A short message about Sergius of Radonezh for children. Brief biography of Sergius of Radonezh for children
The parents of Sergius of Radonezh were the boyars Cyril and Maria, who lived on the territory of the Principality of Rostov. The family was distinguished by piety. Cyril and Maria had three children - Stefan, Bartholomew, Peter. Soon Rostov was ruined, and the family moved to Radonezh, which was under the rule of the Moscow prince.
Bartholomew was not good at science, he was very worried. But the boy tried and prayed earnestly. One day a monk appeared to him. The monk blessed the boy, and from then on he easily mastered all sciences. When Bartholomew's parents grew old, they went to. Soon Kirill and Maria died. Then Bartholomew left the entire bequeathed parental inheritance to Peter, and together with Stephen they decided to take monastic vows.
Bartholomew and Stefan spent a long time preparing for their tonsure. The brothers built a cell in the Radonezh forest, where they fervently prayed. After some time, living in labor, the brothers erected a small wooden Cathedral of the Holy Trinity. Stefan found his solitary life a burden. He said goodbye to Bartholomew and went to the Epiphany Monastery.
Bartholomew decided to continue his secluded lifestyle. He overcame his fear of wild animals and lived in labor. Soon his fame spread to all corners. Metropolitan Theognost of Moscow came to the forest to consecrate the temple built by the brothers. Here Bartholomew was tonsured a monk by the Metropolitan. In monasticism, Bartholomew became Sergius. Various miracles were attributed to Sergius. They say that a monk learned to get along with a bear. People said that it was big wild beast lay at the feet of Sergius and obeyed him, accepted food from the hands of the Saint.
The spreading fame of Sergius of Radonezh brought many different people to the forest. Some came here for a short time to seek solitude and peace, some like Sergius of Radonezh. I wanted to spend my whole life in work and prayer. A little time will pass and around the Trinity Cathedral, many houses will appear in which the monks lived.
Sergius of Radonezh was no different from his brothers. He also carried water, chopped wood, cultivated the land, and prayed. Several times there were difficult years and there was not enough food. Then, to the Radonezh forest, the large Moscow monasteries sent whatever they could: millet, rye...
The monastery, built by Sergius of Radonezh, grew. Soon he was offered the rank of abbot. The monk refused, considering himself unworthy. As a result, circumstances nevertheless forced Sergius of Radonezh, after some time, to become abbot of his own monastery.
Years passed. began to regain its former power. In these difficult years for the state, Sergius of Radonezh became an example for everyone. The monk played a big role in the moral development of society; thanks to him, patriotic sentiments reigned among the people. It was Sergius of Radonezh who blessed the prince who came to him before the Battle of Kulikovo. In addition to the blessing, he sent two of his monks, the Russian heroes Peresvet and Osyablya, to the ranks of the Russian army. Dmitry's army defeated the Tatars on the Kulikovo field. Probably, God's blessing and help played an important role in this great military victory.
Sergius of Radonezh, after, lived another 20 years. His contribution to further development Russian state is huge. He managed to smooth out the misunderstandings of the princes and reduce fratricidal strife to almost nothing. Sergius of Radonezh developed a charter for monks. The charter was adopted with the blessing of Metropolitan Alexy. According to this charter, almost all monasteries in Russia lived in the future. Before his death, he blessed his disciple Nikon to become abbot of the monastery. On the site of the monastery built by Sergius of Radonezh and his brothers, today there is the Trinity-Sergius Lavra - one of the most fertile places on Russian soil. Sergius of Radonezh is rightfully considered one of the greatest, canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church. The Moscow princes and tsars who ruled after Dmitry Donskoy considered Sergius of Radonezh their heavenly patron.
As the legend says, Cyril and Maria - the parents of Sergius of Radonezh - lived in a village near Rostov the Great. They lived very simply. They were quiet, calm, believing people.
Even before his birth, Sergius showed himself not to be ordinary person. When his pregnant mother was in church, he screamed so that those around him heard and were amazed at it. The parents decided to dedicate their child to God. After this, the woman began to fast and pray intensely. On the third of May, Mary gave birth to a son, who was named Bartholomew.
After birth, the baby did not want to take the mother's breast if she ate meat. Mary had to fast further. On the fortieth day after birth, the boy was baptized.
At the age of seven, Bartholomew was sent to school. But studies were not easy for the boy, which made both he and his parents very upset. And then one day the youth met a monk in the forest and told him about his misfortune. The holy man stood up with Bartholomew to pray, gave him a piece of prosphora and said that from God the boy would learn to read and write. From that moment on, Bartholomew began to study well. The adults were amazed at this.
When Bartholomew grew up, he continued to pray and fast intensely, and began to ask his parents for blessings to enter a monastery. But Kirill and Maria asked him to look after them, because they were old and weak and could not run the household themselves. Bartholomew agreed.
After the death of his parents, the young man realized his cherished dream. At twenty-three, he gave his share of the inheritance to his relatives and became a monk under the name Sergius. Then he went to the deep forest, where he built a wooden church. The man's life was hard. He prayed, fasted, worked tirelessly, and often went hungry. A bear began to come to Sergius in the forest, and the monk fed it. Gradually the beast became almost tame. This friendship between man and forest animal lasted for a year.
Rumors about Sergius spread. Different people they began to come and ask to live with him. Gradually, a monastery was built among the forest. Sergius was appointed abbot, even though he was against it. The monks lived poorly and worked hard. They prayed and fasted incessantly.
They cultivated a garden, but there was not always enough food. Sometimes the monks survived only thanks to outside help. Sergius worked equally with everyone else. The monastery grew. New people came who wanted to live away from the light and know God. They built cells and utility rooms, plowed and planted fields. Soon the small monastery turned into the Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius. Sergius began to be called Radonezh. He became famous as a great man of prayer and miracle worker.
Once upon a time, at a time when Rus' still paid tribute Tatar-Mongol yoke, Prince Dimitry Donskoy gathered an army for the last battle with Mamai. And for a blessing he visited Sergius of Radonezh, because... I heard about miracles and the saint’s predictions. The prince received a blessing for the battle. Dmitry Donskoy won.
The saint died at the end of the fourteenth century. Feeling that he was already dying, Sergius gathered the brethren around him, prayed and gave his soul to God.
"The Life of Sergius of Radonezh"
Multimedia projector with screen, laptop
Homework: read individual chapters from the Life of Sergius
Radonezh"
Organizational moment. Communicating the topic and objectives of the lesson
"The Life of St. Sergius of Radonezh."
All children should know this:
Once upon a time in this world there lived a boy. He prayed to God
He asked for help with his studies.
One day the youth met the Elder,
And he said: “You are bright in spirit.
You will be able to study well and distinguish yourself before God."
He became a hermit, a monk;
In the forest I fought with fear at night,
Driving away demons with prayer,
Filling nature with light.
Over the years, he took root in the forest,
I even became friends with the bear.
He was pure in heart and prayed a lot.
And with this he pleased God.
When they learned about Sergius,
People began to reach out to him.
At first, the disciple-monks flocked to him like birds.
And so the work began to boil.
Everyone tried so hard to get the job done:
Build an abode of God and set up life in God’s way.
This is how the ascetic of Orthodoxy lived,
Showing your mercy,
The Most Pure One appeared to him
And she promised that the Abode
Our Lord Almighty will save.
Open to people God's Word.
The path of the earthly Saint is over,
And Reverend in eternal life He prays for our Fatherland.
The saint's body is imperishable - His holy work lives on.
He showed us all the way
Which leads to God.
Guys, today in class we will talk about an amazing and great man who glorified our land, about the famous Russian saint - Sergius of Radonezh. Information about his life has come to us thanks to Epiphanius the Wise , who in his work "The Life of St. Sergius of Radonezh" wrote the following words about him: “He shone like a bright light in the Russian country in the midst of darkness and gloom.” Why do you think the author calls St. Sergius a “bright luminary”?
2. Repetition of what has been learned.
What genre of ancient Russian literature does the work of Epiphanius the Wise belong to? In what year was it written? (In 1417-1418) What is “life”? What is characteristic of this genre? (Life is a genre of church literature that describes the life and deeds of saints).
What is the composition of the life? How is the life structured, name its parts? (Consists of three parts. Introduction - the author explains the reasons for writing; main - a story about the life of a saint; praise to the saint).
Composition of the life on the board
Introduction.
The story of the life of a saint
a) birth, childhood, adolescence;
b) feats of piety and miracles performed during life;
c) death and posthumous miracles.
Praise to the saint.
presentations.
Let's now turn to life itself.
Birth
One of the most revered saints in Rus' is Sergius of Radonezh, who became famous exclusively for his peaceful exploits. He came from an impoverished boyar family that had possessions near Rostov from his parents Kirill and Maria. Before being tonsured as a monk, the monk bore the name Bartholomew - in honor of one of the 12 apostles. The date of his birth is known - May 3, 1314.
Childhood
At the age of seven, Bartholomew and his brothers were sent to learn to read and write, but unlike his brothers, he did not make any progress. One day in a field, the boy saw an old man praying under a lonely oak tree. Bartholomew asked the elder to pray for him so that he would learn to read. The elder blessed the boy, and he pleased his parents by freely reading the psalter (a collection of church hymns used to teach literacy) before dinner. Ancient Rus').
Youth
Around 1328 the boy's parents moved to small town Radonezh, not far from Moscow. Bartholomew's brothers got married, and he, having buried his parents, decided to go to a monastery. By this time, his elder brother Stefan was widowed, and they settled together in a deep forest twelve miles from Radonezh. However, it became difficult for Stefan to live in such a deserted place, and he moved to one of the Moscow monasteries. And Bartholomew took monastic vows under the name Sergius.
Formation of the Trinity-Sergius Monastery
Gradually, other monks began to come to Sergius, wanting to serve God with their labors. The monk gladly received them. This is how the Sergius Monastery was conceived - the current Trinity-Sergius Lavra (in Greek laura - large, large monastery). “By the example of his life, by the height of his spirit, St. Sergius raised the fallen spirit of his native people, awakened in them confidence in himself, in his strengths, and inspired faith in the future.” From his generation came the founders of 150 new monasteries. They lived in small huts-cells, carried water themselves, chopped wood, cultivated the garden and prepared food. St. Sergius did most of hard work, setting an example for the brethren.
founded once by a young hermit.
Trinity-Sergius Lavra
In the northeastern part of the Moscow region there is a city called Sergiev Posad. In its center is the ensemble Trinity-Sergius Lavra - a cultural and artistic monument listed World Heritage UNESCO. It is the most important city landmark and the historical center of the city. Honoring the great prayer book Sergius, numerous pilgrims go and go to the Trinity Lavra, receiving here spiritual grace from the holy relics of the founder of the monastery, help and strengthening for later life, blessing before decisive events in life, experiencing the joy of touching the living monastic tradition and Russian Orthodox spirituality and beauty.
Community service Sergius of Radonezh
Venerable Sergius, who was the prince's confessor Dmitry Donskoy, played a significant role in preparing for Battle of Kulikovo. He helped unite the Russian lands: he reconciled Ryazan prince with Moscow, and the Nizhny Novgorod principality, which wanted to secede, was excommunicated from the Church. Frightened by God's punishment, the Nizhny Novgorod prince fled, and his subjects swore allegiance to the Moscow Grand Duke. Before the battle, Sergius blessed the prince with a cross and sprinkled him with holy water. Grand Duke asked St. Sergius his two monks - Peresvet And Oslyabyu, who in the world belonged to the military class and were heroes. Sergius placed schemas with crosses sewn on them on the heroes, and commanded them to “fight hard for Christ against his enemies.” Their presence in the clothes of schema-monks in Dmitry’s army gave the campaign the spirit of a great holy cause.
Sergius - the miracle worker
According to his life, Sergius of Radonezh performed many miracles. People came to him from different cities for healing, and sometimes even just to see him. According to the life, he once resurrected a boy who died in his father’s arms when he was carrying the child to the saint for healing.
monasteries (Blagoveshchenskaya and others), and his students established up to 40 monasteries, mainly in Northern Rus'.
Old age and death of St. Sergius
Sergius of Radonezh reached a ripe old age. Six months before his death, he handed over the abbess to his disciple Nikon, and he himself surrendered to complete silence. His death followed long illness September 25, 1391. 30 years later, on July 5, 1422, the discovery of the relics of Sergius took place. At the same time, a local celebration of his memory was established in the monastery on September 25. In 1448 or 1449, Sergius was canonized as an All-Russian saint by Metropolitan Jonah.
In the Assumption Cathedral there is a wooden coffin of St. Sergius of Radonezh, in which his holy body was in the ground from 1392 to 1422. This is one of the cathedral's shrines.
Conclusion
The Wonderworker of Radonezh is our spiritual wealth, the guardian angel of the Russian Land, pilgrims from all over come and go to the Trinity-Sergius Lavra with their ailments - physical and mental, go to pray at the shrine with relics, receive a blessing, learn the spiritual roots of their Fatherland .
We need to know these roots - then the air we breathe will be healing and tasty, the Earth that raised us will be more precious, it will be easier for each of us to feel the purpose and meaning own life.
The Trinity Lavra of Sergius is located in the center of one of the most beautiful cities in our country - Sergius Pasade. There are magnificent churches and monasteries here, and the first Russian dolls and other toys were also created here. This is an amazing city. Looking at it, you never cease to admire the beauty and grandeur of the Russian land. People have written songs about this city more than once, and we will now listen to one of them performed by Yulia Slavyanskaya.
Quiet light on Makovets - the mountain blooms like a rainbow over the whole earth:
This monk Sergius at dawn Prays from heaven for you and me.
What did the composition of the life represent?
By whom and when was the Life of Sergius of Radonezh written?
(It was written by the disciple of Sergius, the monk Epiphanius the Wise in 1417-1418)
From what parents was Sergius born?
What name did the boy receive at baptism?
How did Bartholomew study? Who helped him in his studies?
Where did the boy's parents move?
Where did Bartholomew go after the death of his parents?
Which monastery was Sergius the founder of? How did this happen?
In which city is the Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius located?
How did Sergius reconcile the Russian princes? What did Sergius say to Dmitry Donskoy when he came to him for a blessing?
What miracles did Sergius of Radonezh perform? What are they pointing to? (On his being chosen by God.)
What qualities did the author endow with his hero? Does he have any negative qualities? (Mercy, compassion, kindness, hard work, humility, insight, perseverance, etc. The hero of the life could not have negative qualities) What was the most important quality a saint should have? (Believe in God)
Is there any mention of real historical events? (Yes. The real intertwines with the fantasy)
Is the life of a hero instructive?(The hero’s life is instructive, it teaches Christian morality, hard work and perseverance in achieving goals)
5. Summing up the lesson
The historian N.S. Borisov has an interesting idea: life path“great old man” looks paradoxical. He fled from the society of people, and as a result became its spiritual leader, he never took up a sword - but his one word on the scales of victory was worth hundreds of swords. Is this true?(U Bartholomew had a dream: he wanted to go to a monastery. His decision to go into the forest wilderness was not desperation or flight from the world. This was an independent step towards lost freedom. In addition, Sergius was a real spiritual leader who was able to inspire Russian soldiers to victory in the Battle of Kulikovo and reconcile the Russian princes)
What is the idea of living? What did Epiphanius the Wise want to show in his work? ( Epiphanius sought to show the grandeur and beauty of the monastery - the first largest monastery. His students who continued the prayer work of St. Sergius. One of his students, in praise of his father Sergius, painted an icon “ Holy Trinity"for the iconostasis of the Trinity Cathedral, where the relics of St. Sergius; artistic values - spiritual literature, lives of St. Sergius, icons, paintings by M. Nesterov; temples illuminated in the name of St. Sergius) Library of spiritual and moral culture of the Cossacks:
The Easter poem sounds: “Christ is Risen!” (A. Maikov)
"Easter" (S. Guselnikov)
Easter story: “The Bright Guest” (I. Roseev)
Easter games: “Easter nest”, “Where are the eggs boiled?” Riddles.
Exhibition of drawings.
Listening design work and messages
The article talks about a brief biography of Sergius of Radonezh, the famous Russian monk, canonized by the Orthodox Church.
Brief biography Radonezhsky: early years
The exact date of birth of Radonezh is unknown. Official church believes that he was born in 1341 near Rostov. At baptism the boy was named Bartholomew. Sergius's parents belonged to the boyar class and were very pious people. From the age of 10, the future monk was sent to learn to read and write, which, however, was given to the boy with great difficulty.
In the entire biography of Radonezh there is much that is unclear and uncertain. Real facts intertwined with fictional legends and parables emphasizing the monk’s divine gift. One of them explains the boy’s sudden gift for literacy by the fact that he met a wanderer who, in prayer, asked God to endow Radonezh with abilities.
Radonezh did not leave behind any written sources, therefore, his biography is known mainly in the life written by his student. The life was subsequently revised. According to church customs it is filled biblical motifs and is replete with miracles accompanying the life path of an old man. However, a critical analysis allows us to highlight historical facts and determine the main stages of the life of Radonezh.
Bartholomew's family was forcibly resettled by Ivan Kalita in the village. Radonezh, from which the famous surname of the saint comes. As is clear from the evidence, from childhood Bartholomew felt that he was chosen by God and dreamed of becoming a monk. He was able to realize his dream as a result of tragedy: Radonezhsky's parents died, and he settled in a monastery. He was not satisfied with the too free monastic life; he strove for more strict service and veneration of God. After a short life in the monastery, Radonezh founded his own Church of the Holy Trinity in a deep forest.
After some time, he calls to him Abbot Mitrofan, who performs the rite of tonsure of Bartholomew, who received the name Sergius. News about new young monk, which in difficult conditions gives all of itself into the hands of the Lord, quickly spreads across neighboring territories. Religious selfless service was very popular, so to speak, at that time. Flocks to the hermit large number people begging him to take them in. At first, the monk limited himself to twelve associates, according to the number of Christ’s apostles. However, he gradually began to accept other monks. This allowed Sergius in 1345 to rebuild a small church into a monastery, which became famous under the name of the Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius. Radonezh was made abbot and received the rank of priest.
Brief biography of Radonezh: national veneration
Villages began to appear around the monastery and develop agriculture. The former remote place has become a populous developed center.
The merit of Radonezh was the introduction of a “dormitory” charter in his monastery, according to which all monks were absolutely equal to each other. In Russian monasteries of that time, a person who became a monk retained all his worldly rights and privileges. Sergius abolished this rule. His monastery became a kind of democratic community, united by a common and obligatory physical labor combined with service to God. Thanks to the activities of Radonezh, monasteries of a new type began to be created throughout Rus' in uninhabited places, gradually becoming centers of spiritual and economic life. People liked the asceticism and simplicity of life of the monks. The veneration of Sergius of Radonezh grew.
The glory of Radonezh spread throughout Rus'. In addition to the huge masses of ordinary people, noble people and princes begin to turn to Sergius for his blessing. The monk not only received visitors, but also walked, disregarding danger, in various lands with the aim of calling princes to a righteous life. For Sergius, the ideal was Christian charity, love and compassion. The monk’s great merit is that he called for an end to civil strife in Rus' and did a lot to create a unified Russian state.
According to a widely known version, he blessed Dmitry Donskoy before the famous Battle of Kulikovo, which was one of the reasons great victory over the Tatar-Mongols. He even sent his monks into battle, breaking the canonical rules. Radonezh taught that even a person who has dedicated himself to God must take up arms if his homeland is threatened with destruction.
Sergius of Radonezh lived long life and died in 1392. His remains are venerated as the relics of a saint and serve as an object of religious worship. There are also disagreements regarding the canonization of Radonezh. His widespread veneration began long before the establishment of firm rules for canonization. Regardless of the official date, Sergius earned widespread popular love, which was then simply confirmed by the Orthodox Church.
The history of the Battle of Kulikovo is inextricably linked with the name of one of the most revered Russian saints, the founder of the Trinity-Sergius Larva, Sergius of Radonezh. It is no coincidence that a temple was erected in his honor on Red Hill.
According to church tradition, set out in “The Tale of Mamaev's massacre" and "The Life of Sergius of Radonezh", the Monk Sergius blessed Prince Dmitry Donskoy before his battle with Mamai on the Kulikovo Field, gave two monks Peresvet and Oslyabya so that they, temporarily abandoning their monastic vows, would take up the sword to defend their Fatherland and faith. During the battle, St. Sergius gathered the monastic brethren and prayed for victory and for the repose of the fallen soldiers, calling them by name, and finally told the brethren that the enemy had been defeated.
Sergius of Radonezh is often called the abbot of the Russian land. It began with St. Sergius spiritual rebirth, the unification of Rus' after hostility and civil strife. During the difficult years of the Golden Horde yoke, he became the spiritual leader of the country. He used his moral influence to convince doubters and opponents that to overthrow the Horde yoke, a strong government was required, capable of uniting all forces and leading them to victory. Being the most popular church figure North-Eastern Rus' and guided by the will of Metropolitan Alexy, Sergius repeatedly carried out his political instructions and reconciled the princes.
Sergius of Radonezh lived a long and righteous life; his short biography is full of bright events and is closely connected with the history of Rus' and the Russian Orthodox Church. Sergius of Radonezh was born around 1314 in the family of Rostov boyars Cyril and Maria, and was named Bartholomew. Legend has it that the young man was yearning for knowledge, but studying at the parochial school was never easy for him. And one day, while looking for lost horses, he saw an old man in a field praying under a lonely oak tree. The youth approached him for a blessing and told him about his sadness. The elder blessed him and said: “From now on, God will give you the ability to read and write.” And indeed, after this brief communication with the pious old man, the young man easily mastered the art of reading and plunged into the study of divine books. This episode from the biography of Sergius of Radonezh is well known from the painting by the artist M. V. Nesterov “The Vision of the Youth Bartholomew,” which is stored in the Tretyakov Gallery (for a video about the history of the creation of this painting, see the 7th issue of the program “Tretyakov Gallery. The History of a Masterpiece”
Around 1328, Bartholomew's family moved to the city of Radonezh, the name of which, after the youth was tonsured as a monk, was firmly entrenched in his name - Sergius of Radonezh, Sergius of Radonezh. Monastic life St. Sergius began in 1337, when, together with brother Stefan, a monk of the Khotkovo Intercession Monastery, they settled in the forest on Makovets Hill and built a small wooden church in the name of the Holy Trinity. This event is considered the date of the founding of the Trinity-Sergius Monastery, a monastery to which hundreds of people flocked to Sergius of Radonezh, seeking solitude and peace in prayer. Sergius of Radonezh trained many students who founded dozens of monasteries in different corners Rus', built churches, gathering around themselves supporters of Orthodoxy, a single faith and country.
Sergius of Radonezh is revered by the Russian Orthodox Church as a saint as a saint, protector of the Russian land, mentor of monastics, patron of the Russian army and special patron of children who wish success in school.
The venerable elder died on September 25 (October 8), 1392, and 30 years later, on July 5 (18), 1422, his relics were found incorrupt. The day of the saint’s death and the day of the discovery of his relics are especially revered by the Russian Orthodox Church as days of remembrance of the saint.
More detailed information about the biography of Sergius of Radonezh can be found in the following publications, interesting to both adults and children:
1. Life and exploits of our Venerable and God-Bearing Father Sergius, abbot of Radonezh and all Russia, wonderworker / Comp. hieromon. Nikon (Rozhdestvensky), later archbishop. Vologda and Totemsky. – Sergiev Posad: STSL, 2004. – 336 p.
2. St. Sergius of Radonezh is a great ascetic of the Russian land. – M., 2004. – 184 p.
3. Having stepped out of the boundaries of time...Reverend Sergius of Radonezh in selected works and works of art of the 14th - early 20th centuries. – Moscow: Summer, 2013. – 176 p.
4. The Life of St. Sergius, the Wonderworker of Radonezh: 100 miniatures from the personal life of the late 16th century from the collection of the Sacristy of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra/Auth.-comp. Aksenova G.V. – M., Cultural and Educational Foundation named after. adv. art. S. Stolyarova, 1997. – 236 p.
5. Life and hagiography of Sergius of Radonezh / Comp., last. and comment. V.V. Kolesova. – M.: Sov. Russia, 1991. – 368 p.
6. Life of St. Sergius of Radonezh/Auth.-comp. M.A. Written. – M.: RIPOL CLASSIC, 2003. – 160 p.
7. Borisov S.N. Sergius of Radonezh. – M.: Mol. Guard, 2003. – 298 p.