John the Theologian: what to pray to the Apostle of Love for. How does Orthodox prayer help St. John the Theologian?

John Zebedee and his younger brother James were disciples of Christ. They were called by Jesus as young men on Lake Gennesaret, where they had left their father's house. According to legend, the parents of John and Jacob were called Zebedee and Salome, and the family lived by fishing. Together with the Apostle Peter, the brothers were the disciples closest to Jesus; it was they who were present in the Garden of Tabor during the Transfiguration of the Lord. There are icons in which John the Theologian is depicted young and beardless, with long hair. According to legend, Jesus called the brothers “sons of thunder” for their ardent love for the Christian faith.

Life of the Apostle John

The face of the Apostle John the Theologian can be found very often on icons. He not only saw Christ during his lifetime and was his disciple, but was also present at the arrest of Jesus and observed his torture and execution. Together with the Mother of God, he mourned the Lord at the foot of the Cross, and then did not leave the Mother of God until her Dormition. Only after this, John, together with his disciple Prochorus, left Jerusalem and headed to Ephesus to carry God's will and convert to the Christian faith. On the way to Ephesus, the ship carrying John and his disciple crashed, everyone survived, but the saint disappeared. Two weeks later, Prokhor found his teacher alive on the shore; God did not abandon his faithful student.

There were many miracles in the life of the Apostle John. The twelve apostles were not spared the persecution of Christians at the beginning of our era. It is known that John was sentenced, his death awaited him in a cup of poison. But having drunk from the vessel at the appointed time, John remained alive. Then it was decided to execute him by dousing him with boiling oil, but this did not cause any harm. After suffering, he was exiled to the island of Patmos in captivity. John lived on this island for a very long time, continuing to carry faith in the Lord, thereby incurring the wrath of the local pagans. Over the years spent on the island, the saint healed the sick many times and even resurrected the recently deceased.

The most common name of the apostle is John the Theologian. He received it for his labors: the fourth Gospel was written by the hand of John, and he also wrote the Revelation of John the Theologian. A separate story covers the period of writing these books. They were written on a mountain on the island of Patmos in a small cave where John went to pray. One day, after the third day of prayers, without food and only with his disciple. During the prayer, thunder erupted and the mountain shook, and then John heard the voice of God. Then he ordered his student to write down every word; it is believed that through John the voice of the Most High dictated to Prokhor. This is how the Revelation of John the Theologian was written, which is called the Apocalypse.

John lived longer than all the rest of the twelve apostles; he was the only one who died a natural death, and not from torture. At the time of his death, John the Theologian was about a hundred years old, which is a great achievement for our time. The apostle died in Ephesus, where he was allowed to return after a long imprisonment. Every year on May 21st the day of remembrance of St. John the Evangelist is celebrated, and at his grave thin layer miraculous, healing ashes appear.

The image of John the Evangelist in iconography

Many icons are painted with the face of the saint; their subjects cover his entire life. The most common icon is of John the Theologian with a book - the Gospel. He is depicted with a pen and inkwell, working on writing a sacred legend. The Apostle John has his own sign - an eagle, which can often be found in images of the saint. The image of a saint with a book is sometimes complemented by an angel above the apostle’s shoulder, which shows us the Divine will guiding John.

One of the most famous icons of the saint is the icon of John the Theologian in silence. This type of iconography originates in the middle of the 16th century. On the icon, together with the saint, an angel and an eagle with an inkwell are depicted; together they show the entire path of the apostle. John always holds two fingers to his lips as a sign of silence.

How does the icon of John the Evangelist help?

They turn to the icon of St. John the Theologian in search of family happiness, it helps to stop all quarrels and conflicts.

Women at the icon of John the Evangelist ask for maternal happiness

Prayer before the icon of John will help fishermen and all others who are looking for salvation from accidents on the water. Prayer to the icon of the Apostle John will also help with health problems. Of course, the meaning of the icon is that people turn to the saint in search of help in journalism and writing. The apostle will protect from evil spirits and ward off bad thoughts.

Prayer to the icon

O great and all-praised apostle and evangelist John the Theologian, confidant of Christ, our warm intercessor and quick helper in sorrows! Pray to the Lord God to grant us forgiveness of all our sins, even if we have sinned from our youth throughout our life in deed, word, thought and all our feelings; at the end of our souls, help us, sinners (names), to get rid of airy ordeals and eternal torment, and through your merciful intercession we glorify the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

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An icon is, first of all, a holy image, before which we stand in prayer, a visibly expressed experience of the life of saints. This is also a work of art that conveys to us the idea of ​​our ancestors about beauty. But besides everything else, the icon is also important historical source, telling about forgotten traditions. What, for example, does the earring in the ear of the Christ Child mean? We remember the unusual details of the icons on the eve of tomorrow's commemoration of the first icon painter - the Apostle and Evangelist Luke.

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The miraculous icons of John the Baptist are the most revered saints. He was the son of the clergyman Zechariah and the Christian Elizabeth. They lived near Hebron, not far from Jerusalem. The blood of Jesus Christ flowed in his blood. Saint John grew up in a vacant lot in wild conditions. He observed, wore formal clothes, tied with a belt, and ate honey. He lived like this until the Lord gave him instructions to preach to the people. Submitting to the will of God, the Most Holy John the Baptist prepared the people for the coming of Christ. According to the prayer word, the righteous John represented the morning star.

Miraculous icon of John the Theologian.

The Holy Apostle John the Theologian occupies a unique position among the disciples of Christ the Savior. Prayer to the icon of St. John helps in finding missing things and drives away thieves. In Rus', if a peasant ran away from his owner, his relatives prayed at the ancient icon of John so that the runaway slave would not be found. They also ask for help from offenders or if someone is in captivity or imprisonment. In Rus' he was considered a benefactor of the military in armed actions for the homeland.

Saint Joan icon.

Extraordinary worship Orthodox icon John influenced the formation of the iconography of the saint. The very first Christian icons with the image of St. John appeared in early Christian craft, the icon of the Baptism of the Lord. John is depicted with long dark hair and a beard, with a staff decorated with a cross in his left hand. IN Byzantine art the icon of St. John was enriched with the symbolism of the saint and his veneration.

Strong icon of John the Baptist.

He was called the Forerunner because he arrived with a sermon before the Savior, and the Baptist because he baptized Jesus Christ in the Jordan. A rare icon of St. John is kept in Kiev-Pechersk Lavra. Here John the Baptist is depicted half sideways, aged, with a hat on his head. In one hand he holds a cross - a sign of worship, the other is raised upward in honor of greeting his interlocutor.

The text of the prayer in front of the icon of John for headaches

Holy Forerunner and Baptist of Christ John! This preacher of repentance, do not despise us who repent, but pray to the Lord Christ for us, unworthy slaves, sad, weak, fallen into many sins. We fear death, but we are not sick of our sins and we do not care about the Kingdom of Heaven: but do not despise us, the Baptist of Christ, honorable Forerunner, born in pain of all, mentor of fasters and hermits, teacher of purity and neighbor of Christ. We pray to you, we resort to you: do not reject us who ask for your intercession, renew our souls with repentance, which is the second baptism: by your intercession before the Lord, ask for the cleansing of our sins. Unworthy lips cry out to you, and a humble soul prays, a contrite heart sighs from the depths: stretch out your most pure right hand and protect us from enemies visible and invisible. Hey, Lord Jesus Christ! Through the prayers of St. John Thy Baptist, and even more so of Thy Most Pure Mother, our Lady Theotokos, save us, Thy sinful servants who repent of our sins. For You are the God of the repentant, and in You, the Savior, we place our hope, glorifying the Most Holy Your name, with Your Beginning Father, and with Your Most Holy and Good and Life-Giving Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages.

Among the twelve apostles, Saint John the Theologian enjoys special honor and respect. Prayer in front of the icon of this saint can give you God's blessing and completely change your life.

Life path of the Apostle John

Saint John is primarily known for his writings, which are included in the text of the New Testament. John's life was closely connected with all the deeds of Christ: the saint witnessed many miracles, and throughout his journey he recorded all the events and conversations with his Teacher.

John is the only one of the 12 apostles who died a natural death. The death sentence did not spare the saint, but the Lord preserved the life and health of John, allowing him to live long life in a feat of prayer. At the beginning of the persecution of Christians in Rome, John was one of the first to be condemned to death.

However, neither the cup of poison nor the hot oil brought harm to the apostle, and the miracle that occurred during the execution converted him to the Christian faith. great amount Romans The board sent John to the island of Patmos: there the apostle continued to preach Christianity and converted many people to the faith during his long life.

Where is the icon of St. John

One of the oldest images of the saint is in the Church of St. John the Evangelist in Moscow. Copies of it can be found in almost any church: the Apostle John is highly valued by Orthodox Christians as the compiler of the Gospel and the patron saint of all students.

Perhaps the most famous image of the Apostle John is the Last Supper icon. On it the youngest apostle is depicted leaning into the hand of the Savior. This image proves that of all the disciples John was the most beloved. In addition, it was this saint who Christ commanded to take care of the Mother of God, which shows the Savior’s special trust in young John.

On icons dedicated exclusively to the Apostle John, the saint is most often depicted as a very young man. This image indicates the invaluable knowledge belonging to the apostle: John is depicted writing down the Word of God.

Less often you can find icons of the saint, in which John is depicted at the end of his life: a gray-bearded old man receives the blessing of the Lord and points people to a scroll with a prophecy about the Apocalypse.

What do people pray for to the icon of John the Evangelist?

The Holy Apostle John set an example of true faith and love for the Lord throughout his life. They pray to the icon of John the Theologian:

• about success in school and career;
• about healing poisoning;
• about patronage and protection during incidents on the water;
• on strengthening family relations And true love;
• about exposing sects and returning to the path of true faith.

Prayers to Saint John

“In order to save human souls, you taught people in every way to believe in Christ the Son of God, to have a clear conscience and to love one another, not only here, but also in the villages of the righteous, to sing gracefully to Almighty God: Alleluia.”

This prayer to Saint John can help you understand the life of the apostle and receive God’s blessing.

“Saint John, who announced the end and a new beginning, who brought love to the Lord and converted many to faith, we pray to you for mercy: holy apostle, enlighten us with the Word of God and give us your holy insight, so that we can distinguish the light of truth and love for the Lord from false deception the devil. Amen".

This prayer can protect you from many life mistakes and help you make the right decision in a difficult situation.

“John, fisherman and prophet, who saw the true light and brought the Word of God to the dark people, so that they would be enlightened and believe in their Savior! I pray you, do not leave me, God’s servant, in the darkness of sin and the pain from this darkness. Deliver me from sinful captivity, heal my illnesses and turn the poison to the benefit of my stomach. Amen".

This prayer is read during illness, accident or poisoning. It is believed that the Apostle John, having himself escaped action deadly poison, is able to protect any person who sincerely prayed to him.

The icon of St. John the Theologian, among others, is venerated on the day of the Council of the Twelve Apostles on July 12, according to the new style. On this day, any prayers have special power and can give comfort and peace to everyone. Orthodox person. We wish you joy and strong faith in God. Be happy and don't forget to press the buttons and

14.05.2017 05:24

Prayer is sometimes the only thing that can save us in difficult moments of our lives. Every...

Monastery in honor of St. Apostle and Evangelist John the Theologian is located on the right bank of the Oka River, in the village of Poshupovo, Rybnovsky district, Ryazan region, 25 kilometers from the city of Ryazan.

Monastic tradition dates the establishment of the monastery to the end of the 12th or beginning of XIII centuries. It is believed that it was founded by Greek missionary monks who came to these lands at the invitation of the Grand Duke of Ryazan to enlighten the local pagans with the light of the Christian faith. They brought the miraculous icon of the Apostle John the Theologian as a gift to the Grand Duke from the Patriarch of Constantinople. This icon itself, according to legend, placed in the Slavic Prologue on September 26, was miraculously painted in Byzantium by an orphan boy in | VI century A.D. This is what this legend tells:

In a small town near Constantinople there lived a boy named Hussar, who usually hired himself out to herd geese. On the gates of this city was placed the image of the holy apostle and evangelist John the Theologian. Every time the boy drove the geese out of the gate, he sat down on the sandy place that was there, and, looking at the image of the apostle, tried to depict it with his finger in the sand, praying: “Lord, let me learn to write this image, my soul desires it!” » Nothing worked for the Hussar, he smoothed over what he had drawn and started all over again. This went on for three whole years.

One day, John the Theologian appeared to the boy in the form of a gray-haired old man - the same as he was depicted on the icon - and asked: “What are you writing, Hussar?” The boy answered: “Look at the city gates. Do you see the image of John the Theologian? It’s my third year and I’m learning to write.”

“Do you want to learn how to paint icons?” - John the Theologian asked again. “Yes,” answered the Hussar, “I really wish this.” Then the apostle wrote a note: “I, John the Theologian, reclining on the honest breast of the Lord and drinking His Secret Cup, sent this boy Hussar to you, Hinar. Teach him to paint icons better than you can yourself.”

Having sealed the note with a ring, the apostle gave it to the Hussar, saying: “Go to Constantinople, there is a royal icon painter named Hinar, who paints in the golden royal chambers and always goes to matins in the Church of St. Sophia. Having waited for him, give him this letter. Say - John the Theologian gave it to me - and follow him.” After these words, the apostle became invisible.

Arriving in Constantinople, the boy saw the royal icon painter and gave him a note. The hussar told him everything that had happened to him. Envy gripped the artist’s heart - as if this child would not surpass him in icon writing.

At this time, a certain courtier built a stone temple and ordered a local image of John the Evangelist for it from Khinari. The master, instructing Hussar to grind the paints for the icon, went to the customer, staying there by God’s Providence until lunch. And again John the Theologian appeared to the boy and asked: “What are you doing, Hussar?” He answered him: “I’m rubbing paint for my master to paint the icon of John the Theologian.” And John said to him: “Get up and write.” The hussar, trembling, answered: “I never took a brush in my hands, nor did I study.” John said, “Look at me and write.” The boy took a brush in his hand, and the apostle began to move this hand and brush along the board.

When the image was painted, the apostle became invisible, and the entire workshop was illuminated by the icon, as if from the sun. The master, returning, was surprised at what happened. The icon was taken to the Tsar, who soon made Hussar a court icon painter.

When Hussar grew up, he back side icons wrote a list from that miraculous image Holy Mother of God, written by the apostle and evangelist Luke, who after his appearance in Rus' on the Tikhvinka River in 1383 received the name Tikhvinsky. This icon, on one side of which was depicted the Mother of God with the Eternal Child, and on the other - the beloved disciple of the Lord and the betrothed son of the Most Holy Theotokos, the Apostle of Love John the Theologian, became after six centuries the main shrine of the St. John the Theologian Monastery.

Time passed. The monastery grew. The year 1237, a terrible year for Rus', came. On December 16, the hordes of Khan Batu, having previously defeated the combined forces of the Ryazan princes in a bloody battle, besieged old Ryazan. The enemies burned the city and killed its inhabitants. A hundred thousand Tatar-Mongol army moved to Kolomna. On the way of Batu stood the St. John the Theologian Monastery. The apostle and evangelist John the Theologian himself stood up in defense of the holy place chosen by the Mother of God and by him. Monastic legend tells that Khan Batu and his soldiers were horrified by the formidable appearance of John the Theologian. Batu abandoned the idea of ​​ruining the monastery. He and several associates came to the monastery and attached his golden seal to the miraculous icon, which subsequently remained on it for 416 years. In 1653, under Archbishop Misail of Ryazan, when the miraculous image was temporarily in the old Assumption Cathedral of the Ryazan Kremlin, the seal was removed for the gilding of the large water-blessed chalice.

In the 16th - first half of the 17th centuries, the monastery repeatedly suffered devastation from outside Crimean Tatars. Tradition says that after one of these devastations there was an attempt to move the monastery to a safer place - to the village of Vysokoye, Mikhailovsky district. However, the holy Apostle John the Theologian was not pleased to remain there. The miraculous icon of the apostle disappeared from the temple and was found again in Poshupovo, but not in the old place, but somewhat to the north, in the monastery forest on a huge oak tree, where the cathedral in the name of the Apostle and Evangelist John the Theologian now stands. The abbot and the brethren returned to their original place, but this oak remained a constantly green tree until the construction of the cathedral. And not far from this place, through the prayers of the holy Apostle John the Theologian, a holy healing spring opened. When clearing the site for the temple, the oak tree was cut down, and a board made from it was placed on top of the main altar. Subsequently, this board was moved to the new Assumption Cathedral of the monastery.

Before the revolution, two monastery churches - St. John the Theologian (which housed the main shrine of the monastery - the image of St. John the Theologian in a golden robe) and the Assumption - stood on Mount Prosche, in the depths of which caves dug in the 17th century and the corridors connecting them were preserved.

ABOUT miraculous image a pre-revolutionary reference book says: “An icon painted a thousand years ago, moved from place to place and never renewed, retains the original freshness of its colors. There is something living in the face of the apostle. “This image became famous for many miracles. So, after prayer before the icon of St. John the Theologian stopped cholera in surrounding towns and villages in 1848 and 1892, and in 1865 stopped a fire in Poshchupov. And how numerous are the healings of pilgrims!

Young Sergei Yesenin often visited the monastery. It is believed that his lines: “And a resounding ringing calls them from the great bell tower, like the sound of cast iron” - were written specifically about the huge bell tower of the St. John the Theologian Monastery.

Now fate the greatest shrine Russian Orthodox Church I, miraculous icon Saint Apostle John the Theologian, unknown. She disappeared during the destruction of the monastery during the revolutionary years. It is assumed that the icon was hidden by the monks from the atheists so that they would not desecrate it.

They say how in 1931 local girls, seeing that the icon in the Assumption Cathedral of the monastery was not in place, and in its place there was a copy of it (from the 16th century, which is now in the Ryazan State Museum-Reserve), asked the brethren of the monastery: “ Where did you put the icon? You tell us, because you won’t be able to return anyway, and other monks will take your place. We’ll tell them and they’ll take it.” To which the eldest of the brethren, Archimandrite Zosima, replied: “Tell those monks: just as the holy Apostle John the Theologian appeared to us, so he will appear to those monks.” These mysterious words came to us from local residents, some of whom actually lived to see the new brethren come to the monastery.

Now in the monastery there is a copy of the miraculous icon, which has also become famous for its miracles of healing from physical and mental illnesses. Here the earth merges with the sky, and earthly existence with the heavenly. Everyone who has ever visited the St. John the Theologian Monastery is drawn with an irresistible force to re-enter the holy gates of the monastery of the Apostle of Love, the beloved disciple of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to plunge into the grace of a very real heavenly monastery.