The story of an Athos monk who recovered....

The story of an Athos monk who recovered from the coronavirus

Recently, the world is gripped by a lot of unrest stemming from the coronavirus pandemic and associated vaccinations, from military preparations and much more. These topics are hotly debated on the Orthodox Internet. But at all times, a person on his life path is faced with the same problems. And especially when he dies and the soul is separated from the body.

A priest I know talked to an Athos monk who had been in an induced coma on a ventilator for two weeks. Recently, literally 2 days ago, he was disconnected from the apparatus and transferred from intensive care. And then he told my friend about what happened to him during his illness, when he was on mechanical ventilation. His appearance, as the priest said, has changed a lot. He was already a different person, it is clear that he experienced and felt a lot. The first thing he said: “Every man is dust, one cannot think of anything about himself, a man is nothing before God. And you have to understand that you are nothing ”. Second: “You can't blame anyone. Nobody at all. And it's even bad to talk about someone. Everyone knows this, but very few people can do it. "

But for some reason he got this experience during a serious illness. During his illness, he was conscious all the time. And all the time he saw demons around him, who mocked him, and the monk could not oppose anything to them. All the time, evil spirits listed his sins, even confessed ones, but still they remembered them. Then they simply began to slander, ascribe to him actions that he did not and could not do. And he was not able to object to something, there was a feeling that he was tied up and could not move anything, neither an arm nor a leg, could not even open his mouth. It was in such a state of complete humiliation that he spent all this time.

"But, could you pray?" asked my friend

"No. Even "Lord, have mercy!"" I couldn't say. Never once could I say: "Lord, have mercy."

And this is consistent with the teaching of the holy fathers, who say that a person must, before death, before the separation of soul and body, acquire the unceasing Jesus prayer, heartfelt. Then the soul, leaving the body, will pray. This skill is fixed for her, it is a natural state for her, and she will pray, even if she is separated from the body. As St. John Cassian said: “And only whose mind, having detached itself from the bonds of all passions, will be deeply pacified, and whose heart with all striving clings to God as the supreme good, can perfectly fulfill the apostolic commandment: pray ceaselessly” (“On Prayer”). If a person before death did not have time to acquire this heartfelt prayer, then he will endure what this monk endured. He had an initial stage, demons were not allowed to do anything with him, only slander him, mock him.

Conclusion: we must have time to acquire this very heartfelt prayer before death. And sorrows are sent to us, obviously, so that we begin to pray. If a person is doing well, he cannot pray. He usually prays formally. And when everything is bad for him or almost everything, then there is no other way then to turn with all his soul to God, and he begins to cry to Him and this cry should be our main work until death.

Deacon Pyotr Pakhomov, publicist