OUR VENERABLE FATHER ARETHA

(24 OCTOBER/6 NOVEMBER)

It is righteous to always thank God for both favours and misfortunes. Not only righteous (like Job the Prophet) benefit from such thanksgiving, but it also sanctifies great sinners. The latter can be exemplified by the life of our holy father Aretha, whose story was related by the blessed Bishop Simon, an eyewitness.

There was a monk named Aretha at the Cave Monastery, a native of the town of Polotsk. Being a monk he kept a considerable treasure in his cell. He was so obsessed by miserliness that he never gave a single small coin to a beggar and never spent anything for his needs either. Once, at night, thieves stole all his possessions from the cell. The monk fell into such grief that he almost killed himself. He suspected innocent people; many of them suffered unjustly from him. The brethren begged him to cease the accusation saying, ‘Brother! Upon the Lord thy care and he will sustain you (Ps. 54, 23).’

He listened to no one and molested people with cruel words. In a few days, he fell seriously ill and was near to death, but he did not cease his grumbling and blasphemy. However, the man-loving Lord Who wishes salvation for all people, showed His mercy to Aretha. While the ill monk was lying almost dead on his bed, after a long silence, he suddenly began to cry out loudly,

‘Oh Lord, have mercy! Oh Lord, save! Oh Lord, I have sinned! It is Yours and I do not regret that it has been stolen!’

Then, arising from his bed, he told the brethren of his vision.

‘I saw,’ he said, ‘angels and a regiment of demons approaching me and I heard them arguing about my stolen wealth. The demons said that I did not praise God but blasphemed Him, therefore, ‘You are ours, Aretha, and you must be given over to us.’ The angels said to me, ‘Oh accursed man! If you had thanked God for the theft of your possessions, that would have been imputed to you as alms, as it was with Job. For, if anyone gives alms voluntarily, then it is a great deed before God. If anyone is deprived of wealth against his will, then it is a temptation from the devil, who arranges the stealth wishing to lead a man into blasphemy. A grateful person would leave everything to God and the loss would be imputed him as alms.

After these words of the angels, I cried out what you have heard, ‘Oh Lord, have mercy! Oh Lord, forgive! Oh Lord, I have sinned! It is Yours and I do not regret that it has been stolen.’

The demons vanished immediately. The angels rejoiced, accounted my stolen silver to me as alms and left.’

Brothers glorified God Who instructs sinners into the way of repentance. From that time forth, St Aretha, taught by God, changed both his mind and temper to the good. Everyone was amazed by such a virtuous transformation recalling the words of the holy Apostle, Where sin abounded, grace did much more abound (Rm. 5, 20).

Previously no one could restrain Aretha from blasphemy, but now he began to glorify and thank God as Job had done, the Lord gives and the Lord takes away. Blessed is the name of the Lord (Job. 1, 21)!

Thus, Aretha repented of his other sins, caring sincerely for the poor, maturing in obedience, cleansing his inner self, Struggling in prayer, fasting, and in many other virtues, thanksgiving, in particular. Thus, he became rich not in silver and gold, but in the virtues of God Himself; after many such toils he reposed in Him. His honourable relics were placed in a cave where they remain uncorrupted, showing the way of repentance to all who come to them.

By prayers of this saint, may we be made worthy of God’s mercy and His thanksgiving in the heavenly kingdom in the eternal ages. Amen!