Orthodox Parables and Stories: "A Story of St. Philaret of Moscow"

In the very first year of his administration of the Moscow diocese, Saint Philaret visited a rural parish. Entering the temple, he began, as it were, deliberately to look for a reason to comment. Pointing to dust in the church, he asked the abbot, but not in Russian, but in Church Slavonic:

"Prophesy, father, why have you got dust here?"

Struck by this question, the priest fell on his knees and said in fear:

"Forgive me, Vladyka!"

Then the Metropolitan looked at the culprit with a penetrating gaze and asked:

"Do you understand?"

“Understood, Vladyka,” answered the priest. "I understood everything, forgive generously ..."

"And if you understand," said the saint quietly "then God will forgive."

The bottom line was that this priest once studied with the future Metropolitan at the seminary. Once some fellow practitioners trapped the seminarian Vasily Drozdov (secular name of St. Philaret) in the hallway and beat him for always telling the truth. Moreover, one of the seminarians, changing his voice, mockingly asked his victim in Slavic:

"Prophesy, Vasily, who is hitting thee?"

This seminarian was the rector of the temple being reviewed. With his question the Metropolitan reminded him of a long history, but he also forgave him sincerely, for in the future he encouraged his ministry with appropriate awards.