06 December 2024
Today, we honour the memory of the Holy Right-Believing Prince Alexander of Novgorod, Kyiv, and Vladimir, who has been called Nevsky, — a man whose name has become a symbol of unwavering faith and courage.
Prince Alexander was a man of rare talents. He was able to lead people, defend the interests of his land on a battlefield and at a negotiations table, and help the needy. But his main virtue was his sincere and strong faith, which inspired him in all his works.
Turning points of history affect not only the fates of contemporaries but also the perception of the past. The architects of a “brave new world” are crushing established traditions and tearing apart and changing the folk memory with diabolical energy. They are renaming cities and streets, pulling down monuments, and rewriting textbooks, thus trying to construct their alternative reality out of separate fragments.
In present days, it is hard to find even two persons with a single and unambiguous opinion about the events we are witnessing. Let alone the past, which is concealed from us behind the mist of centuries!
These ideological distortions have affected the image of the Holy Prince Alexander Nevsky as well. But what do the Church and her Holy Tradition say about him? For what does she honour this great man?
The Lord prepared Prince Alexander to his great mission from early years. His soul desired reading sacred books, prayer, and fasting more than amusements. The wisdom of a ruler and the meekness of a Christian were manifested in him as early as then. After becoming the leader of his people, he instructed the milieu of the prince to be just and merciful: “We have received power over people of God from Him, and we will have to give account for using this power on the day of the Last Judgement. When punishing the guilty, do not be cruel, and proportion mercy to the punishment. Do not do anything under the influence of wrath, anger, or envy. Do not forget the needy, help everyone, do mercy, so as to earn the mercy of God for yourselves too.”
When Rus' found herself caught between two enemies — the eastern Horde and western Crusaders — Prince Alexander put his trust in the Lord and the Most Holy Theotokos. He told his few warriors: “God is not in strength, but in truth.” This faith inspired the prince's army for victories over the Swedes and the Teutons.
In struggling against the Horde, Saint Alexander chose a different path. Unable to resist by force, he resorted to diplomacy in order to save the people and protect the devastated land from even greater sufferings. The prince achieved the permission to open Orthodox churches in the Horde. He was also redeeming captives and alleviating the yoke of the conquerors.
He gave all his strength and health to his struggle for the faith and Motherland, and he died even younger than at 45 years old. A hundred and twenty years later, the relics of the Right-Believing Prince Alexander were found incorruptible, and the Church canonised him for his life full of godliness, mercy, and care for the strengthening of the Christian faith.
Today, the example of the Holy Prince Alexander Nevsky reminds us that only faith, unity, love for one's people, and hope for the will of God can help to overcome any trials, even the hardest ones. Through the prayers of the Holy Prince Alexander, may the Lord strengthen us, give peace to our land, save our people, and bless us for work for the sake of a future revival!
All related news Prince Alexander was a man of rare talents. He was able to lead people, defend the interests of his land on a battlefield and at a negotiations table, and help the needy. But his main virtue was his sincere and strong faith, which inspired him in all his works.
Turning points of history affect not only the fates of contemporaries but also the perception of the past. The architects of a “brave new world” are crushing established traditions and tearing apart and changing the folk memory with diabolical energy. They are renaming cities and streets, pulling down monuments, and rewriting textbooks, thus trying to construct their alternative reality out of separate fragments.
In present days, it is hard to find even two persons with a single and unambiguous opinion about the events we are witnessing. Let alone the past, which is concealed from us behind the mist of centuries!
These ideological distortions have affected the image of the Holy Prince Alexander Nevsky as well. But what do the Church and her Holy Tradition say about him? For what does she honour this great man?
The Lord prepared Prince Alexander to his great mission from early years. His soul desired reading sacred books, prayer, and fasting more than amusements. The wisdom of a ruler and the meekness of a Christian were manifested in him as early as then. After becoming the leader of his people, he instructed the milieu of the prince to be just and merciful: “We have received power over people of God from Him, and we will have to give account for using this power on the day of the Last Judgement. When punishing the guilty, do not be cruel, and proportion mercy to the punishment. Do not do anything under the influence of wrath, anger, or envy. Do not forget the needy, help everyone, do mercy, so as to earn the mercy of God for yourselves too.”
When Rus' found herself caught between two enemies — the eastern Horde and western Crusaders — Prince Alexander put his trust in the Lord and the Most Holy Theotokos. He told his few warriors: “God is not in strength, but in truth.” This faith inspired the prince's army for victories over the Swedes and the Teutons.
In struggling against the Horde, Saint Alexander chose a different path. Unable to resist by force, he resorted to diplomacy in order to save the people and protect the devastated land from even greater sufferings. The prince achieved the permission to open Orthodox churches in the Horde. He was also redeeming captives and alleviating the yoke of the conquerors.
He gave all his strength and health to his struggle for the faith and Motherland, and he died even younger than at 45 years old. A hundred and twenty years later, the relics of the Right-Believing Prince Alexander were found incorruptible, and the Church canonised him for his life full of godliness, mercy, and care for the strengthening of the Christian faith.
Today, the example of the Holy Prince Alexander Nevsky reminds us that only faith, unity, love for one's people, and hope for the will of God can help to overcome any trials, even the hardest ones. Through the prayers of the Holy Prince Alexander, may the Lord strengthen us, give peace to our land, save our people, and bless us for work for the sake of a future revival!