Saint Seraphim of Sarov was born in 1759, in city of Kursk.
His parents were pious Orthodox Christians, examples of
true spirituality. At the age of ten, Seraphim was
miraculously healed from a serious illness by means of the
Kursk icon of the Theotokos. As a boy, he immersed himself
in church services and church literature. He began monastic
life at the hermitage of Sarov at the age of nineteen. He was
tonsured as a monk when he was twenty-seven, and soon
afterwards was ordained a deacon. The intensity and purity
of Seraphim's participation in the Divine services are
evident as he was allowed to see angels, and during the
liturgy on Holy Thursday, he saw the Lord Himself.
At thirty-four, Seraphim was ordained as a priest, and was
assigned as the spiritual guide of the Diveyevo convent. At
this time, he also received a blessing to begin life as a
hermit in the forest surrounding Sarov. He lived in a small
cabin, devoting himself entirely to prayer, fasting, and the
reading of the Scriptures and the Holy Fathers. Seraphim
would go to the monastery on Sundays to receive Holy
Communion; and then return to the forest.
In 1804, Seraphim was attacked by robbers and almost
beaten to death. Permanent injuries sustained from this
attack caused him to always be bent over and the need of a
staff to walk. After this event, the Saint began more fervent
prayers, incessant for a thousand days and a thousand
nights; spending the better part of his time kneeling on a
stone near his cell crying out, "Lord, be merciful to me, a
sinner." He then spent three years in absolute silent
seclusion. Obeying the request of the elders of the
monastery, Seraphim returned to the monastery in 1810,
but continued to live in prayer, and silent seclusion for
another ten years. In obedience to a heavenly vision,
Seraphim ended his silence and began to speak for the
benefit of others. The Saint greeted all who came to him
with a prostration, a kiss, and the words of the Pascha
greeting: "Christ is Risen!" He called everyone, "my joy." In
1825, he returned to his forest cell, where he received
thousands of pilgrims from across Russia. Granted the gift of
clairvoyance, the wonder-working Saint Seraphim of Sarov
gave consolation and guidance to all. Saint Seraphim died
on January 2, 1833, while kneeling before an icon of the
Theotokos. An example of the grace of the Holy Spirit at
work within the life and words of Saint Seraphim has been
preserved for us. In November of 1831, a pious Orthodox
Christian named Nicholas Motovilov met with Saint
Seraphim, and recorded his conversation. The notes by
Motovilov were transcribed and published by Sergius Nilus,
who wrote the following introduction:
This revelation is undoubtedly of worldwide significance.
True, there is nothing essentially new in it, for the full
revelation was given to the Apostles from the very day of
Pentecost. But now that people have forgotten the
fundamental truths of Christian life and are immersed in the
darkness of materialism or the exterior and routine
performance of "ascetic labors," St. Seraphim's revelation is
truly extraordinary, as indeed he himself regarded it.
"It is not given to you alone to understand this," said St.
Seraphim towards the end of the revelation, "but through
you it is for the whole world!" Like a flash of lightning this
wonderful conversation illumined the whole world which was
already immersed in spiritual lethargy and death less than a
century before the struggle against Christianity in Russia
and at a time when Christian faith was at a low ebb in the
West. Here God's Saint appears before us in no way inferior
to the prophets through whom the Holy Spirit Himself spoke.
We record everything word for word without any
interpretations of our own.
