Vasily Serebrennikov Biography

At the beginning of the First World War, the wife of Nikolai Nikolaevich, Maria Alekseevna, with a young son moved to her relatives in Odessa. Soon after the revolution, the Serebrennikovs settled in Moscow in the area of ​​the old Arbat. During the years of study, Vasily often visited Moscow temples and monasteries. After the arrest of the ascetic, he spiritually furred with his father Pavel Troitsky.

In the year, Vasily graduated from ten classes of high school in Moscow and entered the Moscow State University at the medical faculty, which he graduated from the year, after which he became the attending physician. In subsequent years, he worked in various medical institutions, married Margarita Vasilyevna Ananskaya, in the city, according to the Providence of God, he was destined to become a priest.

From the memoirs of Archpriest Vasily Serebrennikov: “At that time I did not know how to continue to live. It was then that one of my acquaintances from the memoirs of Archpriest Vasily Serebrennikov: “I was embraced by internally excitement-the feeling that it was not easy to finally come up for the third time. Here I could not stand it and reluctantly blessed its theological institute and pastoral courses, revived in the year, in the premises of the Novodevichy Monastery then for a year and two months I prepared for exams when I passed the exams and received a certificate about it, for me there was no place for the priest’s place for a long time, a place in the temple of the Holy Martyr, a deacon of Sergius K.

And I was born in the year, and I was baptized - it was in the temple of John the Warrior. The honorary abbot was baptized by Father Alexander Voznesensky many years later, when I came home to Father Vasily, I see a huge portrait of some priest. I asked: what a father? And it was Father Alexander Voznesensky. It turns out that Father Vasily began with him, studied with him. Father Alexander was a clearance, a real old man.

Father Vasily adopted a lot from him. Father Vasily immediately felt.

He knew what was needed for whom, and cared about all our needs when Father Vasily spoke a sermon, then his voice was quiet and weak. But he said so that everything was clear to everyone, his words right in his heart laid down like a healing balm. When they asked questions, he did not answer immediately - at first he would pray, and the Lord opened him. He did everything with prayer, the prayer book was great.

And the Lord, in prayer, gave him the requested, because he had a pure and strong faith. Father Vasily and Chad were such that in the years they went to the temple and carried faith through all the trials. Those people who recently came to God, Father Vasily strengthened, and from what he was telling them, his spiritual children have already come true now, that there is no one to turn to Vasily's father with us now, but prayer remained in consolation.

And all the people who pray for him receive consolation and help from the Optina elders that in the last times they would have to escape from books, maybe this time is already coming? I would like to hope that in any case the Lord will not leave us. ” From the memoirs of the nun Glykeria: “In his spiritual instructions, the priest paid the main attention to prayer and sober.

He said that it was useful at the end of the day to analyze the mind and heart, whether they were a prayer with the God of Jesus. He taught to ask for the help of God in prayer during the day. He reminded of a deep cardiac self -replication, which leads to humility: one must consider itself the worst of all, to avoid vanity and gluttony, to assume the beginning of a good one not with the mind, but by the heart.

Signs of true humility, according to the teachings of the Monk John Climacus, is when all self -defense is accepted as healing. When we do not be angry at anyone and for nothing, when we do not believe our virtues and we wish them to learn Father Vasily physically very weak he was ate very little and everything was in a grated form. Delicious and sweet food did not eat at all.

Eating was accompanied by physical pain. But the sufferer did not show the look, in many ways he endured everything. The father himself dressed very modestly. But people generously helped - both secretly and obviously the elder urged to work for the acquisition of God's mercy in all the circumstances of life, which is quite possible, if we ask God with a pure heart about it.

He reproached us in getting used to prayers, called it read out. He reminded of heart prayer, especially in the gratitude rule. He taught not to rush in any serious matter. From the instructions of the priest, I remembered: not to go into the shortcomings of the neighbor, to be able to listen to the confessor under all circumstances, try not to correct anyone, not to read moral thoughts that “holy” or that “you will not be saved” - from demons, they can put up in thoughts to heaven and overthrow into the abyss.

From God, the mortal memory every time in prayer overcome the reluctance to “work”, “domestically”, to force himself to prayer until the soul feels a heart response advised to tolerate mournful, unpleasant, so that the Lord would not take his mercy and good location, for example, in the great post, Father Vasily became my spiritual mentor, they met constantly.I remember that Father Sergius often came to the temple of the Apostle Philip on Arbat Father Vasily at Father Sergius confessed.

These were two of our real elders - ours, Moscow, with Father Vasily, I met in the year when I was appointed to serve in the Church of the Sunday of the Word, that in Filippovsky Lane, where he was the abbot when the father was alive, I constantly felt his prayers and care, any issues could be solved with him, he knew how to love with him. He knew how to intercede for the one who had troubles, he was able to help out a man, to save when his father Vasily came to the temple, he had no anger, no insult, never had irritation.

For all the time of joint service, I never saw in him temper, resentment, anger distinguished mercy, compassion, and his love was infinite, it was always attentive to people. Sometimes he spoke directly, opened his eye to man. He did not immediately answer some questions, asked to wait, but he prayed. Sometimes he said more than once: "I will pray, I will still pray." Indeed, he will pray and only after that will answer that a person needs.

Or professes, there are many people to him, and he will look at the very end of the crowd: “Come on. Martha, come here. I told you what, why didn’t you do that? That's why you suffer, that's why it fell ill. ”The Lord revealed him. And this happened before my eyes. Not what I heard from someone. But the most amazing was how the priest served the Divine Liturgy!

So fully, I felt the worship only with Archimandrite John the peasant in the Pskov-Pechersky Monastery and with Father Sergius Orlov. Here are three priests who really had a real prayer. I will give an example. In the temple of the Resurrection of the Word, I was the only deacon and was very tired, because I had to go to the early and late liturgy literally falling down, weakness, my head is spinning and now Father Vasily is committed to the late divine liturgy - they sang the cherubic, the Eucharistic canon begins, and suddenly, as a hand, it will take off your hand!

The Father Vasily only begins to read Eucharistic prayers - such a state arises that the soul breaks up with the body! You don’t feel the bodies anymore, but it seems that you are in heaven that after the Eucharistic Canon Father Vasily could suddenly turn around and say: “Vasya, the Lord now discovered that you didn’t repent of it, such and such sins.” And Father Vasily calls them, he knew how to love everyone, he was a deep expert on human souls.