Icon of the myrrh-bearing wife meaning. Icon of the "myrrh-bearing wife"

Day of the Holy Myrrh-bearing Women

On the 3rd Week after Pascha (April 22, 2018), the Holy Church commemorates the holy myrrh-bearing women and the righteous Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus, the secret disciples of Christ.

This day among Orthodox people has truly always been considered a day on which the feat of a believing Orthodox woman is glorified.

The day of the holy myrrh-bearing women is an Orthodox women's day.
This holiday has been especially honored in Russia since ancient times. The main feature of Russian righteousness is a special, purely Russian warehouse, the chastity of Christian marriage as a great Sacrament.
Every woman on Earth is a myrrh-bearer in life - she brings peace to the world, her family, home, she gives birth to children, she is a support for her husband. Orthodoxy glorifies the woman-mother, the woman of all classes and nationalities. Therefore, the Week (Sunday) of the Myrrh-Bearing Women is a holiday for every Orthodox Christian woman, Orthodox Women's Day.

Icon "The Appearance of Christ to the Myrrh-Bearing Women"

Myrrh-bearing women at the Holy Sepulcher. Icon of the 15th century. The Russian Museum.

Who are they, the holy myrrh-bearing women - Mary Magdalene, Maria Kleopova, Salome, John, Martha, Mary, Susanna, and why does the Russian Orthodox Church honor their memory on the second Sunday after Easter?
Myrrhbearers- these are the same women who, out of love for the Savior, received Him in their homes, and later followed Him to the place of crucifixion on Golgotha. They were witnesses of Christ's suffering on the Cross. It was they who hastened in the dark to the Holy Sepulcher to anoint the body of Christ with myrrh, as was the custom of the Jews. It was they, the myrrh-bearing women, who were the first to know that Christ had risen. Jesus appeared to Mary Magdalene and asked her to tell the apostles to wait for Him in Galilee.

Saint Mary of Cleopova

Saint Mary Cleopova, the myrrh-bearer, according to the tradition of the Church, was the daughter of Righteous Joseph, Betrothed of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Comm. 26 December), from her first marriage and was still quite young when the Blessed Virgin Mary was betrothed to Righteous Joseph and brought into his house. The Holy Virgin Mary lived with the daughter of righteous Joseph, and they became friends like sisters. Righteous Joseph, upon returning with the Savior and the Mother of God from Egypt to Nazareth, married his daughter to his younger brother Cleopas, therefore she is called Mary Cleopas, that is, the wife of Cleopas. The blessed fruit of that marriage was the Hieromartyr Simeon, an apostle from the 70s, a relative of the Lord, the second bishop of the Jerusalem Church (Comm. 27 April). The memory of St. Mary of Cleopova is also celebrated on the 3rd Week after Pascha, the holy myrrh-bearing women.

Saint John the Myrrhbearer

Saint John the Myrrhbearer, the wife of Chuza, the steward of King Herod, was one of the wives who followed the Lord Jesus Christ during His preaching and served Him. Together with other wives, after the death of the Savior on the Cross, Saint Joanna came to the Sepulcher to anoint the Holy Body of the Lord with myrrh, and heard from the Angels the joyful news of His glorious Resurrection.
Commemoration: July 10

Righteous Sisters Martha and Mary

Righteous sisters Martha and Mary, who believed in Christ even before the resurrection of their brother Lazarus, after the murder of the holy Archdeacon Stephen, the onset of persecution against the Church of Jerusalem and the expulsion of righteous Lazarus from Jerusalem, helped their holy brother in the gospel of the Gospel in different countries. There is no information about the time and place of their peaceful death.

The holy myrrh-bearing women are an example of true sacrificial love and selfless service to the Lord. When everyone left Him, they were there, not afraid of possible persecution. It is no coincidence that the Risen Christ was the first to appear to Mary Magdalene. Subsequently, according to legend, the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Mary Magdalene worked hard in preaching the Gospel. It was she who presented the Roman emperor Tiberius with a red egg with the words? "Christ is Risen!", from where the custom for Easter came to paint eggs.

Mary Magdalene

Mary Magdalene (Hebrew מרים המגדלית‏‎‎‎, other Greek Μαρία ἡ Μαγδαληνή, lat. Maria Magdalena) is the wife of Jesus Christ, a Christian saint, myrrh-bearer, who, according to the gospel text, followed Christ.
The nickname “Magdalene” (Hebrew מרים המגדלית‏‎‎‎, other Greek Μαρία ἡ Μαγδαληνή), which was worn by this of the Gospel Marys, is traditionally deciphered as “a native of the city of Migdal-El”. The literal meaning of this toponym is “tower” (Hebrew ‏migdal‏‎‎‎ and Aramaic magdala), and since the tower is a feudal, knightly symbol, in the Middle Ages this noble shade of meaning was transferred to the person of Mary and she was given aristocratic features .
It has also been suggested that the nickname "Magdalene" may come from the Talmudic expression magadella (Hebrew מגדלא‏‎‎‎) - "hair curler". A character called “Miriam Curling Women’s Hair” (Hebrew מרים מגדלא שער נשייא‎‎‎) appears in a number of Talmudic texts associated with Jesus, with one of them referring to her as an adulteress. It is possible that stories about Mary Magdalene were reflected in these texts.
Among medieval writers unfamiliar with Hebrew and ancient Greek, etymologies are most often fantastic: “Magdalene” can be interpreted as “constantly accused” (lat. manens rea), etc.
The name Mary Magdalene, Magdalene later became popular in Europe in various forms.

Painting by Perugino, c. 1500

In the Orthodox and Catholic churches, the veneration of Magdalene is different: Orthodoxy venerates her exclusively as a myrrh-bearing woman, cured of seven demons and appearing only in a few gospel episodes, and in tradition catholic church for a long time it was customary to identify with her the image of the penitent harlot and Mary of Bethany, and also to attach extensive legendary material.

The identity of Mary the harlot and Mary, the sister of Martha of the Evangelical Mary Magdalene was also disputed by Protestant interpreters from the very beginning, Magdalene is revered exclusively as a holy myrrh-bearer.

Veneration in Orthodoxy

In Orthodoxy, she is revered as an Equal-to-the-Apostles saint, relying only on the gospel testimonies listed above. Byzantine literature tells how, some time after the Crucifixion, Magdalene went to Ephesus with the Virgin Mary to John the Theologian and helped him in his labors. Of the four evangelists, it is John who provides the most information about Magdalene.
It is believed that Mary Magdalene preached the gospel in Rome, as evidenced by the appeal to her in the letter of the Apostle Paul to the Romans (Rom. 16:6). Probably, in connection with this journey, an Easter tradition associated with her name arose.
The Orthodox tradition does not identify Mary Magdalene with the evangelical sinner, but venerates her exclusively as an Equal-to-the-Apostles holy myrrh-bearer, from whom demons were simply cast out.
So, Dimitri Rostovsky writes in her life:
If Magdalene were a harlot, then after Christ and His disciples she was obviously a sinner, walking for a long time, so that the haters of Christ would say to the Jews, looking for some kind of guilt on Him, but they would blaspheme and condemn Him. If the disciples of Christ once saw the Lord with the Samaritan, conversing, wondering, as if talking with a wife, how much more hostile would not be silent, if they would clearly see a sinner following and serving Him all the days.
- Dimitri Rostovsky, "Lives of the Saints: July 22"

There is no mention of fornication in her Akathist. In addition, Orthodoxy did not identify the Magdalene with several other evangelical women, which happened in Catholicism, it traditionally honored these women separately.

On September 2, 2006, for the first time, the relics of Mary Magdalene and a particle of the Life-Giving Cross arrived in Russia (from the Simonopetra Monastery at Athos). In the Cathedral of Christ the Savior Orthodox shrines were available to believers until September 13, after which they were taken to seven cities of the country.

Carlo Crivelli. Mary Magdalene, ca. 1480, Bonnefantenmuseum, Maastricht. A saint with long flowing hair holds a vessel of incense in her hands.

Many details are given in Western European apocryphal legends, for example, her parents were called Sir and Eucharia.
Much is told about her preaching activity, which, unlike the Byzantine stories, is associated not with Asia Minor, but with the territory of France.
In particular, as they say, after the Crucifixion, Mary, together with her brother, sister Martha and saints Maximin, Martellus and Cydonius, went to proclaim Christianity in Gaul, in the city of Massilia (Marseille) or at the mouth of the Rhone (the city of Sainte-Marie-de-la- Mer).

"Mary Magdalene", sculpture by Donatello, 1455, Florence, Duomo Museum. The saint is depicted emaciated, in rags, after for long years hermitage.

The second half of Magdalene's life, according to these Western legends, went like this: she retired to the desert, where for 30 years she indulged in the strictest asceticism, mourning her sins. Her clothes decayed, but shame (nudity) was covered long hair. And the emaciated old body was taken up to heaven every night by angels to heal it - “God feeds her with heavenly food, and every day the angels raise her to heaven, where she listens to the singing of heavenly choirs“ with bodily ears ”(Latin corporeis auribus).

The Elder Gives the Himation to Mary Magdalene. Fresco by Giotto in the Magdalene Chapel of the lower Basilica of San Francesco in Assisi, 1320s.

Before her death, Magdalene is communed by a priest who accidentally wandered into these parts, who at first is embarrassed by the nakedness of the saint covered with hair. Saint Maximin goes to her, spends her last minutes with her (moreover, Mary Magdalene, when meeting with blessed Maximin, prays in the choir of angels, rising above the ground at a distance of two cubits). Then he buries his old companion in the church he founded.
The relics of the saint are still displayed in the church in Provence (Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume) on the Way of St. James. Unlike the Ascension of the Virgin Mary, the meaning of which is that the Mother of God was taken to heaven bodily after death, the Ascension of Mary Magdalene was simply a form of her conversation with the Lord, and after death she was not taken bodily to heaven.

Ascension of Mary Magdalene, painting by Jusepe de Ribera, 1636

To understand the composition of the legend, it is important that the plot of Magdalene's asceticism has many parallels or even possible direct borrowings from the life of St. Mary of Egypt, her namesake and late contemporary, which, unlike Magdalene, is directly evidenced that she was a harlot. The researchers note that the borrowing probably took place in the 9th century and the attributes merged with the plot of both saints. That is, the harlot Mary of Egypt is another woman whose image was combined with Magdalene and contributed to the perception of her as a sinner. The story of Mary of Egypt formed the basis of the legend "On the hermit life" of Mary Magdalene. They also mention the influence of the legend of the harlot of St. Taisia of Egypt, a famous courtesan, converted by abbot Paphnutius.

Memory

The death of Mary Magdalene, according to this trend in Christianity, was peaceful: she died in Ephesus.
Memory:
- July 22/August 4;
- in the third week after Easter, called the Week of the Myrrh-Bearing Women.

According to Demetrius of Rostov's Readings of the Menaion, in 886, during the reign of Emperor Leo VI the Philosopher, the relics of the saint who had died in Ephesus were solemnly transferred to the monastery of Saint Lazarus in Constantinople.
The Catholic Church considers the location of the relics of Mary Magdalene in the Lateran Basilica, where they were laid under the altar consecrated by Pope Honorius III in her honor. Also, the location of the relics since 1280 is considered to be the churches of Saint-Baum and Saint-Maximin in Provence, where, in particular, her head is kept.
At present, the relics of Mary Magdalene are known to be found in the following Athos monasteries: Dochiar, Simonopetra (right hand) and Esfigmen.

Temples dedicated to Mary Magdalene

Church of St Mary Magdalene in Woolwich (South London), UK;
Church of St. Mary Magdalene in Dobrovod, Poland;
Church of St. Mary Magdalene in Tarnobrzeg, Poland;
Church of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Myrrh-bearing Mary Magdalene in Avdeevka, Donetsk region, Ukraine;
Church of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Mary Magdalene in Minsk, Belarus;
Church of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Mary Magdalene in Bila Tserkva, Kyiv region, Ukraine.

The emergence of the tradition of Easter eggs is associated with Mary Magdalene: according to legend, when Mary came to the emperor Tiberius and announced the Resurrection of Christ, the emperor said that this was as impossible as egg was red, and after these words, the hen's egg, which he held, turned red. Obviously, the legend belongs to the very late Middle Ages (since it was not included in the extensive collection "Golden Legend" of the XIII-XIV centuries).
However, according to a different version of the presentation, Mary Magdalene presented the emperor with an egg painted red (This is how St. Demetrius of Rostov describes this episode).

The Marriage of Jesus

A year after the death of Joseph, on October 28, 16, Jesus, fulfilling the oath given to his father, married. His chosen one was Mary Magdalene. The Bible does not say that Jesus was married. But nowhere is it reported that he was single. Mary Magdalene is mentioned several times in the Gospels. She accompanies Jesus on some of his trips, she is often nearby, after the death of Jesus she is the first to come to his grave, i.e. behaves like a person very close to him, like a wife.
Why is there no clear and distinct indication in the Bible that Mary Magdalene is the wife of Jesus?
In 325, when the Gospels were being rewritten, all the evidence that Jesus and John the Baptist were family people was removed from them. This was done in order to legitimize the vow of celibacy taken by all Christian priests. A similar order of affairs in the Roman Catholic Church has been preserved to this day.
A centralized church needed a huge army of clergy - obedient, faithful, diligent. It is much easier to subdue a single person to one's will than a family one, therefore, for the Church, the image of an unmarried Jesus (and John too) was very beneficial. Christian priests, taking a vow of celibacy, sincerely believed that they were acting according to the rules established by Jesus himself. At the same time, women were universally declared sinners, communication with which could destroy the human soul. Women were to be avoided, contact with them should be kept to a minimum and, if possible, not even looked in their direction.
It was then that the following phrase was inserted into the Bible in the mouth of Jesus (Mt, 5, 28):
“But I tell you that everyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”
It is impossible to control a person who is in love and happy, therefore the Church, disguising its intentions as virtue, tried to crush all carnal desires in people.
After the appropriate processing of the Gospels, Mary Magdalene from the wife of Jesus Christ turned into a harlot, and her name even became a household name to designate girls of a certain profession. In fact, Mary in life was a modest, pure girl who was madly in love with her husband Jesus. Maria in her youth was distinguished by rare beauty - amazing Brown eyes, round face, long black hair, slim figure with a thin waist. Jesus was happy in family life, loved his wife and children - he and Maria had three sons and a daughter. Jesus got married at 20. According to the customs of that time, the husband was not required to be at home all the time, so Jesus traveled quietly, while Mary Magdalene was at home in Nazareth with his mother. Previously, a man lived with a woman all year round, but only in certain months favorable for the conception of a child. During these months, Mary Magdalene sometimes accompanied Jesus on his travels. Almost all of the disciples of Jesus - the apostles had wives and children. Naturally, there is not a single line about this in the Bible, only in one place it is briefly mentioned that the Apostle Peter had a mother-in-law.

crucifixion of jesus

Beloved disciple John, Jesus instructed to take care of his mother long before the events occurred. At the time of the execution, there was neither the Virgin Mary nor John on Golgotha. John, having learned about the exact day of the execution of Jesus, went to Nazareth for Mary, deciding at the same time to come with her to Jerusalem on the second day after the execution. He found Mary excited, she told him that when she lay down yesterday to rest after dinner (Tuesday), she dreamed of Jesus - he called her and asked for help, waking up, she felt a terrible pain in her heart, which still has not passed. John did not say anything, explaining the reason for his arrival by the fact that Jesus wants to see her in Jerusalem on Saturday. But is it possible to deceive a truly loving maternal heart! It already knew the hours when her beloved son took incredible torment.
Maria immediately felt something was wrong, she could not find a place for herself either on the last day before the road or on the road, she became especially ill when only half a day was left to Jerusalem.
How could John, who loved Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary so much, that the eyes of this sweet, good woman saw how the executioners mocked her own son. How can a heart, in which there is even a small grain of love and compassion, endure the whole picture of the torment of Jesus. Not to mention the mother's heart. And no matter how holy the Virgin Mary was, she simply could not bear all this, and John perfectly understood this. And the words in the Bible: "... She, before the eyes of everyone, fearlessly stood at the foot of the cross ..." - could only be written by a person who does not know what it is - the loss of a loved one who does not know the feeling of pain. Only a person with an icy heart, for whom the feeling of compassion is alien and incomprehensible, could write such a thing. Such torments that Jesus suffered, even after two thousand years, it’s scary to imagine, let alone look at them, calmly standing nearby. The heart of any mother would not have endured such grief, it would have burst even before her son was crucified on the cross. We are not talking about the hearts of those mothers who, for the sake of faith, sacrifice their babies, as sectarians do, or because they have nothing to feed their children, or simply do not want to raise them, give them to orphanages, or have an abortion and kill them unborn . The Virgin Mary, who became the Mother of the entire human race, could not and did not see the torment of her Son!!!

On Friday, 20 April came to Pontius Pilate Joseph of Arimathea- a very influential person, one of the 72 members of the highest court of Judea - the Sanhedrin. Joseph turned to Pilate with a request to give him the body of Jesus Christ for an honorable burial in his own tomb. For this, Joseph was even ready to pay a large ransom. Pilate treated this man with great respect, so he granted his request without taking any ransom. In addition, Pilate was tormented by his conscience because, on his orders, an innocent man, a righteous man, had lost his life. Pilate sent a man to the place of execution to find out if Jesus really died.
At this time, two people were near Jesus - John Zebedee and the elder of the religious society of the Essenes. This elder asked the centurion, who was in charge of guarding the place of execution, not to break the knees of the dead Jesus. According to the custom of that time, the knees of the deceased on the cross were torn apart in order to finally be convinced of the death of the latter. The elder knew that Jesus was actually still alive.
The elder explained to the centurion that the crucified man was indeed a respected person and worthy of an honorable burial, a large ransom would be paid to Pontius Pilate for him now, so you should not spoil the body of the deceased. The centurion allowed Jesus not to break his knees. He even knew that Jesus was still alive, but he did not tell anyone about it.
“It was the day of preparation, and on Saturday the bodies were not supposed to hang on crosses, besides, it was a special Easter Saturday. Therefore, the Jews asked Pilate to allow the crucified to break their legs and remove their bodies from the crosses. The soldiers came and broke the legs, first of one crucified man, then of another. When they came to Jesus, they saw that He was already dead, and they did not break His legs.” Gospel of John.
The secret disciples of Jesus - Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus, having received permission from Pontius Pilate to hand over the body, set to work. On Friday at noon, the body of Jesus was transferred to the tomb of Joseph, located near the place of execution. Joseph and Nicodemus swaddled the body of Christ, soaked the bandages with a solution made from medicinal oils and balms. Jesus prepared this solution long before his execution.

“Nikodim brought about thirty kilograms of a mixture of myrrh and aloe. They took down the body of Jesus and wrapped it, along with the balm, in linen of linen fabric. This was the Jewish burial custom." Gospel of John.
“Joseph took it, wrapped it in clean linen, and placed it in his newly bought tomb, which was hewn in the rock.” Gospel of Matthew.

All procedures lasted until four o'clock in the evening. Then the body of Jesus, smeared with incense, neatly swaddled in bandages, was wrapped in a huge white shroud. In the morning, Roman soldiers came to look at the body of Jesus and made sure that he was indeed buried according to all the laws. After all the inspectors were convinced of the death of Jesus, the entrance to the tomb was covered with a large stone.
In the morning, the Jewish priests were simply shocked to learn that Jesus was buried in the personal tomb of Joseph of Arimathea, a member of the very Sanhedrin that condemned Jesus to death. And another member of the Sanhedrin, Nicodemus, helped him. And the Roman governor Pontius Pilate ordered the body of the executed blasphemer to be given out for an honorable burial.
It seemed to the high priests that there was some kind of conspiracy against them. The priests and Pharisees asked Pilate:
- Mister! We remembered that the deceiver, while still alive, said: after three days I will rise again.

Therefore, order the tomb to be guarded until the third day, so that his disciples, coming at night, do not steal it and say to the people: He has risen from the dead. Otherwise, the last deception will be worse than the first.
Pilate, who was very angry with the priests, who had previously threatened him with a denunciation to Rome, sharply answered them:
- If you have guards - go, guard, as you know.

Caiaphas ordered to put guards at the tomb and attach seals to the stone. He did not like the behavior of Pilate, who too obviously sympathized with Jesus. It was no longer possible to rely on Roman power - now you had to do everything yourself.

On Sunday morning, April 21, Mary Magdalene, on the teaching of Joseph of Arimathea, without saying a word to anyone, together with her servant Mary, the mother of Jacob and Salome, approached the crypt.
Mary Magdalene saw the guards sitting and told them that Jesus had risen and do not look for his body here. Among those guarding the tomb of Jesus was the apostle Andrew. He sat near the tomb and waited for the resurrection of Christ. He doubted, but nevertheless, in the depths of his soul he believed, and suddenly the truth Christ would rise again.
Mary approached him and said what Joseph had taught her - Jesus had risen and told his disciples to wait for him in Galilee. By this, Joseph wanted to deceive the priests, to send them on the wrong track. The main thing is that Jesus is not looked for in Jerusalem. Puzzled and frightened, the guards opened the crypt. The seals that Caiaphas ordered to be placed on the tomb were intact, that is, no one entered or left the crypt.
The opened room was empty! Only scraps of bandages and a shroud were reclining. The guards froze in place, not knowing what to do next. Meanwhile, Mary Magdalene and the women accompanying her went to Peter and John and told them that Jesus had risen. They did not believe it and ran to the crypt in a headlong race. John overtook Peter and was the first to look into the tomb, where he found only bandages and a shroud. The apostles went to the other disciples to tell the amazing news. Magdalene remained at the tomb to see what would happen next.
The guards sent to Pilate to inform him that a miracle had happened and Jesus had risen!

The found shroud was taken by the women and handed over to the Mother of God. Joseph and Nicodemus comforted Mary, and now she was looking forward to meeting her resurrected son.
Now this relic is in Italy and is known throughout the world as the Shroud of Turin. It has the face of Jesus on it. Soon there was no crowd near the crypt - soldiers and curious people ran into it ...

It was impossible for the disciples of Jesus to stay in Judea, because they would be severely persecuted. The apostles did as Jesus advised them - they cast lots to determine who would go to which country. Our Lady Mary also took part in the draw, and she got Georgia. But at the last moment, Jesus appeared to her and ordered her to go to Gaul (France). Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus were preparing to leave Judea and leave forever for distant Gaul.
Before leaving, Joseph of Arimathea, Nicodemus, Mary Magdalene and Mother of God Mary urgently sold all their property - houses and things. All this had to be done in complete secrecy, even the disciples of Jesus did not know anything about the upcoming departure.
Forty days after the last meeting, Jesus again appeared to his disciples. He blessed them for their deeds and disappeared into the mist. From the outside, it looked like Jesus had ascended to heaven.
Our Lady Mary died in 59, having lived for 78 years. Mary Magdalene died at the age of 92.
They are all buried in the same place next to each other. Their graves are located on the territory of modern France. The house of the Virgin Mary has not survived to our times.

Equal-to-the-Apostles Mary Magdalene.
In the hand is a vessel for washing the feet - a symbol.

With Christ, the female gender also militates, inscribed in the army for spiritual courage and not rejected for bodily weakness. And many wives differed no less than their husbands: there are those who even became more famous. Such are those who fill the face of virgins, such are those who shine with the exploits of confession and the victories of martyrdom.
St. Basil the Great

The truly chaste, making every effort to take care of the soul, do not refuse to serve the body, as an instrument of the soul, in moderation, but consider it unworthy and low for themselves to adorn the body and magnify it, so that it, by nature, being a slave, not puffed up before the soul, which is entrusted with the right of dominion ...
St. Isidore Pelusiot

From the Diaries of the Holy Royal Martyr Empress of Russia Alexandra Feodorovna Romanova

Christianity, like heavenly love, elevates the soul of man. I am happy: the less hope, the stronger the faith. God knows what's best for us, but we don't. In constant humility, I begin to find a source of constant strength. ""Dying daily is the path to daily life""... Life is nothing if we do not know Him, thanks to Whom we live.
The closer the soul approaches the Divine and Eternal Source of Love, the more fully the obligations of sacred human love are revealed, and the more acute the reproaches of conscience for neglecting the smallest of them.
Love does not grow, does not become great and perfect suddenly and by itself, but it requires time and constant care.
True faith is shown in all our behavior. It's like the juices of a living tree that reach the farthest branches.
The basis of a noble character is absolute sincerity.
True wisdom does not consist in the assimilation of knowledge, but in the correct application of them for good.
Humility is not about talking about your shortcomings, but about enduring how others talk about them; in listening to them patiently and even with gratitude; in correcting the shortcomings we are told about; in not feeling hostility towards those who tell us about them. The more humble a person, the more peace in his soul.
In all trials seek patience, not deliverance; if you deserve it, it will come to you soon... Go forward, make mistakes, fall down and get up again, just keep going.
Religious education is the richest gift that parents can leave to their child; an inheritance will never replace it with any wealth.
The meaning of life is not to do what you like, but to do what you have to do with love.
For most of us, the main temptation is the loss of courage, the main test of our strength - in a monotonous series of failures, in an annoying series of prosaic difficulties. It's the distance that wears us out, not the pace. To move forward, choosing the right path, to make our way to the faintly flickering light and never doubt the supreme value of goodness, even in the slightest manifestations of it - this is the usual task of the life of many, and by fulfilling it, people show what they are worth.
Self-sacrifice is a pure, holy, active virtue that crowns and sanctifies the human soul.
In order to ascend the great heavenly ladder of love, one must oneself become a stone, a step of this ladder, on which, climbing up, others will step.
The religion inspired by the word of Christ is sunny and joyful.
Joy is the hallmark of a Christian. A Christian should never be discouraged, should never doubt that good will overcome evil. A weeping, complaining, frightened Christian betrays his God.
In innumerable ways, the word of Christ, sunk into the heart, is manifested in life. In trouble it brings us comfort, in moments of weakness - strength.
The important work a man can do for Christ is what he can and should do in his own house. Men have their share, it is important and serious, but the true creator of the house is the mother. The way she lives gives the house a special atmosphere. God first comes to children through her love. As they say: "God, in order to become closer to everyone, created mothers" - a wonderful idea. Maternal love, as it were, embodies the love of God, and it surrounds the life of a child with tenderness ... There are houses where the lamp is constantly burning brightly, where words of love for Christ are constantly spoken, where children are taught from an early age that God loves them, where they learn to pray, just started to babble. And, after many years, the memory of these sacred moments will live on, illuminating the darkness with a ray of light, inspiring in a period of disappointment, revealing the secret of victory in a difficult battle, and the angel of God will help overcome cruel temptations and not fall into sin.
How happy is the house where everyone - children and parents, without a single exception - believes in God together. In such a house reigns the joy of camaraderie. Such a house as the threshold of Heaven. It can never be alienated.

The Holy Orthodox Church celebrates this day as a holiday for all Christian women, celebrates their special and important role in the family and society, strengthens them in their selfless feat of love and service to others.
How different this holiday is from the so-called International Women's Day on March 8, established by feminist organizations in support of their struggle for the so-called women's rights, or rather, for the liberation of women from the family, from children, from everything that makes up the meaning of life for a woman. Isn't it time for us to return to the traditions of our people, to restore the Orthodox understanding of the role of women in our lives and to celebrate the wonderful holiday of the Holy Myrrh-bearing Women more widely. The new Epoch that has come is associated with the rebirth of a woman, and it is a woman who has a special role in it.

“They will ask: “Why is this age called the Age of the Mother of the World?” Indeed, that is how it should be called. A woman will bring great help, not only bringing enlightenment, but also establishing balance. In the midst of confusion, the magnet of balance is broken, and free will is needed to connect the disintegrating parts ... ”(Elevated, 772).

All ancient religions revere the Mother of the World in one aspect or another of the female deities and revere the Goddesses along with the Gods. In ancient Egypt, this is Isis, Kali - among the Hindus, among the Gnostics - Sophia, Dukkar - in Tibet, Kwan-Yin - in China, Venus in - Phoenicia, Bellus - in Assyria, Anahita - in Persia.

Also, Zoroaster, the founder of Zoroastrianism, highly valued the Feminine Principle, and His Testaments affirm the greatness of Cosmic love as the main principle of the existence of the universe.

There is no female deity in Buddhism, but the Buddha also held women in high regard.

The path of a woman in the process of the evolution of mankind, throughout the entire Kali Yuga, is incredibly difficult and immensely painful, and the lower the general cultural level of the peoples, the more difficult the position of a woman. The position of women in the West was especially difficult in the dark era of the Middle Ages, when the ignorant clergy interpreted a woman as the source of all sin, as an accomplice and helper of Satan, as a sorceress and a witch.

The position of women has improved in the Western world since the Renaissance. Although for a long time a woman was a thing that could be bought, sold and exchanged for a horse, gun or dog, as the ideas of humanism develop and spread in many countries of the world, a woman, albeit with great difficulty, wins more and more rights. Knowing from her bitter experience how unbearably hard all violence and injustice is, a woman has always protested against any spirit of violence, regardless of to whom it manifested itself, has always sympathized more than a man with the oppressed and offended, and has developed in herself one of her most valuable and best qualities. - compassion and sensitivity to someone else's grief and someone else's suffering. Lacking the strength and ability to protect herself, the weaker woman nevertheless often found both the strength and the ability to protect her children from more strong man if there was a need for it.

The Teaching of Life speaks of the need to establish two Beginnings (male and female), because only in their unity, in their merging, both cosmic and earthly creativity is possible. One Beginning cannot be higher and another lower. They can only be equal, complementary to each other. Both the feminine and the masculine are but different poles of one Whole, and they cannot exist one without the other.

Man is approaching the Age of Balance between the male and female Principles. And now the Great Teachers will affirm the woman, therefore the new epoch will be not only the epoch of the Great Cooperation, but also the epoch of the woman.

A woman needs to be called. Cultural leader of humanity, philosopher, artist N.K. Roerich in his article "To the Woman's Heart" says:
“When it is difficult in the house, then they turn to a woman. When calculations and calculations no longer help, when enmity and mutual destruction reach limits, then they come to a woman. When evil forces overcome, then a woman is called. When the prudent mind turns out to be powerless, then the woman's heart is remembered. Truly, when malice crushes the decision of the mind, only the heart finds salvific outcomes. And where is the heart that will replace the heart of a woman? Where is the courage of heart fire that can be compared with the courage of a woman at the edge of hopelessness? What hand will replace the soothing touch of the persuasiveness of a woman's heart? And what eye, having absorbed all the pain of suffering, will answer both selflessly and for the Good? We do not praise women. It is not praise that fills the life of mankind from the cradle to rest. “To whom did they give wreaths? Since ancient times, wreaths were given to heroes and were the property of women. And women of antiquity, in divination, took off these wreaths and threw them into the river, while always thinking not about themselves, but about some other.” If the wreath is the crown is a symbol of heroism, it is precisely the imprinting of this heroism, namely, when it is removed in the name of something or someone else. And this is not only inactive self-sacrifice. No, this is an effective feat! And again it will not be praise, but reality, when we compare a woman with exploits.” (“Fiery Stronghold”).

Myrrh-bearing women... These women in the morning, on the first day after Saturday, came to the tomb of the resurrected Lord Jesus Christ to anoint His most pure body with aromas and spices. To, as they thought, to pay the last tribute of love and respect to the One Who is now dead and lifeless, Whom they loved and revered so much, following Him everywhere. And instead of pain, they found joy, surprise and delight at the tomb of their God and Teacher. Christ is risen! And these women found out about it first. We know this gospel story fairly well. But when asked who was among the wives who brought myrrh, as a rule, we can first name Mary Magdalene, and we will hardly remember the rest ...

So who do we call myrrh-bearers? The memory of whose self-sacrifice, incomparable and tender love for Christ, sets an example for us to serve Him with the same devotion?

In the gospels, the names of the myrrh-bearing women and their number differ. After Saturday, the following came to the tomb: at Matthew (28:1-10) - Mary Magdalene and another Mary (probably the Mother of God); in Mark (16:1-13) - Mary Magdalene, Mary Jacobleva (mother of James, an apostle from the 70), Salome (mother of the sons of Zebedee James and John);

in Luke (23:23-55) - Mary Magdalene, Joanna (wife of Chuza), Mary (mother of Jacob), "and others with them";
John (20:1-18) has Mary Magdalene. The Holy Tradition of the Church also speaks of Mary and Martha, Mary of Cleopas and Susanna. These women entered hymnography and liturgical texts under the common name of myrrh-bearing women. Now let's take a look at each of them.

HOLY EQUAL-APOSTAL MYRBORESS MARY MAGDALENE

On the shores of Lake Gennesaret, between the cities of Capernaum and Tiberias, there was a small city of Magdala, the remains of which have survived to this day. Now only the small village of Mejdel stands in its place.
A woman was once born and raised in Magdala, whose name entered the gospel history forever. The Gospel tells us nothing about Mary's early years, but Tradition tells us that Mary of Magdala was young, beautiful and led a sinful life. The Gospel says that the Lord cast out seven demons from Mary. From the moment of her healing, Mary began new life. She became a faithful disciple of the Savior.
The Gospel tells that Mary Magdalene followed the Lord when He and the Apostles passed through the cities and villages of Judea and Galilee preaching the Kingdom of God. Together with pious women - Joanna, the wife of Khuza (the steward of Herod), Susanna and others, she served Him from her estates (Luke 8: 1-3) and, undoubtedly, shared with the apostles the evangelistic labors, especially among women. Obviously, the Evangelist Luke, along with other women, is referring to her, saying that at the moment of Christ's procession to Golgotha, when, after the scourging, He carried the heavy Cross on Himself, exhausted under its weight, the women followed Him, weeping and sobbing, and He comforted them. The Gospel tells that Mary Magdalene was also on Golgotha at the time of the crucifixion of the Lord. When all the disciples of the Savior fled, she fearlessly remained at the Cross together with the Mother of God and the Apostle John.
The Evangelists list among those who stood at the Cross also the mother of the Apostle James the Less, and Salome, and other women who followed the Lord from Galilee itself, but everyone calls Mary Magdalene the first, and the Apostle John, except for the Mother of God, mentions only her and Mary Cleopova. This indicates how much she stood out from among all the women who surrounded the Savior.
She was faithful to Him not only in the days of His glory, but also in the moment of His extreme humiliation and reproach. She, as the Evangelist Matthew narrates, was also present at the burial of the Lord. In front of her eyes, Joseph and Nicodemus carried His lifeless body into the tomb. In front of her eyes, they blocked the entrance to the cave where the Sun of life had set with a large stone ...
Faithful to the law in which she was brought up, Mary, along with other women, remained all the next day at rest, for the day of that Sabbath was great, which coincided that year with the feast of Easter. But still, before the day of rest, the women managed to stock up on fragrances so that on the first day of the week they would come at dawn to the tomb of the Lord and Teacher and, according to the custom of the Jews, anoint His body with funeral aromas.
It must be assumed that, having agreed to go to the Sepulcher on the first day of the week early in the morning, the holy women, dispersing on Friday evening to their homes, did not have the opportunity to meet each other on the Sabbath day, and as soon as the light of the next day dawned, they went to the tomb not together, but each from his own house.
The Evangelist Matthew writes that the women came to the tomb at dawn, or, as the Evangelist Mark puts it, very early, at sunrise; Evangelist John, as if supplementing them, says that Mary came to the tomb so early that it was still dark. Apparently, she was looking forward to the end of the night, but, not waiting for dawn, when darkness still reigned all around, she ran to where the body of the Lord lay.
So Mary came to the tomb alone. Seeing the stone rolled away from the cave, she hurried in fear to where the closest apostles of Christ, Peter and John, lived. Hearing the strange news that the Lord had been carried away from the tomb, both Apostles ran to the tomb and, seeing the linen and folded kerchief, were astonished. The apostles left and did not say anything to anyone, and Mary stood near the entrance to the gloomy cave and wept. Here, in this dark coffin, her Lord lay so recently lifeless. Wanting to make sure that the coffin was really empty, she went up to him - and here a strong light suddenly shone on her. She saw two angels in white robes, sitting one at the head and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus was laid. Hearing the question: “Woman, why are you crying?” - she answered in the same words that she had just said to the Apostles: "They have carried away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him." Having said this, she turned around, and at that moment she saw the Risen Jesus standing near the tomb, but did not recognize Him.
He asked Maria: “Woman, why are you crying, Whom are you looking for?” She, thinking that she saw the gardener, answered: "Sir, if you carried him out, tell me where you put him, and I will take him."
But in that moment, she recognized the voice of the Lord, a voice that had been familiar from the very day He healed her. She heard this voice in those days, in those years, when, together with other pious women, she followed the Lord in all the cities and villages where His sermon was heard. A joyful cry broke out of her chest: “Rabbouni!”, which means Teacher.
Respect and love, tenderness and deep reverence, a sense of gratitude and recognition of His superiority as a great Teacher - all merged into this one exclamation. She could say no more and threw herself at her Master's feet to wash them with tears of joy.
But the Lord told her, “Do not touch Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to my brethren and say to them: "I ascend to my Father and your Father, and to my God and your God."
She came to her senses and again ran to the Apostles to fulfill the will of the One who sent her to preach. Again she ran into the house, where the Apostles were still in confusion, and proclaimed to them the joyful news: “I saw the Lord!” It was the first sermon on the Resurrection in the world.
The apostles were supposed to preach the gospel to the world, but she preached the gospel to the apostles themselves...
Holy Scripture does not tell us about the life of Mary Magdalene after the resurrection of Christ, but there is no doubt that if in the terrible moments of the crucifixion of Christ she was at the foot of His Cross with His Most Pure Mother and John, then there is no doubt that she was with them and all the nearest time after the resurrection and ascension of the Lord. So St. Luke writes in the book of the Acts of the Apostles that all the Apostles with one accord remained in prayer and supplication with some women and Mary, the Mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.
Holy Tradition tells that when the Apostles departed from Jerusalem to preach to all parts of the world, Mary Magdalene went with them to preach. The brave woman, whose heart was full of memories of the Risen One, left motherland and went with a sermon to pagan Rome. And everywhere she proclaimed to people about Christ and His teachings, and when many did not believe that Christ had risen, she repeated to them the same thing that she had said to the Apostles on the bright morning of the Resurrection: “I saw the Lord.” With this sermon, she traveled all over Italy.
Tradition says that in Italy, Mary Magdalene appeared to the emperor Tiberius (14-37) and preached to him about the Risen Christ. According to legend, she brought him a red egg as a symbol of the Resurrection, a symbol of new life with the words: "Christ is Risen!" Then she told the emperor that in his province of Judea, Jesus the Galilean, a holy man who worked miracles, strong before God and all people, was innocently condemned, executed on the slander of the Jewish high priests and the sentence was approved by the procurator appointed by Tiberius Pontius Pilate.
Mary repeated the words of the Apostles that those who believe in Christ are redeemed from a vain life not with corruptible silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ as an immaculate and pure Lamb.
Thanks to Mary Magdalene, the custom of giving to each other Easter eggs on the day of the Holy Resurrection of Christ spread among Christians all over the world. In one ancient handwritten Greek charter, written on parchment, stored in the library of the monastery of St. Anastasia near Thessalonica (Thessalonica), there is a prayer read on the day of Holy Easter for the consecration of eggs and cheese, which indicates that the abbot, distributing the consecrated eggs, says to the brethren : "So we received from the holy fathers, who have preserved this custom from the very times of the apostles, for the holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Mary Magdalene was the first to show the believers an example of this joyful sacrifice."
Mary Magdalene continued her evangelism in Italy and in the city of Rome itself. Obviously, it is precisely this that the Apostle Paul has in mind in his Epistle to the Romans (16:6), where, together with other ascetics of the preaching of the gospel, he mentions Mary (Mariam), who, as he puts it, “has worked hard for us.” Obviously, they wholeheartedly served the Church both with their means and with their labors, being exposed to dangers, and shared with the Apostles the labors of preaching.
According to Church tradition, she stayed in Rome until the arrival of the Apostle Paul there and two more years after his departure from Rome after the first trial of him. From Rome, Saint Mary Magdalene, already in her old age, moved to Ephesus, where the holy Apostle John worked tirelessly, who wrote the 20th chapter of his Gospel from her words. There the holy earthly life ended and was buried.
Her holy relics were transferred to the capital in the 9th century Byzantine Empire- Constantinople and laid in the temple of the monastery in the name of St. Lazarus. During the era of the Crusades, they were transferred to Italy and placed in Rome under the altar of the Lateran Cathedral. Part of the relics of Mary Magdalene is located in France near Marseilles, where a magnificent temple was erected above them at the foot of a steep mountain in honor of her.
The Orthodox Church sacredly honors the memory of St. Mary Magdalene, a woman called by the Lord Himself from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God.
Once mired in sin, she, having received healing, sincerely and irrevocably began a new, pure life and never hesitated on this path. Mary loved the Lord, who called her to a new life; she was faithful to Him not only when He, having cast out seven demons from her, surrounded by enthusiastic people, passed through the cities and villages of Palestine, earning Himself the glory of a miracle worker, but also when all the disciples left Him out of fear and He, humiliated and crucified hung in agony on the Cross. That is why the Lord, knowing her fidelity, appeared to her first, having risen from the tomb, and it was she who was worthy to be the very first preacher of His Resurrection.

HOLY MYRHOBEARER MARY KLEOPOV

HOLY MYRBOBEARER SALOMIA

St. rights. Salome the Myrrhbearer was the sister of the Most Holy Theotokos, the wife of Zebedee, and the mother of St. James and John. She, along with other women, followed the Lord and served Him and His disciples. Moved by maternal love, she asked the Lord that her sons be given a special honor - they sat on the right and on left hand from Christ in His Kingdom. After the crucifixion of the Lord, she, among other wives, came to the Holy Sepulcher to anoint His body with incense. The persecution of the Church of Christ brought great sorrow to Salome - Herod beheaded her eldest son Jacob. With the hope of eternal life, Salome died peacefully.

HOLY JOHN the Myrrhbearer

HOLY MARPHA AND MARY

Righteous sisters Martha and Mary believed in Christ even before the resurrection of their brother Lazarus by Him. After the assassination of the holy Archdeacon Stephen, open persecution began against the Church of Christ in Jerusalem. Righteous Lazarus was expelled from the Holy Land. Martha and Mary helped their holy brother in preaching the gospel in different countries. There is no information about the time and place of their peaceful death.

This holiday has been especially honored in Russia since ancient times. Well-born ladies, rich merchants, poor peasant women led a strictly pious life and lived in faith. The main feature of Russian righteousness is a special, primordially Russian warehouse, the chastity of Christian marriage as a great Sacrament. The only wife of the only husband is the life ideal of Orthodox Russia. Another feature of ancient Russian righteousness is the special “rank” of widowhood. Russian princesses did not marry a second time, although the Church did not forbid a second marriage. Many widows cut their hair and went to the monastery after the burial of their husband. The Russian wife has always been faithful, quiet, merciful, meekly patient, all-forgiving.

The Holy Church honors many Christian women as saints. We see their images on the icons - the holy martyrs Faith, Hope, Love and their mother Sophia, the holy reverend Mary of Egypt and many, many other holy martyrs and reverends, righteous and blessed, equal to the apostles and confessors.

Every woman on Earth is a myrrh-bearer in life - she brings peace to the world, her family, home, she gives birth to children, she is a support for her husband.

Orthodoxy glorifies a mother woman, a woman of all classes and nationalities. The week (Sunday) of myrrh-bearing women is a holiday for every Orthodox Christian, Orthodox Women's Day.

Recall that the Soviet authorities replaced this holiday with the secular March 8th. Historically, this was a day of reverence for revolutionary women fighting for their power and rights, along with men. In Orthodoxy, a woman has never been put on an equal footing with a man, she is the bone of Adam, she was created by God to serve a man. So it was determined by the Creator. Everything that began to happen about 100 years ago is a substitution and an attempt to cancel the Divine destiny. But everything returns to normal: no matter how successful a woman is in her career, business, if she does not become a wife and mother, it is the same as a tree without fruit, a withered fig tree. Already successful, but deceived by society and the devil, a woman realizes that she is unhappy. Only the realization of a woman as a mother and wife, or in the highest destiny - the bride of Christ (preservation of Christ's virginity) gives her soul peace, tranquility, harmony.

According to pravoslavie.ru

The Church dedicates the third week after Easter to the myrrh-bearing women. We tell you who were the women who remained faithful to their Lord and Teacher to the end, who stood at the Cross of the Savior, who came to anoint His Body with aromas, and who heard from the angel the joyful news of the Resurrection of Christ

Who are the myrrh-bearing women?

The myrrh-bearing women are the followers of Jesus Christ, who were the first to come to the burial cave, where the body of the Savior was laid the day before. The women came in order, according to the Jewish funeral rite, to anoint His body with special fragrant mixtures, which would weaken the process of decomposition for a while.

The myrrh-bearing women are represented by the evangelists in different ways. For example, only Mary Magdalene and “the other Mary” appear in the Gospel of Matthew (Matt. 28:1). In the Gospel of Mark - Mary Magdalene, Mary of Jacob (Mark 15:40) and Salome (Mark 16:1). In the Gospel of Luke - "Mary Magdalene), and John, and Mary, the mother of James, and others with them" (Lk 24.10). The Gospel of John testifies that of the myrrh-bearing women that morning, only Mary Magdalene came to the tomb twice. Thus, the name of Mary Magdalene is mentioned in all four canonical gospels. The evangelists Mark and Luke also include Salome and John in the story of the journey to the tomb.

According to Holy Tradition, when Judas betrayed Christ to the high priests, all His disciples fled. The Apostle Peter followed the Savior to the courtyard of the high priest, where he denied Him three times, being denounced as His disciple. All the Jewish people then shouted to Pilate: “Take it, take it, crucify Him!” (John 19:15). When the Savior was crucified, the whole audience passing by mocked Him, and only His Mother with the disciple John stood at the Cross and the women who followed Him and His disciples. These were Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary, the Mother of Jacob, Salome, and others, who later received the name of myrrh-bearing women.

Witnesses of the Resurrection
The myrrh-bearing women remained faithful to the Savior to the end. At the same time, they did not have any opportunity to change anything and did not have the right to vote - but only silently stood at the Cross, staying with their Teacher until the last minute.

The myrrh-bearing women were the first to know about the Resurrection of Christ and saw Him resurrected.

When the women went to the burial place of the Savior, they argued who could roll off the stone from the burial cave. But before their arrival, an angel descended, after which an earthquake occurred, which rolled off the stone and frightened the guards. The angel testified to the myrrh-bearing women that Christ had risen and would precede them in Galilee. The Gospel of John specifically emphasizes that Mary Magdalene was the first to come to the tomb, after which she returned to the apostles Peter and John and said that “we do not know where they laid Him” (John 20: 2), seeing that there was no body in the tomb.

Mary Magdalene wept and thought that the body of the Savior had been stolen. At this time, Christ appeared to her, whom she at first mistook for a gardener. He told her not to touch Him until He had ascended to the Father, and asked her to inform His disciples of His resurrection. Mary Magdalene, returning to the disciples, meets another Mary - and Christ appears for the second time, again commanding to inform the disciples about His resurrection. The apostles, having heard about the resurrection of the Savior, did not believe in it.

However, there is also a tradition that the first Jesus appeared not to Mary Magdalene, but to His Mother Mary. And in the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus appears to all myrrh-bearing women at once (Matthew 28:9-10).

“On the same day, two of them went to a village, sixty stages from Jerusalem, called Emmaus; and talked among themselves about all these events. And while they were talking and reasoning among themselves, Jesus Himself drew near and went with them. But their eyes were restrained, so that they did not recognize Him. And he said to them, What are you discussing among yourselves as you walk, and why are you sad? One of them, by the name of Cleopas, said to Him in answer: Are you one of those who came to Jerusalem not aware of what has happened in it these days? And he said to them: about what? They said to him: what happened to Jesus the Nazarene, who was a prophet, mighty in deed and word before God and all the people; how the chief priests and our rulers betrayed him to be condemned to death, and crucified him. But we hoped that it was He who should redeem Israel; but with all that, it is already the third day since this happened. But even some of our women amazed us: they were early at the tomb and did not find His body and, having come, they said that they also saw the appearance of angels, who say that He is alive. And some of our people went to the sepulcher and found it just as the women had said, but they did not see Him. Then He said to them, “Oh foolish and slow of heart to believe everything that the prophets foretold!” (Luke 24:13-25).

Mary Magdalene

Mary Magdalene - Saint Equal to the Apostles, venerated Orthodox Church as one of the myrrh-bearing women. In the New Testament, the name of Mary Magdalene is mentioned in only six episodes:

1. When she was healed by Jesus Christ from being possessed by seven demons (Luke 8:2; Mark 16:9);
2. After that, she followed Christ, serving Him (Mark 15:40-41, Luke 8:3);
3. She was present at Golgotha during the death of Christ on the cross (Matt. 27:56);
4. Became a witness to His burial (Matt. 27:61);
5. Became one of the myrrh-bearing women (10), to whom the Angel announced His resurrection (Matt. 28:1, Mark 16:1-8);
6. She was the first to see the resurrected Savior, mistaking Him for a gardener. (John 20:11-18).

The Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Mary Magdalene was born in the town of Magdala (from where, according to a number of opinions, her nickname comes - “Magdalene”, Hebrew “native of the city of Migdal-El”), in Galilee, in the northern part of the Holy Land, on the shores of Lake Gennesaret, nearby from the place where John the Baptist baptized.

Magdala. Located in the Galilee, 3 km north of the city of Tiberias, on the banks of the Kinneret

As for the first part of the life of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Mary Magdalene, it is known that she was subject to an incurable illness, was possessed, according to the Gospel of Luke, by "seven demons" (Luke 8:2). The reasons and circumstances of what happened to her are not specified. It is believed that Mary Magdalene was possessed not because of her sinfulness, but because the Providence of God allowed this so that the Lord Jesus Christ would reveal the work of the Glory of God - the miracle of healing Mary Magdalene, enlightening her mind and drawing her to faith in Christ the Savior and to eternal salvation.

Once Mary Magdalene heard about the Miracle Worker, “who heals every sickness and every infirmity in people” (Matt. 9:35). She begins to look for Him, sees that “He healed many from diseases and ailments, and from evil spirits, and the deaf, and the blind, and the lame, and lepers, and raised the dead” (Luke 7:21,22; Matt. 11 :5 etc.). Mary Magdalene ardently believes in His omnipotence, resorts to His Divine power, asks for healing for herself and receives what she asks: the tormenting power of evil spirits leaves her, she is freed from enslavement to demons and her life is sanctified by the Divine radiance of her Healer.

Byzantine literature tells that after the death of the Savior on the cross, Mary Magdalene went to Ephesus together with the Most Holy Theotokos to St. Apostle John the Theologian and helped him in his labors. Mary Magdalene is believed to have preached the gospel in Rome (Rom. 16:6). She also died in Ephesus.

Who else was among the myrrh-bearing wives?

Saint Salome
Daughter of Joseph, betrothed of the Holy Virgin Mary, born from her first marriage. St. Salome was married to Zebedee and had two sons from this marriage, ap. John the Evangelist and James. Together with other myrrh-bearing women, Salome served Christ when He was in Galilee. The Evangelist Matthew, describing the sufferings of the Lord Jesus on the Cross, says that many women were also there and looked from afar, who followed Jesus from Galilee, serving Him. Among them was the mother of the sons of Zebedee (Matthew 27:55-56). Among other myrrh-bearing women (13), she also came to the tomb of the resurrected Lord and learned from the angels about His Resurrection and the command to inform the disciples that He had risen from the dead and “precedes you in Galilee: there you will see Him” (Mark 16, 7 ).

Saint Joan
Saint Joanna is the wife of Khuza, the steward of Herod. When the head of John the Baptist was cut off, the murderers did not want to put the heads of the Forerunner together with his body, fearing that he would not be resurrected; the disciples buried the body of the Forerunner in Sebastia, and the enemies hid the head in the palace of Herod. Joanna, the wife of Chuza, the steward of Herod, who was a secret follower of Christ, learned about this. She secretly took the honest head and, placing it in a vessel, reverently buried it in the estate of Herod, on the Mount of Olives. The Holy Evangelist Luke in his Gospel, speaking of the passage of Jesus Christ through the cities and villages for preaching and the gospel, notices that some women followed Him, among whom he speaks of John, the wife of Chuza, the steward of Herod, who served Him with their property (Luke 8:1-3). In addition, St. Evangelist Luke says that these women followed Christ from Galilee to Jerusalem, and at the crucifixion of the Lord, they stood afar off and looked at the crucifix, at the tomb, and how the body of the Lord was laid.

Saint Mary of Cleopova
Maria Kleopova is the daughter of Joseph, the betrothed of the Blessed Virgin Mary. She was married to Joseph's younger brother, Cleopas. She was still a virgin when the Blessed Virgin, betrothed to Joseph, entered his house and lived with this daughter of Joseph in tender love, like sisters. Based on this tender love, St. Evangelist John calls Mary Cleopova the sister of the Mother of Jesus (John 19:25). She was honored to be present at the cross of the Savior and to hear the Divine adoption by the Lord of her beloved disciple to the Most Holy Theotokos. We have nothing in church traditions about the later life and death of Maria Kleopova.

Saint Susanna
Only one Evangelist Luke mentions Susanna, and only once: when he tells about the passage of the Lord Jesus Christ through the cities and villages for preaching and the gospel, he also names Susanna from the wives accompanying him (Lk. 8, 3), as serving Christ from her estates.

Holy Mary, mother of James the Lesser and Josiah
Three evangelists mention this wife - Matthew, when listing the wives who stood at the cross, calls her Mary, the mother of James and Josiah. Evangelist Mark mentions her twice: the first time - when listing the wives who looked from afar at the suffering and death of Jesus Christ. He calls her Mary, the mother of James the lesser and Josiah. Another time, when listing the myrrh-bearing women (14) who bought fragrances, he also mentions Maria Iakovleva. Finally, the Evangelist Luke, speaking of those who returned from the tomb of the risen Savior to the disciples for the gospel of the Resurrected women, also mentions Mary, the mother of Jacob (Mt. 27:56; Mk. 15:40, 16:1; Lk. 24:10) .

celebration
The Day of Remembrance of the Myrrh-Bearing Women takes place on the fifteenth day, starting from Pascha (third Sunday). On this church women's holiday, it is customary to congratulate their close women - spouses, mothers, sisters. Myrrh-bearing women are an example of true sacrificial love and selfless service to the Lord. The Church celebrates this day as a holiday for all Christian women, Orthodox Women's Day - every woman on earth is a prototype of one of the myrrh-bearing women: she brings peace to the world, her family, home, gives birth to children, is a support to her husband. A number of Orthodox are in favor of making this particular day an alternative to the secular International Women's Day, celebrated on March 8.

The reality of the resurrection of Christ is revealed to us by the icon of the myrrh-bearing women, with whom we go to the procession on Easter night, we make this procession on other Easter Sundays.

Easter days last, Easter joy lasts, again and again I greet you with an Easter greeting: “Christ is Risen!”

Testimony of the truth

Now in front of us in the middle of the temple is an image called "Myrrh-bearing women at the Holy Sepulcher." It is so important for us because a mystery is revealed here, a reality that could not be seen with the eyes, it was hidden from people. But this truth has become the most profound axiom of the Christian faith.

This is the axiom of the Resurrection of Christ.

When the myrrh-bearing women, we read in the Gospel, came to the Tomb of the Savior to anoint His Body with myrrh, they saw empty coffin and shrouds lying nearby.

For them, this was a terrible surprise, because it was impossible for any human physical strength of the earth to tear the burial shrouds, treated with special resins, which fastened the shrouds tightly.

Here it is precisely this word that is needed - “tightly”: the burial shroud tightly held the body of a deceased person.

In the story of the resurrection of Lazarus, the evangelists also reminded us of this, because for the people of that time, that culture, it was more than for us now, surprise - terrible and joyful.

And so, the myrrh-bearing women saw not only the shrouds and the open tomb, but also a young man sitting next to the Holy Sepulcher. He announced to them the miracle of the Resurrection. He blessed them to go to the disciples and tell them that what the prophets foretold and about which the Savior had repeatedly predicted had happened. About the fact that He must die, accept the same human death as all of us, but not remain in death forever, but resurrect on the third day.

This reality, the absence in the Tomb, the absence in this darkness, in this blackness of the Tomb of the Savior Himself, is already evidence of His Resurrection.

Women's plastic

Speaking about the various icons of the Lenten and Colored Triodion, we touched only on their most basic compositional moments. We have talked very little about the artistic side so far, but perhaps the most important thing is to see not only what is depicted, but also how it is depicted.

Although, according to the words of the Apostle Paul, there is neither male nor female in Christ, nevertheless, we always see myrrh-bearing women depicted with female plasticity on good icons.

The artist conveys their feminine excitement, their trepidation. And not only in female figures such a special attitude of the icon painter to each of the depicted characters is manifested; you see, no hatred for these soldiers guarding the Body of Christ, they just fell asleep.

Often the whole entourage, all the surrounding space, both coloristically and plastically, also corresponds to the main actors. For example, on the icon attributed to the school of Andrei Rublev, we see such a three-part image of the myrrh-bearing women themselves, and the same three-part image of mountains in the background. The unity in the plastic image of female figures and mountains completes the composition.

Light

When we talk about an icon, as such, it is always an icon of Christ Himself. Christ is revealed in the life and in the form of each of the saints. On most icons of the feasts we see the Savior Himself, the God-man Jesus Christ.

And the unique meaning and content of the image of the “Myrrh-Bearing Woman at the Holy Sepulcher” is that we do not see Christ on it in a visible way. But at the same time, we clearly feel His presence. Paradox?

The light of the icon bears witness to Him. The young man sitting on the stone is an angel sent from the Heavenly Father to proclaim to the myrrh-bearing women the truth of the Resurrection. He is dressed in brilliant white clothes.

Here we recall the gospel story about the whiteness of the clothes of Christ Himself on Mount Tabor, when He was transfigured before the disciples. “His garments became shining, very white, like snow, as a bleacher on the ground cannot bleach” (Mark 9:3).

The whiteness of the Angel - the messenger of eternal life - contrasts with the blackness of the empty Tomb, which shows the brightness of the drama of what is happening. This was also visible to the myrrh-bearing women. And now, with the apparent absence of the image of Christ Himself on the icon, this image so brightly and tremulously reveals the truth of the Resurrection, its light, its joy.

This reality, this truth is revealed to us by the icon of the myrrh-bearing women, with whom we go to the procession on Easter night, we make this procession on other Easter Sundays.

Our procession of the cross is the very procession of the myrrh-bearing women, and perhaps not even a procession, but a run, when they joyfully ran to the future apostles to announce to them the joy: “Christ is Risen!”

[Greek μυροφόροι γυναίκες] (commemorated the 3rd Week after Easter), followers of Jesus Christ, who were the first to come to the burial cave, where the body of the Lord was laid the day before, in order to perform, according to Jewish custom, anointing with fragrant oils and mourn Him.

The gospels, in almost the same expressions, tell that during the crucifixion of Christ, many. the women who “followed him from Galilee” (Lk 23:49) were there watching from afar (Mt 27:55-56; Mk 15:40-41; Lk 23:49; Jn 19:24-27). In Jn 19.25, unlike the Synoptic Gospels, it is reported that “His Mother and the sister of His Mother, Mary Cleopova (ἡ τοῦ Κλωπᾶ) and Mary Magdalene” together with St. John the Evangelist stood next to the Cross. During the period of His earthly ministry, many of J.-m. served Him, including “with their possessions” (Luke 8:2-3). After Christ's death, some of them participated in His burial near the place of execution (Mt 27:59-61; Mk 15:46-47; Lk 23:53-55; cf. Jn 19:40-42). After Saturday, when the 1st day of the week began, they were the first to come to the burial cave to anoint the body of the Savior (Mk 16.1), that is, to perform the necessary funeral rite, which consisted of rubbing the deceased with special fragrant mixtures, temporarily weakening the speed and smell of decomposition (McCane . 2000. P. 174-175). Zh.-m. Evangelicals are represented differently. Thus, in the Gospel of Matthew only Mary Magdalene and “the other Mary” are mentioned (Mt 28:1); in the Gospel of Mark - Mary Magdalene, Mary Jacobleva (Μαρία ἡ ᾿Ιακώβου; cf. Mk 15.40) and Salome (Mk 16.1); in the Gospel of Luke - "Mary Magdalene, and Joanna, and Mary the mother of James, and others with them" (Lk 24:10). According to the testimony of the Evangelist John, of the women that morning, only Mary Magdalene came to the tomb twice (Jn 20:1-2, 11-18). Thus, all the Gospels report the presence of Mary Magdalene at the burial cave, and the weather forecasters agree that she came to the tomb along with Mary, the mother of James and Josiah, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee (cf. Mt 27.56 ). The evangelists Mark and Luke also mention Salome and John, respectively, in the story of going to the tomb.

Salome, apart from Mk 16:1, is mentioned in Mk 15:40 (together with Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James and Josiah). Comparing Mk 15.40 and Mt 27.56, we can assume that she is the “mother of the sons of Zebedee,” who, shortly before the Lord entered Jerusalem, asked Him to make her sons (James and John) the first after himself in the Kingdom God's (Mt 20:20-23).

About John, except in Luke 24.10, the Evangelist Luke speaks in Luke 8.3, when he lists by name the disciples of Christ who followed Him in Galilee. There she is called "the wife of Khuza, the steward of Herod" (meaning King Herod Antipas). There is no further mention of her in the NT. Apparently, the evangelist, if he knew the Gospel of Mark, wanted to use the expression “and the rest with them” to harmonize the message of the evangelist Mark with the information he had about those who were then near the tomb (see: Nolland. 1998. P. 1191 ). If this Gospel was not at his disposal, then he probably simply summarized in this phrase all the information he had about women who came to the tomb of the Savior. He honors John by name in the story of visiting the empty tomb, along with 2 women also named by name, trying to emphasize, as J. Nolland suggests, the importance of her serving the Lord and the apostles with her wealth (Ibidem).

The most controversial among interpreters was and still is the question of identifying “Mary, the mother of James the lesser and Josiah” (᾿Ιωσῆτος - Ioset - Mk 15. 40) or Joseph in Greek. text (᾿Ιωσήφ - Mt 27.56). On this account, there are 2 main terms: Mary (named in Mt 27.61 “the other Mary”) Jerome of Stridon identified with Mary Cleopova (John 19. 25), the sister of the Virgin and the wife of Cleopas (Κλεοπᾶς) mentioned in Luke 24. 18 (Hieron. De virgin. 13 // PL. 23. Col. 195c-196b; see also: Zahn, 1900, pp. 320-325). According to another interpretation, which was followed, in particular, by St. John Chrysostom, it is the Mother of God that is mentioned among J.-m. in the Gospel of Matthew under the name "Mary, mother of James and Josiah" (Mt 27.56), as well as "the other Mary" (Mt 27.61; 28.1) (Ioan. Chrysost. In Matth. 88 // PG 58, Col. 777; see also Theoph Bulg, In Matth. 27, PG, 123, Col. 473). Blzh. Theophylact of Bulgaria writes: “By Mary, the mother of Jacob, understand the Mother of God, for She was so called as the imaginary mother of Jacob, the son of Joseph, I mean the brother of God” (Idem. In Luc. 24 // PG. 123. Col. 1112). The fact that the “other Mary” and the Mother of God are one person is said in the synaxar reading during the Holy Week of Pascha. From modern researchers, such an interpretation is defended, for example, by J. Crossan, who suggests that the Evangelist Mark does not call this Mary the Mother of Jesus because, as he believes, she was not a follower of Christ during His earthly life (see: Mk 3 . 21, 31-35; 6. 4), and therefore prefers to distinguish her from the women of the same name by indicating the children (see: Crossan . 1973. P. 105ff.), even if adopted (according to, for example, Epiphanius (Epiph. Adv. haer. 78. 8 // PG. 42. Col. 710-712; see also: Glubokovsky. 1999. P. 94-97).

As for the identification of the "other Mary" with "Mary of Cleopas", here difficulties arise with what the definition of "Cleopas" means: "mother of Cleopas", "sister of Cleopas" or, most likely, "Cleopas's wife". It is unequivocally impossible to solve this due to the scarcity of documentary evidence about this Mary (Witherington. 1992. P. 582). However, the “wife of Cleopas” was already considered by the early Christ. the author is Egesippus (ser. II century; see: Euseb. Hist. eccl. III 32. 4). In addition, it remains debatable whether the expression "His Mother's sister" in John 19.25 refers to the indicated Mary, or whether it refers to another unnamed woman who stood at the Cross of Christ (Bauckham. 2002. P. 204-206) . Eusebius of Caesarea believed that the "other Mary" should be understood as the second Mary from Magdala, which is why she is named so as to distinguish her from Mary called Magdalene (Euseb. Quaest. evang. II 6 // PG. 22. Col. 948) However, this opinion is not widely accepted.

The researchers pointed to a contradiction in the Gospels regarding the rite of anointing: in the Synoptic Gospels, when describing the position of the Savior's body in the tomb, they do not speak of anointing and emphasize the desire of J.-M., having come to the grave, to anoint him; in the Gospel of John, it is told that the body of Christ was anointed by Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus before being placed in the tomb. Various assumptions have been made about the reasons for these discrepancies: for example, the words about the actions of Nicodemus are considered an editorial insertion of the Evangelist John, with the help of which he wanted to emphasize the courageous discipleship of both Nicodemus himself and Joseph (Paulien . 1992, p. 1105). Ep. Cassian (Bezobrazov), however, admits the possibility of a historical resolution of this contradiction: “Joseph and Nicodemus, on the one hand, and women, on the other, acted independently of each other. It is possible that the faithful Galileans did not know the secret disciples" ( Cassian (Bezobrazov). 2006, p. 337).

Mn. interpreters paid and pay attention to the mention by the Evangelist John in the story of the coming to the tomb of only one Mary Magdalene (Jn 20.1). Blzh. Augustine, discussing this feature of the 4th Gospel, says that Mary Magdalene was mentioned because she "flamed with greater love", while others were meant along with her, but he kept silent about them (Aug. De cons. evang. III 24 // PL. 34. Col. 1201). In favor of the consistency of the message of the Gospel of John with the messages of the Synoptic Gospels, Mary's expression "and we do not know" (John 20.2), i.e., thereby hinting at the presence of other women at the tomb along with Mary. However, the discussion about the meaning of this expression does not stop (see: Beasley-Murray. 1999. P. 368 sqq.) Many researchers at the same time try to explain the indicated discrepancy between the Gospels or the intention of the Evangelist John to dramatize the scene of the appearance of the Risen One, or the special position of Mary Magdalene in the original Churches, etc. (see: Witherington . 1992. P. 582).

Giving a general theological description of the story of J.-m. to the grave, biblical scholars indicate in the description of the episode with the myrrh-bearing women in the Gospel of Mark the presence of an element of irony: Jesus is not only the Messiah (cf. Mk 14.3), He has already risen, and therefore it is no longer possible to anoint His body after death. “The irony towards women for not understanding the situation is also present in the description of their anxiety about finding a person who would help them roll away the stone (Mk 16.3), because the stone was “...very large” (Mk 16. 4)" (Osborne . 1992. P. 678-679). “In general, Mark 16. 1-4 focuses on the misunderstanding of the situation by women (who play a significant role in Mark in revealing the theme of discipleship) and leads the reader to the perception of Divine intervention as the only possible solution to this situation” (Ibidem). Evangelist Matthew follows Mark in many ways, but unlike him, he does not emphasize the delusions of women who were about to anoint the body of Jesus with spices, the theme of women’s testimony is more important to him (cf. Mt 27.56, 61) (Osborne . 1992. P. 679). In addition, it is possible that in the Gospel of Matthew with its omission, as in the Gospel of John, funeral anointing refers to the custom of visiting a recently deceased person in order to make sure of his death - “... to look at the tomb” (Mt 27. 61) (Hagner . 1995. P. 869).

The Evangelist Luke, like the Evangelist Matthew, revises the list of names and adds the phrase “and others with them” (Lk 24:10), thereby strengthening the role of women as witnesses to the resurrection of Jesus Christ (Osborne . 1992, p. 682). As for the Gospel of John, “all four episodes of chapter 20 depict a crisis of faith, since the participants (including Mary Magdalene. - P. L.) of the events that preceded and followed the Resurrection do not fully understand everything that happens” (Ibid. P. 682, 684-685). But Christ Himself helps them to come to full comprehension of the Resurrection through the revelation of His divine nature (Schnackenburg. 1982, p. 335). St. John Chrysostom emphasizes in his interpretation of the story of the journey to the Savior's Tomb "the courage of women ... fiery love ... generosity in costs ... determination to death itself" (Ioan. Chrysost. In Matth. 88 // PG. 58. Col. 778), urging Christians to imitate them.

The story of Mary Magdalene, who came to the grave of the Savior with other women, has also been preserved among those who have come down to this day. the time of fragments of the apocryphal Gospel of Peter (12. 50-54; 13. 55-57), compiled in the II century. It, with the exception of minor details, does not contain anything new in comparison with the stories of the canonical Gospels, apparently being an eclectic text (Brown. 1997. P. 835).

On the day of remembrance of St. Zh.-m. at the Regent's School at the MTA traditionally takes place an evening dedicated to J.-m. ( Macarius [Veretennikov], archim. Creative Evenings at the Regency School // AiO. 2008. No. 2(52). pp. 326-327).

Lit.: Zahn Th. Brüder und Vettern Jesu. Lpz., 1900. S. 225-364; Glubokovsky N. N. The blessing of Christ freedom in the message of St. app. Paul to the Galatians. Sofia, 1935. M., 1999. pp. 89-98; Crossan J. D. Mark and the Relatives of Jesus // NTIQ. 1973 Vol. 15. Fasc. 2. P. 81-113; Schnackenburg R. The Gospel According to St. John. L., 1982. Vol. 3: comment. on Chap. 13-21. P. 300-335; Osborne G. Resurrection // Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels / Ed. J. B. Green et al. Downers Grove (Ill.), 1992. P. 673-688; Paulien J. Nicodemus // ABD. 1992 Vol. 4. P. 1105-1106; Witherington B. Mary (2) // Ibid. P. 582; Brown R. E. Death of the Messiah: From Gethsemane to the Grave. L., 1994. Vol. 2: A comment. on the Passion Narratives in the Four Gospels. P. 1012-1030, 1052-1098; idem. An Introduction to the NT. N.Y.; L., 1997; Hagner D. A. Matthew. Dallas (Tex.), 1995. Vol. 2:14-28. P. 865-871. (WBC; 33b); Nolland J. Luke. Dallas, 1998. Vol. 3: 18:35-24:53. P. 1168-1194. (WBC; 35s); Beasley-Murray G. R. John. Nashville (Tenn.), 19992, pp. 364-378, 388-391. (WBC; 36); McCane B. R. Burial Practices, Jewish // Dictionary of New Testament Background / Ed. C. A. Evans, S. E. Porter. Downers Grove; Leicester (UK), 2000. P. 173-175; Bauckham R. Gospel Women: Stud. of the Named Women in the Gospels. Grand Rapids (Mich.); Camb., 2002. P. 203-247, 257-311; Cassian (Bezobrazov), Ep. Lectures on the NT: The Gospel of John. M.; P., 2006. S. 330-343.

P. Yu. Lebedev

hymnography

Glorification of J.-m. in the Orthodox hymnography is closely connected with the glorification of the Resurrection of Christ, since J.-m. were the first to come to the Life-Giving Sepulcher and received the news of the Resurrection. The main day of glorification J.-m. is the 3rd Week (Sunday) after Easter (a deliberate mention of J.-m. is also in the canon of the 5th Week after Easter, O Samaritan: in each song of the canon there are 1 or even 2 troparions dedicated to J.-m. ), but they are also remembered on Great Saturday, and throughout the year - on each of the Sundays (unless the Sunday service is canceled due to the coincidence of Sunday with the twelfth Lord's feast).

In the Sunday aftermath of Octoechos J.-m. are mentioned in at least 1-2 stichera, almost always - in the sedals at matins, sometimes - in the ikos of Sunday kontakia; at the liturgy on the blessed, as a rule, there is also a troparion (as a rule, this is the 5th troparion in a row; sometimes 2 troparions), in which Zh. rare.

Orthodox hymnographers in chants in honor of J.-m. describe the feat of Zh. -th song of the Resurrection canon of the 5th tone), etc. It is emphasized that they were the first heralds of the Resurrection: (Ikos of the Sunday kontakion of the 1st tone), sometimes the unusualness of this situation is vividly represented - J.-m. proclaim the Resurrection to those who have been chosen to preach the gospel: (1st sedalion according to the 1st verse of the Sunday service of the 6th tone). Woe J.-m. is contrasted with the joy of the Resurrection that replaced it: . The phrase: (1st east in praise of the Sunday service of the 2nd tone) refers to a kind of poetic exaggeration, as well as the attribution to J.-m. primordial knowledge of the Resurrection: (3rd east on the praises of the Sunday service of the 4th tone). The boldness of wives and the fear of the ap himself are compared. Peter: (1st sedan according to the 2nd verse of the Sunday service of the 5th tone). Some hymns tell of the appearance of Christ to Mary Magdalene (2nd sedalen according to the 1st verse of the Sunday service, 6th tone, etc.). In a special way, the theme of J.-m. presented in the gospel stichera and Sunday exapostilaria, retelling the corresponding gospel conceptions.

A. A. Lukashevich

Iconography

The gospel story about the appearance of an angel to women at the Holy Sepulcher, representing the first evidence of the Resurrection of the Lord, formed the basis of the early iconography of the Resurrection of Christ. Evangelists name a different number of participants in this event, while not mentioning among J.-m. Mother of God; however, the holy fathers (eg, St. Gregory Palamas - Greg. Pal. Hom. 18) recognized Her presence, which influenced the iconography. The number of angels also differs in the stories. The apostles Matthew (Mt 28.2-3) and Mark (Mk 16.5) mention one, the apostles Luke (Lk 24.4) and John (Jn 20.11-12) - about 2 angels in "shining" and " white" clothes; the number of guards at the Coffin is not specified.

The earliest known image of J.-m. at the Holy Sepulcher is in the baptistery at Dura Europos (232/3 or between 232 and 256). It combines the narrative beginning, early Christ. symbolism and conventionality: J.-m. are depicted walking from left to right to the closed Tomb, they are holding vessels with oil and burning torches; above the Coffin - 2 stars, symbolizing angels. On the fresco of the vestibule of the burial complex in the Karmus quarter in Alexandria (2nd half of the 5th century), an image of a wingless angel sitting in front of the coffin appeared - this scheme is later. received the name “The Appearance of an Angel to the Myrrh-Bearing Women”, with variations in details, was kept for 2 centuries.

On the relief of a silver sarcophagus (4th century) from San Nazzaro Maggiore in Milan, 3 Zh.-m. in front of the Sepulcher in the form of a building, above which there is a half-figure of a descending angel. On the avoria (c. 400, Bavarian National Museum, Munich) the tomb is depicted as a 2-tiered stone building, guards leaning on it; on the left, an angel sits at the half-open door; on the right, J.-M. approaches, over which the “Ascension of the Lord” is represented: the young Christ rises through the clouds, grasping the hand of God.

In the VI century. the scene at the Holy Sepulcher was still perceived as an iconographic solution to the theme of the Resurrection, while it was included in the Passion cycle, for example, in the mosaic in c. Sant'Apollinare Nuovo in Ravenna (before 526). Like all the gospel compositions of this ensemble, “The Appearance of an Angel to the Myrrh-Bearing Women” is depicted in abbreviated form: in the center is the Holy Sepulcher in the form of a domed rotunda (monopter) with a raised sarcophagus slab inside, a winged angel sits on the left, 2 wives stand on the right; they have nothing in their hands. The Gospel of Ravvula (Laurent. Plut. I 56. Fol. 13, 586) presents a 2-part sheet miniature with the compositions “The appearance of an angel to the myrrh-bearing women” in the lower part and “Crucifixion” in the upper part: in the center among the trees, on one level with their tops, a small tomb with a half-open door framed by a 2-column portico is depicted; the guards in front of the entrance fell to their knees, one recoils from the light coming from behind the door. To the left of the tomb, a winged angel sits on a stone block, announcing the Resurrection of Jesus Christ to 2 wives, who also stand on the left. In one of them, depicted with a halo, the Mother of God is recognized. Her similar image is presented in the scene "Crucifixion" and repeated again to the right of the tomb in "The Appearance of Jesus Christ to Mary after the Resurrection." This plot is in the Middle Ages. the period became an independent iconography: the Lord goes to the right, blessing 2 wives who fell at his feet.

The “Appearance of an Angel to the Myrrh-Bearing Women” is presented differently on the miniature stamp of the cover of the reliquary from the chapel of Sankta Sanctorum (Byzantium, Palestine, c. 600, Vatican Museums), where 5 Gospel scenes from the Nativity of Christ to the Ascension are depicted in 3 tiers. In the center of the composition is a large round domed building - the rotunda of the Resurrection, built by the imp. Constantine I, in the open gates of which the throne is visible under cover. The figures in the composition are arranged symmetrically: to the right of the gate - an angel, to the left - 2 wives, shown in rapid movement, one of them is the Mother of God. The scene with the Crucifixion and the wives at the Kuvuklia is repeated on ampoules from the Cathedral in Monza (end of the 6th-7th centuries; see: Pokrovsky, p. 407. Fig. 144).

In the post-iconoclastic period (since the 9th century), the iconography of the Resurrection of Christ as the Descent of the Lord into hell was formed in the illustrations of the Psalter. In the Khludov Psalter (HIM. Greek. No. 129d. L. 44, 78v., Ser. IX c.) Zh.-m. near the Sepulcher are depicted standing or sitting near the cylindrical structure of the tomb, but without an angel. In the X-XI centuries. this scene is adjacent to the composition “The Appearance of Christ to the Myrrh-Bearing Women” (ivory plate, 10th century, GE; frescoes of St. Sophia of Kiev, 40s of the 11th century). A variant of iconography with a symmetrical composition has become widespread: the blessing Christ is depicted frontally, standing between 2 trees, on both sides J.-m. In Byzantium. tradition, the composition is called “Herete” (χαίρετε - rejoice) after the salutatory word of the risen Christ addressed to J.-m. (Gospel of Trebizond - RNB. Greek. No. 21 + 21 A, 2nd half of the 10th century).

In the Middle Ages period in the Passion cycle, it also often coexists with the composition "The Appearance of an Angel to the Myrrh-Bearing Women". Iconography of the last scene in Byzantium. art acquired stable features. The Rotunda of the Resurrection, as well as other architectural forms of the tomb, and the stone sarcophagus gave way to the image of the Holy Sepulcher in the form of a vertical cave, in which there are tomb linens. A typical example of such iconography, repeated many times in metropolitan and provincial art of the 11th-12th centuries, is a silver plate from a reliquary stored in the Louvre (see: Byzance: L "art Byzantine dans les collections publiques françaises. P., 1992. P 333-335). Presumably, the plate comes from the Pharos church of the Grand Palace in the C-field. In 1241, it was brought to Paris by Cor. Louis the Saint and invested in the treasury of Sainte-Chapelle. The scene is shown against the backdrop of a mountain. An angel is sitting on the right with a vertically raised wing, leaning with his left hand on a rod.With his right hand, the angel points to a vertical cave with shrouds located to his left.The shrouds consist of 2 parts. The wives stand in a compact group to the left of the angel. The one depicted closer to the center, recoiling from the coffin, touches the shoulder of the wife standing on the left. Similar iconography on the Pala d'Oro enamel (XI century, San Marco Cathedral in Venice ), on the miniature sir. Gospels of the 12th century (Lond. Brit. Mus. Add. 7169. Fol. 12), on a fresco of the Spassky Cathedral of the Mirozhsky Monastery (40s of the XII century).

In the XIII-XIV centuries. there are various modifications of the iconography developed in the previous period. They often revive early Byzants. shapes of individual objects. On the fresco of the monastery church in Mileshev (before 1228, Serbia) J.-m. depicted to the right of the angel, whose large figure dominates the composition. The angel, sitting on a large marble cubic block in shining white robes, is depicted frontally and looks straight ahead. IN right hand he has a rod, with his left hand he points to an empty tomb in the form of a vertical rectangular building with pitched roof and a barred archway, inside which is a rolled shroud. To the right of the stone are small figures of 2 women, pressed against each other. In the hands of one is a small kacea censer. Sleeping guards are depicted below. On the icon of the XIV century. (Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore) are presented in one composition "Descent into Hell" and "The Appearance of an Angel to the Myrrh-Bearing Women"; women are depicted twice: sitting in front of the tomb and standing in front of an angel, who, sitting on a slab, points them to a cave with linens.

Dr. a variant of the iconography "The appearance of an angel to the myrrh-bearing women" is presented on an icon from the iconostasis of the Trinity Cathedral of the TSL (1425). The scene takes place against the backdrop of a mountainous landscape. An angel with wings raised vertically is depicted sitting on a round stone next to a diagonally located sarcophagus with shrouds, the upper part of which is in a cave. To the left of the sarcophagus, looking into it, are 3 J.-m. Their figures are given in a complex turn to the angel. This iconographic main feature which is the image of a rectangular sarcophagus, became especially popular in Russian. art. A similar iconography of the plot on the Novgorod tablet icon (end of the 15th century, NGOMZ), only the sarcophagus is located at a different angle. On the icon from the iconostasis of the Assumption Cathedral of the Kirillov Belozersky Monastery (1497), an angel sits at the head of the sarcophagus, there is no cave, J.-m. stand to the left, to the right of the sarcophagus there are figures of sleeping young men - the guards of the Sepulcher. On the icons of the XVI century. 3 warriors in armor are represented sleeping (icon of the 2nd half of the 16th century, KGOKhM), guards are depicted in larger numbers (for example, an icon of the Stroganov school of the late 16th - early 17th centuries, Russian Museum). On icons. XV - beginning. 16th century number Zh.-m. increased to 7, and not only at the Tomb, but also in the scene of the appearance of the risen Christ, which was often combined with the plot “The appearance of an angel to the myrrh-bearing women” (one of the earliest examples is an icon from the Gostinopol Monastery, 1457, State Tretyakov Gallery) . This iconographic variant received wide use in the 16th century The feature that determined the tradition of Rus. art, was the image of 2 angels sitting on round stones at the head and at the foot of the sarcophagus (icons of the 15th and early 16th centuries, Russian Museum). These iconographic types persisted throughout the 17th-18th centuries.

Lit.: LCI. bd. 2. sp. 54-62; Pokrovsky N.V. The Gospel in Iconographic Monuments. M., 2001. S. 482-494.

N. V. Kvlividze

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