to blame, that he had insulted her. Although the priest could not remember at all how exactly he had offended her, he joked unsuccessfully, but for her it turned out to be a tragedy. And this very active priest, I won’t mention his name, has not been able to serve the Liturgy for more than 10 years.
It is known that adolescence, according to statistics, has always ranked first in the number of suicides. How can this be explained, do you think?
– Youthful maximalism, vulnerability... Events in adolescence are perceived very sharply, categorically.
– We can add that self-esteem at this age is extremely unstable, and the semantic sphere is narrowed. The young man becomes fixated on one thing: if he falls in love or falls in love, then the whole meaning of life is seen only in her or him. And if this person cheated or turned out to be different from what they imagined, the boy or girl can throw themselves under the train, since they have no other meaning in life. At the same time, in Europe there are sites that help the lost to end this life. Such organizations cannot be called anything other than satanic.
An 18-year-old actress also came to me one day. “Father,” he says, “bless me to end my life.” I think: “Another would have committed suicide long ago, but this one is asking for blessings.” We started talking to her. It turned out to be an unhappy love: he cheated and left for someone else. A seemingly banal case. But for them, 18-year-olds, this is the first time. In adolescence, when there is no experience of such shocks, the lost source of love can be compared to the loss of God. We agreed with the young artist that we would take her to work at the Radiant Angel film festival. She worked for us for two weeks, her heart was relieved.
– How can a person prove that unhappy love is not the end of the world? What is all this going on?
- There is no universal recipe here, general direction- find other meanings. It is necessary to transfer a person's attention to something else.
In general, I would like to warn you: if in adolescence someone tells you that they want to commit suicide, rush to their aid, this is very serious. He's not kidding. If you see that a person is suffering and crying, help. He is waiting for someone to share his grief, to listen, to feel sorry for him, to be close to him.
Father Paisius the Holy Mountain was asked:
- Geronda, how can you find an approach to those young people who have lost their way?
“We must approach them with love,” answered the elder. – If true is present, noble love, then she immediately notifies the young people about herself and disarms them.
Life with meaning
Youth is the age at which all basic ideological issues arise and are resolved. Who am I in this world? What is the meaning of my existence? Why am I living? Why do I need to study, to be someone?
I remember in my youth I had a five-hour conversation with a friend about the meaning of life and death. He somehow easily said that we would all die, they would simply bury us. I could not believe it. The thought that all this would stop could not exist in my mind. How then do we differ, for example, from a dog that has died? She was buried and forgotten.
That conversation really shook me up, and I started reading. For about five years I read everything that was written about the meaning of life. It was very important for me to understand why people live. This topic was like exposed nerve. And I couldn’t calm down until I wrote a dissertation on this topic.
My problem was finally resolved when I became acquainted with the Gospel. After that, all the philosophers with their eloquence began to irritate me. I realized that everything they talk about is relative, there is no general meaning. IN philosophical works Montaigne, Foucault, I sometimes found meanings that after one or two weeks became obviously false. And since childhood, I understood that for all people there must be some kind of single, absolute meaning of existence.
Lack of experience, but no guile
The young man is like an old philosopher: he thinks about how he lived his life, looks back, conducts a retrospective. We can say that there is a kind of selection of values: “For some this is important, but for me it is not.”
Of course, due to inexperience, the young man builds in his imagination a certain perfect world, which has little in common with the real one. It often happens that, when faced with the meanness and injustice of this world, a young man experiences feelings that cause a storm of emotions in his soul. Aggression may occur, either towards others or towards oneself.
For example, when I graduated from school, I was in the youthful illusion that students were some kind of holy people, the cream of society. “How can I get into this cream?” – I thought. But since most of my classmates went to college, I didn’t stand out and went to university. And to his greatest surprise, he entered the Polytechnic Institute. And I was shocked to the core by the hostel where we lived. The idea of the holiness of the students collapsed when I saw them drinking, smoking, and debauchery. I took the documents and ran away because I physically could not be in such an environment, in this society. My youthful ideal completely collapsed, and I returned to my family nest.
Thank God, my wise parents (and my mother was the dean of the faculty) begged me to go to Pedagogical Institute to the Faculty of Physics and Mathematics. So, unexpectedly for myself, I became a teacher.
Youth, according to Archpriest Vasily Zenkovsky, “is a period of internal unity and creative integrity, a period of first passion and inspiration, enthusiasm and a trusting attitude towards the world and people. Youth is rich in strength and full creative ideas, brave, impetuous, but at the same time kind and generous. This is the time to choose the path of life and make plans.”
This age period is characterized as a time of “black and white logic”, youthful maximalism. For him, everything that corresponds to his ideal is positive, and everything that does not correspond is negative.
“Youthful maximalism is the cause of frequent disappointments. Only evolving process self-knowledge allows a young man to adjust his assessment, to find a balance between his position and the position of other people,” writes Vasily Zenkovsky.
This is the perfect time for philosophical debate with some “old man.” “The young may lack experience, but there is no lie or deceit in them,” said the Monk Paisius. – Young people have ideals, but they have no one to follow as an example. They are worth pitying. Therefore, it is necessary for someone to “touch” their curiosity, to touch them with his simplicity. Some tramp is better than a Christian hypocrite. Therefore, what is needed is not a hypocritical “smile of love,” but natural behavior, not anger and pretense, but love and sincerity.”
It would be ideal if parents could become “elders” for young people. By the way, already in mature age I read the works of Augustine the Blessed and was amazed at how this outstanding ascetic once became confused - he accepted Manichaeism, etc. But then, when his mother begged him, Augustine the Blessed began to organize schools for young men, the students went out into nature and spent the whole day - from sunrise to sunset - discussed with the teacher some fundamental worldview problem.
In my youth I want to write poetry and music. One might add that a young man is always an idealist. And let him remain in this ideality. Youth is Assol, who is waiting for her Scarlet Sails, very touching, gentle, pure.
Why in our Orthodox Church so many failures when working with youth and few successes? But because young people need romance. If there is a romantic priest, young people follow him in droves.
How is adolescence different from adulthood? Who's to say?
- No experience.
Absolutely right. This is good, on the one hand. There are no attitudes, no habits, that is, the person is not hardened, free. But on the other hand, he, of course, has not yet made his mark, he is young, inexperienced, and often, if there is no good adviser, the young man finds himself in such situations, from which it is then difficult to extricate himself.
By the way, what is the difference between smart and wise, do you know? A wise person will never find himself in a situation from which a smart person will extricate himself.
Future plans
“This is the time to choose the path of life and make plans.” This thread is also very good to pull. I remember I came up with a series of games for young people to make life plans. They are ready to discuss this topic for hours. Where do you see yourself in 10 years? In 20? A person is interested, he begins to describe. And you ask him questions... If a young man answers the question “Who will you be?” answers: “I don’t know,” then he has not yet matured to full adulthood. A plan is an indicator of maturity.
Here he comes to me little baby, and I ask him: “Listen, who will you be when you grow up?” - “Captain.” Often after a week he is already a “scientist”, then an “artist”. But some decision remains for life.
Sometimes boys and girls are drawn to the exotic - they stubbornly want to become divers, astronauts, etc. It would be nice to have an honest conversation with them about this topic. Suppose you become an astronaut, what of this: how do you live, what do you do, how does your family live? And when he begins to think and talk, it turns out that he, in fact, does not understand what he is dreaming about.
One of the Lavra monks once came up to me and said: “Do you know what “dreaming” is? This word consists of two words - “sword” and “thief”. Indeed, staying in a dreamy state for a long time is very dangerous; it is a separation from reality, an inadequate perception of oneself.
I had cases when parents came and complained: it was impossible to turn the young man around. I say: “Let’s arrange a tour for him to the cosmonaut corps.” And when a young man sees what overloads astronauts have to overcome, and the touch of romance has not disappeared, he still wants to fly into space, it means that this is a serious intention. Even if he does not become an astronaut, this ideal will be the main “driver” on his life’s path.
Religious spring
Archpriest Vasily Zenkovsky calls youth “religious spring,” a time when full-fledged faith comes to life. “The spiritual system lies in the balance between the empirical and spiritual principles of man, and spiritual world not pushed aside by adaptation to life.” He is free and full of the breath of infinity. A more mature prayer arises, some kind of obedience in the church, boldness, exploits in the temple, in the monastery are possible. This is truly, one might say, the spring of spiritual life.
In the first year of the Pedagogical Faculty of PSTGU, we had a tradition: during Lent, we went with students to the Diveyevo Monastery. Young ladies and girls arrive, just after school. We lived in the monastery for a week, and I asked: “How’s it going? How many of you would like to become a nun? Almost all. Then, by the fifth year, this desire melts away for almost everyone.
The young man realizes his right to freedom, realizes his strength. The heaviest punishment for a young man is restriction of freedom.
Only in youth is it possible to make decisions for life. Only in youth is it possible to ignite the soul forever: without hesitation, doubt and change. There is not only romance here, there is also heroism, burning heart, pure enthusiasm.
About salvation in a consumer society
Although young people can be mercantile, selfish, and profit-seeking. But the consumer meanings are actually very stupid, very short. And they do not satisfy a normal person.
About 20 years ago in France I had a case. I went to the gift shop. Madame comes out, a young beauty all dressed up. From the top of the steps, like a queen, she comes down and so imposingly addresses me in pure Russian: “Well, how do you live there, in Russia?”
How do we live in Russia? Those were difficult years, the 1990s. I didn’t know what to answer her, I said: “How do you live here in Paris?” She replies: “I live here like in paradise.” I ask: “What is this expressed in?” - "I have everything. And if something is not there, I can buy it.” I answer: “Well, then we live like in hell. We have nothing, and we cannot buy everything. But the Lord gave us something else. We can pray and be with God, no one can take that away from us. And we feel good about it.” I simply told her how it is. Indeed, then we began a revival, which continues to this day: churches and monasteries were opened.
And her face changed, she shrank, wrinkled, all that sparkle and smile disappeared. She was somewhat confused. She asked which monastery I belonged to. I answered - to the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, founded Venerable Sergius. And she suddenly began to cry: “How can I get to Russia? You have paradise! What kind of paradise do we have here, he says? We have a living hell here."
And I have this in my heart. Consumer society to a normal person You'll get tired of it, if not in five minutes, then in a year or two. Greek metropolitans tell seminarians: under no circumstances should you become a bishop; this is hard administrative work, during which it is absolutely impossible to pray and it is very difficult to be saved. Or as one elder said: you will live in beautiful place, you will be well fed, but no one will tell you the truth. They will fear you as a boss, build relationships as with a boss.
Three metropolitans, former Athonites, visited us, so they say: we dream that when this episcopal plague ends and we again become normal monks, we will be saved. It just seems so beautiful, everyone bows, everyone runs: Master, bless. And try to stand before God for the entire diocese. It is really very difficult to be saved.
So youthful high ideals are transformed into a mature choice of life path.
Useful Vanity
The leading type of activity during adolescence is the search for one’s place in life, educational and professional activities. He himself becomes the authority. Strong egocentrism is a feature of age.
Physical and intellectual maturity provokes youth to high level claims. In studies, the desire for external achievements is manifested, and high social and material status becomes attractive. In spiritual life, egocentric motives - vanity, ambition - can also prevail.
And there is no need to be embarrassed here. St. John Climacus writes: you must act with a person in a pedagogical, spiritually, based on the driving motives that he has. If he is vain and has no other engine, work with him spiritually on vanity, on pride. Yes, youth is often ambition. He works for vanity, for reward. But this is a temporary motive...
- So how? Encourage pride in a person?
- Yes. But temporarily, if there is nothing else to cling to. Yes, we will reward you, we will hang a medal, we will give you a certificate, you will have this status.
We have similar stories happen with philanthropists. You come to him and ask: donate, we will nominate you for the Patriarchal award. And the person begins to donate, sees how the temple is being restored, then says: “Come on, I don’t need an order.” His interest shifts to the process itself, to the task, and not to the reward. And vanity, as often happens, fades into the background.
His Holiness the Patriarch, at one of the Councils of Trustees, wonderfully said to the benefactor: it is good that you are helping the Church. If you help, you yourself will change, become better, and this will be the most great reward for you both in this life and in the next.
Thus, the young man experiences a shift from an ignoble motive to a virtuous goal.
Dangerous ties
The internal tension characteristic of adolescence gives rise to a feeling of loneliness, which increases the need to communicate with peers. Therefore, friendship and love become of great importance.
“The evil one takes advantage of adolescence, at which, moreover, the human flesh rebels, and tries to corrupt the young during this difficult period that they are going through. Their minds are still immature, they are very inexperienced and have no spiritual savings at all,
– writes Saint Paisius the Svyatogorets. – I understand that physically healthy guy or is it not easy for a girl to be in such a situation at a young age? spiritual state, so as not to distinguish between “male and female”. Therefore, spiritual fathers advise that boys should not make friends with girls, no matter how spiritual the children are, because age itself creates difficulties and the tempter uses their youth. Therefore, it is preferable for a young man that girls consider him even stupid for his spiritual prudence and purity, and thus take on this heavy cross.”
Paisius of Athos has an absolutely wonderful instruction based on his life experience. If in adolescence a person overcomes his flesh in all respects: both in attraction to opposite sex, and in the consumer worldview, the Lord gives special grace for life. Moreover, this is imputed to a person as a feat of martyrdom: he suffered because his flesh harassed him, and he God's help overcame. In old age, the flesh is no longer attracted, and at this time, Saint Paisius reasons, God will not count abstinence as a feat.
“The more spiritual work a person does in teenage years, the easier it is for him later - no matter what life he chooses,” says the Monk Paisius the Svyatogorets.
One of most important tasks youth – mastering marital and parental functions. By the age of 24, 3/4 of young people get married, while experts note the following pattern: if a boy and girl did not get married between the ages of 19 and 28, it will become increasingly difficult to do so. In order to get married, you have to be a little crazy, because if you take this matter soberly and analyze all the shortcomings of your beloved, then it is generally impossible to decide on such a step.
Brief conclusions
1. Communication with a young man should be unobtrusive, with love. Vasily Zenkovsky says this: “An adult for a young man should be like a friend of the groom.” That is, it is important to help him “get married”, to find love, but to be just an assistant, standing a little to the side, not being dominant. You can't put pressure. We can only advise, and very delicately. The young man must come to the right decision himself.
If you cannot freely enter into a discussion of problems and plans that are important to a young man, find someone who could treat the young man with understanding and communicate with him on an equal footing.
2.
Young people, of course, are fixated on themselves. Finding a useful activity for a young man, helping him come out of this shell is our strategy and tactics of pedagogical influence at this age. You can organize youth camps, trips, and pilgrimages based on romance. Organize in parishes different types obediences, bard song clubs, labor camps. One servant of God created the Samovar youth club. They make tea, invite some interesting person, and there is a conversation, a discussion of youth problems that the guys themselves cannot solve.
You can change the classroom learning system to a more free one: instead of desks, organize a lesson with friends. You can use the tirelessness of youth in the implementation of social service - to visit hospitals, orphanages, nursing homes.
3. It is important for pastors, teachers and parents to see where the thoughts of young people are directed and to understand how adequate their intentions are. Often the path of monastic life becomes attractive to young people who become churchgoers. After the first shock from unrequited love, unsuccessful session, they sometimes ask us to bless them to go to a monastery. It is important to recognize in time the painful state of the soul behind good impulses.
4. It is necessary to meet the needs of young people, including church fence. Once I was undergoing treatment in Cyprus, and we met with Metropolitan Athanasius of Cyprus and Limassol. I was amazed: at 60 years old, he speaks to young people every day on the radio - despite all his employment in the diocese. And his last broadcast - around midnight and after midnight - “for those who do not sleep.” An hour of live broadcast: the Metropolitan answers questions from young men and women.
He understands that we need to work with the younger generation, who will represent the people tomorrow. If they begin to hang out, become drunkards, become debauched, and the gospel meaning does not appear in their lives, then this will be a lost generation.
