I. year of birth of Jesus

NOTE No. 2.
The place of origin of the future Tsar of Russia, according to the prediction of Nostradamus in ASIA, is presumably either the region in the center of Azerbaijan, or Western Georgia, which is located closest to the Black Sea of ​​all countries in Transcaucasia (Asia). It is possible that he was born in one of these places and lived in another before arriving in Europe (Russia) from there.
The place of origin of the future Tsar of Russia has been revealed based on my solution to the prophecies of Nostradamus. The exact coordinates and evidence are given in my publication “Unraveling the prophecies of Nostradamus about the place of origin of the coming Tsar of Russia”! link:

I also provide a copy of this work:

NOTE No. 3

The activities of the coming king are closely connected with trade, and since the most combat unit in trade are wholesale purchasing and sales managers, then most likely the coming king will be a wholesale or purchasing manager. This fact follows from the prophecy of Nostradamus: “The one who has been expected for a long time will never return. He will appear in Asia, and then will be in Europe. Coming from the great Hermes, He will become higher than all the kings of the East.” To clarify, Hermes is the Greek god of trade.
I FORESEE THE QUESTIONS: “WHY DOES RUSSIA HAVE A TSAR MANAGER”? I ANSWER: Most likely this is due to the fact that 500 years ago Nostradamus foresaw that the main blow to Russia would not be military, but economic and commercial in nature. In any case, information about this was included in his prediction. That is, the coming tsar would not, like Putin, wait for a military strike and would not spend all the money on the army, but would strengthen the Russian economy and would never break off trade relations with Europe. And of course, he would not throw money left and right to different countries in order to make friends and would not support a competitor for oil supplies in the person of Iran by working to lift sanctions from them. In addition, the tsar-manager would not have waited 3 years for the moment when the free oil sold to ISIS would bring down oil prices, creating a threat to the Russian budget and when almost the entire territory of Syria would be captured, and three years ago he would have started that military operation , which Russia began at the end of 2015. So everything is not accidental!

NOTE No. 4
In 2013, the future Tsar of Russia should turn 55 years old and it was this year that he was supposed to come to power according to Nemchin’s prophecy. In addition, Nemchin also writes that the coming king will be a sage and esotericist, possessing secret knowledge and new technologies, he will be mortally ill, but will completely heal himself - “The Great Potter.” He will promulgate the concept of the New State. And Putin tried to replace such a person. It is not surprising that over the past three years Russia has collapsed both economically and politically. Import substitution can hardly be called new technologies or secret knowledge. True, in support of Putin, we can say that any ruler except the future tsar suffered exactly the same fiasco due to the enormous problems that beset Russia , which an ordinary person cannot resolve.

Quote: Signs of the coming king according to the prophecies of Nemchin.

True, 2013 has passed, and there is still no tsar at the head of Russia. Perhaps Putin has confused all of God’s cards. In any case, the more modern prophecy of Jonah of Odessa (Ignatenko) postpones the Tsar’s rise to power in Russia to a later date, namely to the period after 2016.

P.S. 02.10.17 Thoughts in light of events in Catalonia!
Unfortunately, these prophecies did not come true due to the endless love of Russians for Putin and we are talking about his 4th term, although Vasily Nemchin predicted the coming of the Tsar in 2013, and Jonah of Odessa in 2016. God usually does not violate the free will of people, but the arrival of the predicted king to the throne miraculously violates the free will of people. Well, shouldn’t God destroy all those who support Putin so that God’s plan can be realized without violating the will of the people? And the predicted tsar does not want (unlike Putin) to harm his people.
Abel allowed for this option and predicted that such a development of events would lead to a new grief for Russia, which we all have the honor of observing for several years now. Poverty, vile food generated by import substitution, insane political laws, widespread theft by officials from the vertical of power and political isolation of the country.
So, it seems that demonic power in the foreseeable future will not give way to God’s chosen tsar for the revival of Russia. It seemed that since all of Russia loved Putin so much, then perhaps at least the most educated, technically developed and cultural part of Russia would still accept God’s plan and put the predicted tsar at the head of at least part of the territory of Russia? But... Dreaming, of course, is not harmful, however, although the State of St. Petersburg sounds proud and it would be a way out of the impasse and a tsar could be put at the head of this state, this way out is closed by the article in the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation on separatism. So, like on a submarine, we will all either die together, or we will be saved together by choosing a new and sane ruler of Russia, and it would be better if it was the Tsar predicted by Abel, who will finally destroy the demonic power in Russia.

After the passions described above, those who wish can relax by listening to my remix!
USHER - CRASH (Nikolai Korolev-remix)

On one of the hot and stuffy days of the 4th year of the new era, which had just begun, the territory of the Herodion fortress, located 15 km from Jerusalem, was filled with thousands of people. Everyone's gaze was directed towards the golden bed raised above the ground, on which rested the dead body of the one who ruled Judea for almost forty years, causing horror mixed with admiration in his subjects. This was King Herod the Great, whose name has become in our days a kind of phraseological unit meaning a cruel and ruthless person.

Ancestors of the future king

By birth, Herod the Great did not belong to any royal family. His father, whose name was Antipater, was only a high-ranking official who served as the Roman governor of Idumea, a small territory in the southern Israelite highlands. Once upon a time, it was inhabited by the pagan tribes of the Idumeans (the name of the area came from them), to which the grandfather of the future king Herod, the father of Antipater, belonged.

At the end of the 1st century BC. e. Idumea was conquered by the Jews, and, having expressed loyalty to the victors, and most importantly, accepting their faith - Judaism, the prudent grandfather was appointed to rule over all his compatriots. From him, power with all the due privileges was inherited by his son Antipater, the father of the future king Herod.

Prudent Antipater

It should be noted that this same Antipater inherited from his ancestor not only power, but also a heightened political sense, coupled with complete unscrupulousness. Just as he at one time easily renounced the religion of his ancestors and, having accepted the faith of the Jews, entered into cooperation with them, so he was not slow to express support for the Romans, who captured in 63 BC. era Jerusalem. Having thus earned favor from the Roman commander Pompey, he was made governor of all Judea.

In 49-45 Doctor of Science era, Rome was engulfed in a civil war that broke out between two contenders for the then vacant imperial throne - the prominent military leader Pompey and his rival Julius Caesar. As a high-ranking official, Antipater was obliged to publicly express support for one of them. It was a choice on which the entire subsequent career, and possibly life, depended. Having guessed with his inner instinct the future winner - Julius Caesar, he supported him, thus betraying his former benefactor Pompey.

Having come to power, the new emperor generously thanked all his supporters, including Antipater. From now on, he acquired the title of procurator of Judea, behind whom the invincible Roman legions stood in powerful ranks. He shared his power with only one person - the then king Hyrcon II, who simultaneously performed the duties of the high priest.

Tetrarch of Galilee

In 73 B.C. era, Antipater had a son - the future king Herod the Great. When he was 25 years old, his father easily obtained from the king the position of tetrarch (governor) of Galilee, the northern and very large province of Judea. Already at the very beginning of his career, the young official distinguished himself by brutally suppressing the uprising of local residents, raised by them under the leadership of their leader Hezekiah.

The inhabitants of Galilee tried to put an end to the Roman rule they hated, but Herod the Great (as his descendants began to call him) always remembered from whose hands he received power and gold. By the defeat and subsequent execution of the “Galilean rebels,” the tetrarch rose even more in the eyes of his Roman masters, but at the same time earned the hatred of the Jews.

The key moment that changed the course of Herod’s entire future life was what happened in 40 BC. e. the invasion of Galilee by the Parthians - inhabitants of the Parthian kingdom, an ancient state located southeast of the Caspian Sea. Unable to resist them, the tetrarch fled first to Jerusalem and then to Idumea. Having thus found himself in safety, he nevertheless did not calm down, but decided to take advantage of the current situation and benefit even from the invasion of foreigners.

Before the Roman Senate

For this purpose, the fugitive tetrarch went to Rome. Since his path ran through Egypt, he did not miss the opportunity to get an audience with Queen Cleopatra, which was later very useful to him. Having finally arrived in the capital of the greatest empire in the world at that time, Herod the Great first of all enlisted the support of the consul Mark Antony. He gained favor with him by conveying a tender message from the Egyptian queen, with whom he was on close terms.

Further, having such an influential ally on his side, Herod was able to easily convince the Senate that the blame for the occupation of Galilee lay entirely with King Hyrcanus II, who, through his passivity and inaction, allowed the enemy to win such an easy victory. He sees the only way out of this situation as the removal of the negligent ruler and his appointment to the vacant position.

The senators reacted favorably to his arguments, but, according to their decision, before he began to reign, he had to (with their support, of course) liberate Judea from the invaders. They did not give him troops at that moment, but they generously provided him with money, with which, having arrived in Ptolemais (the present-day Israeli city of Acre), Herod the Great assembled an army consisting of mercenaries, as well as Jewish refugees from the occupied territories.

The long-awaited accession

Having liberated most of the country with their help, he finally approached the walls of Jerusalem, which was impossible to take with the forces at his disposal. Herod was rescued by the Roman senators, who vigilantly followed the course of events from afar. At a critical moment, they sent 11 legions of the regular army to help him under the command of the experienced military leader Sosius.

Arriving at the place, they besieged Jerusalem according to all the rules of military art, and soon forced its defenders to surrender. Among other trophies, in the hands of the winners was the then-ruling protege of the invaders, King Antigonus, and 45 of his active supporters.

This is how Herod the Great came to reign in Judea, becoming one of the most famous historical figures of the ancient world. His name is mentioned repeatedly both in the Jewish Holy Scriptures and on the pages of the Gospel. Ancient historians Josephus, Appian and many others report about it.

Their writings also often include the wife of Herod the Great, Mariamne, who was the granddaughter of the former king and high priest Hyrcanus II, who was displaced as a result of her husband’s intrigues. He married her in order to gain greater legitimacy in the eyes of the Jews who inhabited the country.

The cruel ruler of Judea

It should be noted that the reign of Herod the Great was by no means cloudless. He always had to maneuver between two polar forces. On the one hand, he had to show unquestioning submission to Rome, since at that time Judea was essentially his distant province, and on the other, he had to keep the local population, the vast majority of whom hated foreigners, in unquestioning obedience.

As a result, King Herod the Great, submissive and servile to his Roman masters, was cruel and merciless with his own people. He began his reign with mass executions of the defenders of Jerusalem. By his order, even King Antigonus, who belonged to the ancient and highly respected Hasmonean family among Jews, was put to death. Despite many petitions in his defense, Herod was adamant, and the deposed king climbed to the scaffold along with his entourage. He strengthened his authority in subsequent years with equally inhumane measures.

It is known that the ruler of Judea attached great importance to the external attributes of his power. One of them was the palace of Herod the Great, Herodion, erected 15 kilometers from the former border of Jerusalem. Now on the site of the artificial mountain that was its foundation, there is a national park, and in those ancient times the gigantic structure amazed the eyes of visitors with marble columns, a luxurious amphitheater and many different buildings. It was designed in such a way that in case of war it could be used as a fortification structure. For this, in addition to high walls, various tunnels and secret passages were provided.

The vicissitudes of fate

Soon after Herod's accession to the throne, Judea faced a whole series of difficult trials. It began with an earthquake that occurred in 31 BC. era, which destroyed many Jerusalem buildings and claimed the lives of 30 thousand inhabitants of the country. Before the Jews had time to survive this misfortune, a new one knocked on their doors.

That same year, Judea was invaded from the south by numerous Arab tribes. Their unexpected invasion was a consequence of the weakening of Rome, caused by the civil war that was blazing in it and the defeat that Herod's main patron, Mark Antony, suffered in a naval battle with Octavian Augustus. The Arabs took advantage of this and, foreseeing the possibility of unpunished robberies, invaded the borders of a state previously inaccessible to them. Only the extraordinary determination and leadership talent of King Herod helped save the country.

Having made incredible efforts and expelled the uninvited guests, he directed all his energy to take advantage of the political changes that had taken place in Rome with the greatest benefit. Immediately after the defeat of his recent patron Mark Antony, Herod broke all relations with him and began sending ambassadors to Octavian Augustus. His efforts were not in vain: having soon taken the imperial throne, the new patron provided Herod with the same strong position as his predecessor.

The King is the builder of Jerusalem

Herod the Great, whose biography is filled with many deeds that left a mark in the memory of descendants, went down in history as an outstanding builder. The impetus for the beginning of this activity was given by the earthquake mentioned above. To eliminate its consequences and raise the once prosperous country from the ruins, the most energetic measures were required.

Despite the fact that the recent war with the Arabs had pretty much emptied the treasury, Herod found the means to attract many foreign architects to the capital, where the main work took place. As a result, the architecture of the newly erected buildings largely acquired Roman and Greek features.

The main construction project of his entire life was the reconstruction of the Second Temple of Jerusalem, which had become very dilapidated over many centuries. By completing this ambitious project, the king hoped to raise his authority among the Jews, who regarded the temple as the cradle of their religion and the nation as a whole. In addition, ambitious by nature, he was haunted by the glory of King Solomon, who built the First Temple, and to remain in the memory of his descendants as a successor to his work was the secret dream that Herod the Great cherished within himself.

Massacre of the innocents

King Herod owes much of his fame today to an episode described in detail in the Gospel of Matthew. We are talking about how Herod heard from the wise men hurrying to Bethlehem about the birth of Jesus Christ, the new king of Israel. Taking their words literally and fearing that he had a competitor, he set out to destroy the newborn.

However, not knowing exactly who they were talking about and where to look for him, he gave an order unprecedented in its cruelty. Herod ordered the killing of all male babies in Bethlehem up to the age of two, believing that among them would certainly be the one he feared so much. Evangelist Matthew is silent about the number of victims, but Holy Tradition speaks of 14 thousand killed.

This atrocity overshadowed in the memory of descendants all the good that Herod the Great did in his life. The babies, innocently destroyed by him, forever created the king’s reputation as the evil genius of the Jewish people, making him a symbol of tyranny and inhumanity.

The end of the life of the great king

In the last years of his life, Herod was an example of pathological cruelty, vindictiveness and suspicion, which sometimes went beyond common sense. So, one day, on the basis of only empty speculation, the sons of Herod the Great - Alexander and Aristobulus - were executed. In those days, his magnificent palace was plunged into an atmosphere of general fear, in which none of its inhabitants knew whether he would live to see the next day.

The death of Herod the Great, which followed in the 4th year of the new era, was the result of a serious illness that tormented him in his last months. Wanting to leave behind a good memory, shortly before his death he ordered the payment of salaries to all his soldiers and those who performed various duties in the public service.

He also took care of a successor, appointing Archelaus, one of his sons, who miraculously escaped his father’s wrath and therefore survived. Herod appointed his brother Antipas tetrarch of Galilee - the very region where he himself once began to reign.

The funeral of the deceased king was arranged with extraordinary pomp. Archelaus covered his father's body with precious purple and placed it on the golden bed, which was mentioned at the very beginning of the story. Around him, with their heads bowed, stood a guard of honor, consisting of several hundred Thracian, German and Gallic warriors, who had recently faithfully served their master. According to his last will, Herod the Great was buried on the grounds of his own palace-fortress of Herodion, where his tomb was discovered in 2007 by Israeli archaeologists.

On the afternoon of 06/09/2015, I had a dream, or more precisely, it was the knowledge of the future King, Anointed of God. I myself am not prone to any mystification or exalted feelings, and even if parishioners tell me any miracles, I try to look at them critically, with a rational explanation. In the next few days I did not talk to anyone about these topics or think about them.

It’s hard to even call it a vision or a dream, since the feeling and state was such that I was transported into the future and was a participant in these events. Events have their own sequential course, but it was as if I was simultaneously in different periods of time, well, this can be explained as if everything was happening at the same time. This can be figuratively compared as an icon with a life, which in its plot has an image of different events and they overlap, but all this is in one space.

I participated in them, so that I myself see everything through the eyes of the Tsar, or, as it were, from behind, but at the same time I even experience or feel His emotions and feelings and thoughts. This is the first time in my life that I feel this way. At the same time, I had a clear conscious mind and free feelings and actions; this is clearly not a dream in which you are subject to events without consciously participating in them. When I asked myself any question about what was happening, an understanding and explanation of all this seemed to come to me; I will write this in square brackets in the narrative [...] as the description progresses, but at the same time I had a clear mind and I could within myself and comment and reflect on what is happening, in the descriptions I will write this in parentheses (...).

Either these are real events or symbolic, or both, judge for yourself. (The events took place on the territory of Novorossiya, perhaps it was Lugansk - these are my assumptions (!), but for some reason this vision had just such a feeling).

The people gathered in a rather large living room (they did not immediately go there, but entered one by one) of some administrative building, where these events took place. There were several exits from this living room (most likely 3), where the Tsar later entered. This is a simple man who doesn’t particularly stand out, but a bright patriot of Holy Rus', [he himself didn’t know that he was the chosen one until the last minute] like everyone else, they didn’t know who the king was (everyone had their own assumptions), but everyone was sacredly ready for this (meet the King). There were different people who came here, not many of them [they felt a call in their souls that they needed to come here, a number of circumstances would develop for them, so they would undoubtedly come] they were not jointly coordinated and did not know each other, except those who were in small groups (2-3 hours) we got here. There was a philosopher (academician), a historian, a rich oligarch, representatives of the press - 5 hours, military men, a doctor, priests, His future servants.

He was present there, waiting for the King, but an invisible man (perhaps an angel) took His hand and said, “Let’s go.” Listen. Be strong." [This was not told to him right away, so that due to his weakness there would be no delays, until the moment of grace descending on the reign, the devil sought to kill this man, and many times he had deaths, but the devil did not fully know that it was him, and the chosen one himself did not know about it]. They led us into this room (somewhat reminiscent of a home church), there was an altar (throne) in one part of it, on which there was a tabernacle in the typical form of a temple, a cross, gospels, a lit lamp and, most importantly, an oil pan with myrrh (as for anointings during services), a bottle of oil, and a vessel (metal jug) with holy water. The throne was covered with green satin with ornaments (typically church like chasuble). There were 2 priests beating there, but not in the robe. They took him and brought him to the throne (most likely the chosen one was a priest himself, since he was wearing long clothes like a cassock and had a beard - these are my guesses). Two priests [they did not know each other before, but are united in spirit] both have small black beards. Each of them (like everyone who got here) took the necessary accessory for this mission [such a course of events that everyone took a separate thing, and not one person all at once, is connected with the conciliarity of the people and so that the devil would not interfere and guessed about this before it happened], they took myrrh and oil for anointing. They poured this on the throne (on some kind of matter) and began to mix this liquid. The chosen one, in front of the throne, seeing this, even wanted to taste what it was and why (the realization had not yet come to him). Then another clergyman approached (it was a bishop, an old man with a long gray beard and hair, in liturgical vestments), gathered him into a tree and raised him to the heights with prayer. The ruler poured this ointment on His head: “God has chosen you, be faithful to Him in your Service,” a clear light (ray) from heaven illuminated the Chosen One, the power of God embraced Him. Then they poured holy water on Him from a metal jug, from this his long hair began to seem curly and lightened, the world began to seem different to Him, i.e. more deeply. The priests began to dry him with towels. He knelt down. On the floor there was a small pad in dark burgundy velvet for the knees. And another small pillow on which the Chosen One bowed his head on the throne, from which even a stain from the world remained on it. And only when they brought the crown, and he was already in the spiritual power of the king (since all this action was performed unusually, there was no special crown, these were ordinary crowns like for a wedding, but remade more like a royal crown), only then did it come to the Chosen One the realization that He is a king. For a split second, doubts ran through that it was not him, that he was not worthy, that this was not possible, but God’s reinforcing Power abided in Him because of his obedience and submission to God and this mission of chosenness. His first prayer to God, closing his eyes, leaned on his pillow, as he was still on his knees: “The Lord Himself rule over this people, complete Your rule.” (approximately like this). Having gotten up, He was still in a kind of spiritual stupor, not yet fully realizing everything. For this event, the Tsar’s royal clothes were miraculously sewn, so that the tailor, not knowing the Tsar’s size and not seeing Him, sewed everything according to the size of Him and his Queen. These are very beautiful clothes like long Russian caftans (somewhat similar to the Budenovsky overcoat with red fasteners on the chest, or like in the clothes of hussars) with hanging sleeves and a half-cassock, something in between, white in color. The fabric is thick (it seems that this event clearly did not take place in summer, autumn, or early spring).

In the huge living room, where He entered, there was a long oak table and oak chairs around it; in the middle of the table there were 2 throne chairs with a high back counter. He saw here, opposite him, the holy Tsar Nicholas II (a slight, benevolent smile on his face), congratulating and handing over the kingdom to Him; many saw him, but not all. When He sat down on the throne-chair, they announced that your queen was here, she came out from the right door, deftly ran up to him to hug and kiss Him, but it was not his wife (she was a head taller than Him, with painted lips, aesthetically well-groomed, in similar clothes as the Tsar, with a sweet and hypocritical look), the press immediately began to photograph this, but could not touch Him. The spiritual power that was in the king’s soul stopped her. At this time, there was a strong struggle in my soul—temptation, depressive pressure—suffocation: “maybe this is so necessary for the sake of the Kingdom. Or maybe it’s better than it is...” But the Tsar sharply rejected all this and shouted in his soul, “This is a LIE, how can truth and the kingdom be built on a lie?”
In a voice before the people: “This is not the queen. Where is my wife? Why are you doing this to me?” The liar queen disappeared, those who slipped it almost died of fear, numbness seized them. (I still don’t understand what this means, but it’s likely that the devil wanted to destroy the Chosen One of God here too, because the “queen” was promoted from the oligarch, and perhaps this is some kind of symbolic image)

From that moment (after this temptation) the King had a great gift, to see a person and his circumstances around him (he felt this property, and accepted and realized power), to command with strength and authority, so that those who listened and saw Him experienced reverence and fear, His words penetrated the soul. His wife came from the left door of this living room in a long blue dress with flowers, she is a fragile blonde, all frightened, because her husband is the Tsar. Suddenly she found herself dressed in the same clothes as the Tsar and the crown on her head, and she confidently sat down on the left side of his throne. The invisible man (angel) told Him: “You will win all battles, and no one will stand against You.”
Then this vision ends, but still, I saw a few more scenes. Under His rule by God's providence, people's destinies and circumstances were coordinated in such a way that if He spoke to someone and ordered them to do something, then everything worked out even before it was voiced. When he commanded, even by a miracle of God it was always carried out. He brought many people to God and many Gentiles were baptized. People in the kingdom felt reverence and fear for Him, even the spoiled and formerly bad ones changed, as if a harmonious tact emanated from the Tsar, an attitude of goodness for the entire state. The officials were simply afraid not to obey anything, because the king could instantly appear anywhere. God gave the King another opportunity and power to rule the Kingdom; he could be in several places at the same time (as it is difficult to understand, instantaneous movement in space is possible). So, I saw Him, that He instantly appeared on the battlefield (when and where this will not be known to me, but most likely at the end of His reign), and mourns the dead, weeps bitterly, covering his face with his hands, asking God for their resurrection . He had a black cap on his head, like a Russian priestly skufiya.

When I woke up, tears were flowing from my eyes, but I did not have the feeling and state of normal crying. Delight and fear, reverence and worries with doubt about one’s charm, deep shock and joy about the future, everything was mixed up in the soul. He called his mother and told her about this vision, thinking that, like a dream, it is quickly forgotten, but everything is still clear in the mind. It turned out that on this day a religious procession from the Crimea to the city of Smolensk came to us in the town of Kamens-Shakhtinsky with an icon of the Royal Martyrs and the Holy Cross, and reverently bowed. This is hardly a coincidence. There is still deep respect, reverence, fear, faith, hope and love for the Anointed King of God in my soul.

I don’t claim recognition from you (this is also a question of testing our faith), but what was revealed to me, I told you, and you judge for yourself. But I am definitely sure that God is faithful to his words-prophecies, which were spoken earlier to the saints and they will certainly come true, and God gives us sinners and weaklings reinforcement until the time of fulfillment.

A video on the theme of the monarchy was made earlier during Easter week 2015. but the Lord has now strengthened my reasoning; you can compare what was said before this knowledge.

Archpriest Oleg Trofimov, dDoctor of Theology, Master of Religious Studies and Philosophical Sciences

Sberbank of Russia card: 676196000086178580

May 19 marks the 137th anniversary of the birth of the last Russian Emperor, canonized as a saint by the Russian Orthodox Church in 2000.

Historians always judge the role of the personality of the supreme ruler in the fate of the state ambiguously, especially when assessing the reign of Nicholas II. Some researchers see in the last Russian autocrat the ideal of a ruler, under whom the country's population increased by 60 million people, the total length of railway tracks increased by 58,251 thousand km, the budget of the Ministry of Public Education increased more than 6 times, and the "Stolypin" agrarian reform brought the country to the leaders of the world market of agricultural products. Others, on the contrary, argue that such a high food export did not meet the interests of the state, increased the wealth stratification of society, provoked an increase in social tension, which, in particular, determined Russia’s defeat in the war with Japan.

Among Orthodox believers there is also no uniform attitude towards the holy passion-bearer Nikolai Alexandrovich Romanov. Some venerate him as the blessed Tsar, who accepted the crown of martyrdom for the entire people, and pray to him for the restoration of the Russian autocracy, which, as they expect, will replace the godless government, and then everyone in Russia will live piously and happily. Others still, contrary to the Act of the Jubilee Council of Bishops, do not recognize Nicholas II as a saint and even file complaints about illegal, in their opinion, veneration in civil courts.

On July 4, on the day of remembrance of the holy passion-bearer Nikolai Alexandrovich Romanov, the Russian Orthodox Church sings:

“You meekly endured the deprivation of the earthly kingdom, the bonds and sufferings of many different kinds, bearing witness to Christ even to the point of death from the God-fighters, the great passion-bearer, the God-crowned Tsar Nicholas, for this sake, with a martyr’s crown in heaven, crowning you with the queen and your children and servants, Christ the God, pray for Him to have mercy the Russian country and save our souls."

The Life of the Holy Passion-Bearer, Emperor of Russia Nikolai Alexandrovich Romanov("Moscow Diocesan Gazette". 2000. N10-11. P. 20-33)

The future Emperor of All Russia Nicholas II was born on May 6 (18), 1868, on the day of the holy righteous Job the Long-Suffering. He was the eldest son of Emperor Alexander III and his wife Empress Maria Feodorovna. The upbringing he received under the guidance of his father was strict, almost harsh. “I need normal, healthy Russian children” - this was the demand the Emperor put forward to the educators of his children. And such an upbringing could only be Orthodox in spirit. Even as a small child, the Heir Tsarevich showed special love for God and His Church. He received a very good education at home - he knew several languages, studied Russian and world history, was deeply versed in military affairs, and was a widely erudite person. Emperor Alexander III had a program of comprehensive preparation of the Heir for the performance of royal duties, but these plans were not destined to be fully realized...

Empress Alexandra Feodorovna (Princess Alice Victoria Elena Louise Beatrice) was born on May 25 (June 7), 1872 in Darmstadt, the capital of a small German duchy, by that time already forcibly incorporated into the German Empire. Alice's father was Grand Duke Ludwig of Hesse-Darmstadt, and her mother was Princess Alice of England, the third daughter of Queen Victoria. In her infancy, Princess Alice - her name at home was Alix - was a cheerful, lively child, for which she received the nickname "Sunny" (Sunny). The children of the Hessian couple - and there were seven of them - were brought up in deeply patriarchal traditions. Their life passed according to the rules strictly established by their mother; not a single minute should pass without doing anything. The children's clothing and food were very simple. The girls lit the fireplaces themselves and cleaned their rooms. From childhood, their mother tried to instill in them qualities based on a deeply Christian approach to life.

Alix suffered her first grief at the age of six - her mother died of diphtheria at the age of thirty-five. After the tragedy she experienced, little Alix became withdrawn, alienated, and began to avoid strangers; She calmed down only in the family circle. After the death of her daughter, Queen Victoria transferred her love to her children, especially her youngest, Alix. Her upbringing and education from now on took place under the control of her grandmother.

The first meeting of the sixteen-year-old Heir Tsarevich Nikolai Alexandrovich and the very young Princess Alice took place in 1884, when her older sister, the future Martyr Elizabeth, married Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich, the Tsarevich’s uncle. A strong friendship began between the young people, which then turned into deep and growing love. When in 1889, having reached adulthood, the Heir turned to his parents with a request to bless him for his marriage to Princess Alice, his father refused, citing the Heir’s youth as the reason for the refusal. I had to submit to my father's will. In 1894, seeing the unshakable determination of his son, who was usually soft and even timid in communicating with his father, Emperor Alexander III gave his blessing to the marriage. The only obstacle remained the transition to Orthodoxy - according to Russian laws, the bride of the Heir to the Russian throne must be Orthodox. A Protestant by upbringing, Alice was convinced of the truth of her confession and was at first embarrassed by the need to change her religion.

The joy of mutual love was overshadowed by a sharp deterioration in the health of his father, Emperor Alexander III. A trip to Crimea in the fall of 1894 did not bring him relief; a serious illness inexorably took away his strength...

On October 20, Emperor Alexander III died. The next day, in the palace church of the Livadia Palace, Princess Alice was united to Orthodoxy through Confirmation, receiving the name Alexandra Feodorovna.

Despite the mourning for his father, it was decided not to postpone the wedding, but it took place in the most modest atmosphere on November 14, 1894. The days of family happiness that followed soon gave way for the new Emperor to the need to assume the entire burden of governing the Russian Empire.

The early death of Alexander III did not allow him to fully complete the preparation of the Heir to fulfill the duties of a monarch. He was not yet fully introduced to the higher affairs of state; after his accession to the throne, he had to learn a lot from the reports of his ministers.

However, the character of Nikolai Alexandrovich, who was twenty-six years old at the time of his accession, and his worldview by this time were completely determined.

Persons standing close to the court noted his lively mind - he always quickly grasped the essence of the questions presented to him, his excellent memory, especially for faces, and the nobility of his way of thinking. But the Tsarevich was overshadowed by the powerful figure of Alexander III. Nikolai Alexandrovich, with his gentleness, tact in his manners, and modest manners, gave many the impression of a man who had not inherited the strong will of his father.

The guidance for Emperor Nicholas II was his father’s political testament: “I bequeath to you to love everything that serves the good, honor and dignity of Russia. Protect autocracy, bearing in mind that you are responsible for the fate of your subjects before the Throne of the Most High. Faith in God and holiness "Let your royal duty be the basis of your life. Be strong and courageous, never show weakness. Listen to everyone, there is nothing shameful in this, but listen to yourself and your conscience."

From the very beginning of his reign as a Russian power, Emperor Nicholas II treated the duties of a monarch as a sacred duty. The Emperor deeply believed that for the hundred million Russian people, tsarist power was and remains sacred. He always had the idea that the Tsar and Queen should be closer to the people, see them more often and trust them more.

The year 1896 was marked by coronation celebrations in Moscow. The crowning is the most important event in the life of a monarch, especially when he is imbued with deep faith in his calling. The Sacrament of Confirmation was performed over the royal couple - as a sign that just as there is no higher, so there is no more difficult on earth royal power, there is no burden heavier than royal service, the Lord... will give strength to our kings (1 Sam. 2:10). From that moment the Emperor felt himself to be a true Anointed One of God. Betrothed to Russia since childhood, he seemed to have married her on that day.

To the great sorrow of the Tsar, the celebrations in Moscow were overshadowed by the disaster on the Khodynskoye Field: a stampede occurred in the crowd awaiting royal gifts, in which many people died. Having become the supreme ruler of a huge empire, in whose hands the entire legislative, executive and judicial power was practically concentrated, Nikolai Alexandrovich took upon himself enormous historical and moral responsibility for everything that happened in the state entrusted to him. And the Sovereign considered one of his most important duties to be the preservation of the Orthodox faith, according to the word of the Holy Scripture: “the king... made a covenant before the Lord - to follow the Lord and keep His commandments and His revelations and His statutes with all my heart and with all my soul” (2 Kings 23, 3). A year after the wedding, on November 3, 1895, the first daughter, Grand Duchess Olga, was born; she was followed by the birth of three daughters, full of health and life, who were the joy of their parents, the Grand Duchesses Tatiana (May 29, 1897), Maria (June 14, 1899) and Anastasia (June 5, 1901). But this joy was not without an admixture of bitterness - the cherished desire of the Royal couple was the birth of an Heir, so that the Lord would add days to the days of the king, extend his years for generations and generations (Ps. 60:7).

The long-awaited event took place on August 12, 1904, a year after the Royal Family’s pilgrimage to Sarov, for the celebration of the glorification of St. Seraphim. It seemed that a new bright streak was beginning in their family life. But a few weeks after the birth of Tsarevich Alexy, it turned out that he had hemophilia. The child's life hung in the balance all the time: the slightest bleeding could cost him his life. The mother's suffering was especially intense...

Deep and sincere religiosity distinguished the Imperial couple from representatives of the then aristocracy. From the very beginning, the upbringing of the children of the Imperial Family was imbued with the spirit of the Orthodox faith. All its members lived in accordance with the traditions of Orthodox piety. Mandatory attendance at divine services on Sundays and holidays, and fasting during fasting were an integral part of the life of the Russian tsars, for the tsar trusts in the Lord and will not be shaken in the goodness of the Most High (Ps. 20:8).

However, the personal religiosity of Sovereign Nikolai Alexandrovich, and especially his wife, was undoubtedly something more than simple adherence to traditions. The royal couple not only visit churches and monasteries during their numerous trips, venerate miraculous icons and relics of saints, but also make pilgrimages, as they did in 1903 during the glorification of St. Seraphim of Sarov. Brief services in court churches no longer satisfied the Emperor and Empress. Services were held especially for them in the Tsarskoye Selo Feodorovsky Cathedral, built in the style of the 16th century. Here Empress Alexandra prayed in front of a lectern with open liturgical books, carefully following the progress of the church service.

The Emperor paid great attention to the needs of the Orthodox Church throughout his reign. Like all Russian emperors, Nicholas II generously donated to the construction of new churches, including outside Russia. During the years of his reign, the number of parish churches in Russia increased by more than 10 thousand, and more than 250 new monasteries were opened. The emperor himself participated in the laying of new churches and other church celebrations. The personal piety of the Sovereign was also manifested in the fact that during the years of his reign more saints were canonized than in the two previous centuries, when only 5 saints were glorified. During the last reign, St. Theodosius of Chernigov (1896), St. Seraphim of Sarov (1903), Holy Princess Anna Kashinskaya (restoration of veneration in 1909), St. Joasaph of Belgorod (1911), St. Hermogenes of Moscow (1913), Saint Pitirim of Tambov (1914), Saint John of Tobolsk (1916). At the same time, the Emperor was forced to show special persistence, seeking the canonization of St. Seraphim of Sarov, Saints Joasaph of Belgorod and John of Tobolsk. Emperor Nicholas II highly revered the holy righteous father John of Kronstadt. After his blessed death, the king ordered a nationwide prayerful commemoration of the deceased on the day of his repose.

During the reign of Emperor Nicholas II, the traditional synodal system of governing the Church was preserved, but it was under him that the church hierarchy had the opportunity not only to widely discuss, but also to practically prepare for the convening of a Local Council.

The desire to introduce Christian religious and moral principles of one’s worldview into public life has always distinguished the foreign policy of Emperor Nicholas II. Back in 1898, he approached the governments of Europe with a proposal to convene a conference to discuss issues of maintaining peace and reducing armaments. The consequence of this was the peace conferences in The Hague in 1889 and 1907. Their decisions have not lost their significance to this day.

But, despite the Tsar’s sincere desire for the First World, during his reign Russia had to participate in two bloody wars, which led to internal unrest. In 1904, without declaring war, Japan began military operations against Russia - the revolutionary turmoil of 1905 became the consequence of this difficult war for Russia. The Tsar perceived the unrest in the country as a great personal sorrow...

Few people communicated with the Emperor informally. And everyone who knew his family life first-hand noted the amazing simplicity, mutual love and agreement of all members of this closely knit family. Its center was Alexey Nikolaevich, all attachments, all hopes were focused on him. The children were full of respect and consideration towards their mother. When the Empress was unwell, the daughters were arranged to take turns on duty with their mother, and the one who was on duty that day remained with her indefinitely. The children's relationship with the Emperor was touching - he was for them at the same time a king, a father and a comrade; their feelings changed depending on the circumstances, moving from almost religious worship to complete trust and the most cordial friendship.

A circumstance that constantly darkened the life of the Imperial family was the incurable illness of the Heir. Attacks of hemophilia, during which the child experienced severe suffering, were repeated several times. In September 1912, as a result of a careless movement, internal bleeding occurred, and the situation was so serious that they feared for the life of the Tsarevich. Prayers for his recovery were served in all churches in Russia. The nature of the illness was a state secret, and parents often had to hide their feelings while participating in the normal routine of palace life. The Empress understood well that medicine was powerless here. But nothing is impossible for God! Being a deeply religious person, she devoted herself wholeheartedly to fervent prayer in the hope of a miraculous healing. Sometimes, when the child was healthy, it seemed to her that her prayer had been answered, but the attacks were repeated again, and this filled the mother’s soul with endless sorrow. She was ready to believe anyone who was able to help her grief, to somehow alleviate the suffering of her son - and the Tsarevich’s illness opened the doors to the palace to those people who were recommended to the Royal Family as healers and prayer books. Among them, the peasant Grigory Rasputin appears in the palace, who was destined to play his role in the life of the Royal Family, and in the fate of the entire country - but he had no right to claim this role. People who sincerely loved the Royal Family tried to somehow limit Rasputin’s influence; among them were the venerable martyr Grand Duchess Elizabeth, the hieromartyr Metropolitan Vladimir... In 1913, all of Russia solemnly celebrated the three-hundredth anniversary of the House of Romanov. After the February celebrations in St. Petersburg and Moscow, in the spring, the Royal Family completes a tour of ancient Central Russian cities, the history of which is connected with the events of the early 17th century. The Tsar was greatly impressed by the sincere manifestations of the people's devotion - and the population of the country in those years was rapidly increasing: in a multitude of people there is greatness to the king (Proverbs 14:28).

Russia was at the peak of glory and power at this time: industry was developing at an unprecedented pace, the army and navy were becoming more and more powerful, agrarian reform was being successfully implemented - about this time we can say in the words of Scripture: the superiority of the country as a whole is a king who cares about the country ( Ecclesiastes 5:8). It seemed that all internal problems would be successfully resolved in the near future.

But this was not destined to come true: the First World War was brewing. Using the murder of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne by a terrorist as a pretext, Austria attacked Serbia. Emperor Nicholas II considered it his Christian duty to stand up for the Orthodox Serbian brothers...

On July 19 (August 1), 1914, Germany declared war on Russia, which soon became pan-European. In August 1914, the need to help its ally France led Russia to launch an overly hasty offensive in East Prussia, which resulted in a heavy defeat. By the fall it became clear that there was no imminent end to hostilities in sight. However, since the beginning of the war, internal divisions have subsided in the country on a wave of patriotism. Even the most difficult issues became solvable - the Tsar’s long-planned ban on the sale of alcoholic beverages for the entire duration of the war was implemented. His conviction of the usefulness of this measure was stronger than all economic considerations.

The Emperor regularly travels to Headquarters, visiting various sectors of his huge army, dressing stations, military hospitals, rear factories - in a word, everything that played a role in the conduct of this grandiose war. The Empress devoted herself to the wounded from the very beginning. Having completed courses for sisters of mercy, together with her eldest daughters - Grand Duchesses Olga and Tatiana - she spent several hours a day caring for the wounded in her Tsarskoe Selo infirmary, remembering that the Lord requires us to love works of mercy (Mic. 6, 8).

On August 22, 1915, the Emperor left for Mogilev to take command of all Russian armed forces. From the beginning of the war, the Emperor considered his tenure as Supreme Commander-in-Chief as the fulfillment of a moral and national duty to God and the people: he appointed paths for them and sat at their head and lived as a king in the circle of soldiers, as a comforter to those who mourn (Job 29, 25). However, the Emperor always provided leading military specialists with broad initiative in resolving all military-strategic and operational-tactical issues.

From that day on, the Emperor was constantly at Headquarters, and the Heir was often with him. About once a month the Emperor came to Tsarskoe Selo for several days. All important decisions were made by him, but at the same time he instructed the Empress to maintain relations with the ministers and keep him informed of what was happening in the capital. The Empress was the person closest to him, on whom he could always rely. Alexandra Feodorovna herself took up politics not out of personal ambition and thirst for power, as they wrote about it then. Her only desire was to be useful to the Emperor in difficult times and to help him with her advice. Every day she sent detailed letters and reports to Headquarters, which was well known to the ministers.

The Emperor spent January and February 1917 in Tsarskoye Selo. He felt that the political situation was becoming more and more tense, but continued to hope that a sense of patriotism would still prevail and retained faith in the army, whose position had improved significantly. This raised hopes for the success of the great spring offensive, which would deal a decisive blow to Germany. But forces hostile to the sovereign also understood this well.

On February 22, the Emperor left for Headquarters - this moment served as a signal for the enemies of order. They managed to sow panic in the capital because of the impending famine, because during the famine they will get angry and blaspheme their king and their God (Isa. 8:21). The next day, unrest began in Petrograd caused by interruptions in the supply of bread; they soon developed into a strike under political slogans - “Down with the war”, “Down with the autocracy”. Attempts to disperse the demonstrators were unsuccessful. Meanwhile, debates were going on in the Duma with sharp criticism of the government - but first of all these were attacks against the Tsar. The deputies claiming to be representatives of the people seemed to have forgotten the instruction of the supreme apostle: Honor everyone, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king (1 Pet. 2:17).

On February 25, Headquarters received a message about unrest in the capital. Having learned about the state of affairs, the Emperor sends troops to Petrograd to maintain order, and then he himself goes to Tsarskoe Selo. His decision was obviously caused by both the desire to be in the center of events to make quick decisions if necessary, and concern for his family. This departure from Headquarters turned out to be fatal. 150 versts from Petrograd, the Tsar's train was stopped - the next station, Lyuban, was in the hands of the rebels. We had to go through the Dno station, but even here the path was closed. On the evening of March 1, the Emperor arrived in Pskov, at the headquarters of the commander of the Northern Front, General N.V. Ruzsky.

There was complete anarchy in the capital. But the Tsar and the army command believed that the Duma controlled the situation; in telephone conversations with the Chairman of the State Duma M.V. Rodzianko, the Emperor agreed to all concessions if the Duma could restore order in the country. The answer was: it's too late. Was this really the case? After all, only Petrograd and the surrounding area were covered by the revolution, and the authority of the Tsar among the people and in the army was still great. The Duma's response confronted the Tsar with a choice: abdication or an attempt to march on Petrograd with troops loyal to him - the latter meant civil war while the external enemy was within Russian borders.

Everyone around the Emperor also convinced him that renunciation was the only way out. The commanders of the fronts especially insisted on this, whose demands were supported by the Chief of the General Staff M.V. Alekseev - fear and trembling and murmuring against the kings occurred in the army (3 Ezra 15, 33). And after long and painful reflection, the Emperor made a hard-won decision: to abdicate both for himself and for the Heir, due to his incurable illness, in favor of his brother, Grand Duke Mikhail Alexandrovich. The Emperor left supreme power and command as a Tsar, as a warrior, as a soldier, not forgetting his high duty until the last minute. His Manifesto is an act of the highest nobility and dignity.

On March 8, the commissioners of the Provisional Government, having arrived in Mogilev, announced through General Alekseev the arrest of the Sovereign and the need to proceed to Tsarskoe Selo. For the last time, he addressed his troops, calling on them to be loyal to the Provisional Government, the very one that arrested him, to fulfill their duty to the Motherland until complete victory. The farewell order to the troops, which expressed the nobility of the Tsar’s soul, his love for the army, and faith in it, was hidden from the people by the Provisional Government, which banned its publication. The new rulers, some overcoming others, neglected their king (3 Ezra 15, 16) - they, of course, were afraid that the army would hear the noble speech of their Emperor and Supreme Commander-in-Chief.

In the life of Emperor Nicholas II there were two periods of unequal duration and spiritual significance - the time of his reign and the time of his imprisonment, if the first of them gives the right to talk about him as an Orthodox ruler who fulfilled his royal duties as a sacred duty to God, about the Sovereign , remembering the words of the Holy Scripture: Thou hast chosen me as a king for Thy people (Wisdom 9:7), then the second period is the way of the cross of ascension to the heights of holiness, the path to the Russian Golgotha...

Born on the day of remembrance of the holy righteous Job the Long-Suffering, the Tsar accepted his cross just like the biblical righteous man, and endured all the trials sent down to him firmly, meekly and without a shadow of a murmur. It is this long-suffering that is revealed with particular clarity in the story of the last days of the Emperor. From the moment of abdication, it is not so much external events as the internal spiritual state of the Sovereign that attracts attention. The sovereign, having made, as it seemed to him, the only correct decision, nevertheless experienced severe mental anguish. “If I am an obstacle to the happiness of Russia and all the social forces now at the head of it ask me to leave the throne and hand it over to my son and brother, then I am ready to do this, I am even ready to give not only my kingdom, but also my life for the Motherland. I think “No one who knows me doubts this,” the Emperor said to General D.N. Dubensky.

On the very day of his abdication, March 2, the same General Shubensky recorded the words of the Minister of the Imperial Court, Count V.B. Fredericks: “The Emperor is deeply sad that he is considered an obstacle to the happiness of Russia, that they found it necessary to ask him to leave the throne. He was worried about the thought of his family, "who remained alone in Tsarskoe Selo, the children are sick. The Emperor is suffering terribly, but he is the kind of person who will never show his grief in public." Nikolai Alexandrovich is also reserved in his personal diary. Only at the very end of the entry for that day does his inner feeling break through: “My renunciation is needed. The point is that in the name of saving Russia and keeping the army at the front in peace, it is necessary to decide on this step. I agreed. A draft Manifesto was sent from Headquarters. In the evening, from "Guchkov and Shulgin arrived in Petrograd, with whom I spoke and gave them the signed and revised Manifesto. At one in the morning I left Pskov with a heavy feeling of what I had experienced. There is treason and cowardice and deception all around!"

The Provisional Government announced the arrest of Emperor Nicholas II and his August wife and their detention in Tsarskoye Selo. The arrest of the Emperor and Empress did not have the slightest legal basis or reason.

When the unrest that began in Petrograd spread to Tsarskoe Selo, part of the troops rebelled, and a huge crowd of rioters - more than 10 thousand people - moved to the Alexander Palace. The Empress that day, February 28, almost did not leave the room of the sick children. She was informed that all measures would be taken to ensure the safety of the palace. But the crowd was already very close - a sentry was killed just 500 steps from the palace fence. At this moment, Alexandra Feodorovna shows determination and extraordinary courage - together with Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaevna, she bypasses the ranks of soldiers loyal to her, who have taken up defense around the palace and are ready for battle. She convinces them to come to an agreement with the rebels and not shed blood. Fortunately, at this moment prudence prevailed. The Empress spent the following days in terrible anxiety about the fate of the Emperor - only rumors of abdication reached her. It was only on March 3 that she received a short note from him. The Empress’s experiences during these days were vividly described by an eyewitness, Archpriest Afanasy Belyaev, who served a prayer service in the palace: “The Empress, dressed as a sister of mercy, stood next to the Heir’s bed. Several thin wax candles were lit in front of the icon. The prayer service began... Oh, what a terrible, unexpected grief befell The royal family! There was news that the Tsar, who was returning from Headquarters to his family, was arrested and even possibly abdicated the throne... One can imagine the situation in which the helpless Tsarina, a mother with her five seriously ill children, found herself! woman's weakness and all her bodily ailments, heroically, selflessly, devoting herself to caring for the sick, [with] complete trust in the help of the Queen of Heaven, she decided first of all to pray before the miraculous icon of the Sign of the Mother of God. Hotly, on her knees, with tears, the earthly Queen asked help and intercession from the Queen of Heaven. Having venerated the icon and walked under it, she asked to bring the icon to the beds of the sick, so that all sick children could immediately venerate the Miraculous Image. When we took the icon out of the palace, the palace was already cordoned off by troops, and everyone in it was arrested."

On March 9, the Emperor, who had been arrested the day before, was transported to Tsarskoe Selo, where the whole family was eagerly awaiting him. An almost five-month period of indefinite stay in Tsarskoe Selo began. The days passed in a measured manner - with regular services, shared meals, walks, reading and communication with family. However, at the same time, the life of the prisoners was subjected to petty restrictions - A.F. Kerensky announced to the Emperor that he should live separately and see the Empress only at the table, and speak only in Russian. The guard soldiers made rude comments to him; access to the palace for persons close to the Royal Family was prohibited. One day, soldiers even took away a toy gun from the Heir under the pretext of a ban on carrying weapons.

Father Afanasy Belyaev, who regularly performed divine services in the Alexander Palace during this period, left his testimonies about the spiritual life of the Tsarskoye Selo prisoners. This is how the Good Friday Matins service took place in the palace on March 30, 1917. “The service proceeded reverently and touchingly... Their Majesties listened to the entire service while standing. Folding lecterns were placed in front of them, on which the Gospels lay, so that they could follow the reading. Everyone stood until the end of the service and left through the common hall to their rooms. You have to see for yourself and be so close to understand and see how fervently, in the Orthodox manner, often on their knees, the former royal family prays to God. With what obedience, meekness, humility, having completely surrendered themselves to the will of God, they stand behind the divine service ".

The next day the whole family went to confession. This is what the rooms of the royal children looked like, in which the Sacrament of Confession was performed: “What amazingly Christianly decorated rooms. Each princess has a real iconostasis in the corner of the room, filled with many icons of different sizes depicting especially revered holy saints. In front of the iconostasis is a folding lectern, covered a shroud in the form of a towel, on it are placed prayer books and liturgical books, as well as the Holy Gospel and the cross. The decoration of the rooms and all their furnishings represent an innocent, pure, immaculate childhood, not knowing the dirt of everyday life. To listen to prayers before confession, all four children were in one room..."

“The impression [from the confession] was this: God grant that all children may be as high morally as the children of the former Tsar. Such gentleness, humility, obedience to the parental will, unconditional devotion to the will of God, purity of thoughts and complete ignorance of earthly dirt - passionate and sinful,” writes Father Afanasy, “I was amazed, and I was absolutely perplexed: is it necessary to remind me as a confessor of sins, perhaps unknown to them, and how to incite me to repent of the sins known to me.”

Kindness and peace of mind did not leave the Empress even in these most difficult days after the abdication of the Emperor. These are the words of consolation she addresses in a letter to cornet S.V. Markov: “You are not alone, do not be afraid to live. The Lord will hear our prayers and help you, comfort you and strengthen you. Do not lose your faith, pure, childlike, remain the same small, when you will be big. Life is hard and difficult, but ahead there is Light and joy, silence and reward, all suffering and torment. Walk straight on your path, don’t look to the right and left, and if you don’t see a stone and fall, don’t be afraid and do not lose heart. Rise again and move forward. It hurts, it’s hard on the soul, but grief cleanses us. Remember the life and suffering of the Savior, and your life will not seem as black to you as you thought. We have the same goal, we all strive there, "Let us help each other find the way. Christ is with you, do not be afraid."

In the palace Church or in the former royal chambers, Father Athanasius regularly celebrated the all-night vigil and Divine Liturgy, which were always attended by all members of the Imperial family. After the Day of the Holy Trinity, alarming messages appeared more and more often in the diary of Father Afanasy - he noted the growing irritation of the guards, sometimes reaching the point of rudeness towards the Royal Family. The spiritual state of the members of the Royal Family does not go unnoticed by him - yes, they all suffered, he notes, but along with the suffering their patience and prayer increased. In their suffering they acquired true humility - according to the word of the prophet: Say to the king and queen: humble yourself... for the crown of your glory has fallen from your head (Jer. 13:18).

"...Now the humble servant of God Nikolai, like a meek lamb, kind to all his enemies, not remembering insults, praying earnestly for the prosperity of Russia, believing deeply in its glorious future, kneeling, looking at the cross and the Gospel... expresses to the Heavenly Father the innermost secrets of his long-suffering life and, throwing himself into the dust before the greatness of the Heavenly King, tearfully asks for forgiveness for his voluntary and involuntary sins,” we read in the diary of Father Afanasy Belyaev.

Meanwhile, serious changes were brewing in the lives of the Royal prisoners. The Provisional Government appointed a commission to investigate the activities of the Emperor, but despite all efforts to discover at least something discrediting the Tsar, nothing was found - the Tsar was innocent. When his innocence was proven and it became obvious that there was no crime behind him, the Provisional Government, instead of releasing the Tsar and his August wife, decided to remove the prisoners from Tsarskoye Selo. On the night of August 1, they were sent to Tobolsk - this was done allegedly in view of possible unrest, the first victim of which could be the Royal Family. In fact, by doing so, the family was doomed to the cross, because at that time the days of the Provisional Government itself were numbered.

On July 30, the day before the departure of the Royal Family to Tobolsk, the last Divine Liturgy was served in the royal chambers; for the last time, the former owners of their home gathered to pray fervently, asking with tears, on kneel, the Lord for help and intercession from all troubles and misfortunes, and at the same time realizing that they were entering the path outlined by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself for all Christians: They will lay their hands on you and persecute you, handing you over to prison, and bringing you before the rulers for My name’s sake (Luke 21:12). The entire Royal family and their already very few servants prayed at this liturgy.

On August 6, the royal prisoners arrived in Tobolsk. The first weeks of the Royal Family's stay in Tobolsk were perhaps the calmest during the entire period of their imprisonment. On September 8, the day of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the prisoners were allowed to go to church for the first time. Subsequently, this consolation extremely rarely fell to their lot. One of the greatest hardships during my life in Tobolsk was the almost complete absence of any news. The letters arrived with a huge delay. As for newspapers, we had to be content with a local leaflet, printed on wrapping paper and giving only old telegrams several days late, and even those most often appeared here in a distorted and truncated form. The Emperor watched with alarm the events unfolding in Russia. He understood that the country was rapidly heading towards destruction.

Kornilov suggested that Kerensky send troops to Petrograd to put an end to the Bolshevik agitation, which was becoming more and more threatening day by day. The Tsar’s sadness was immeasurable when the Provisional Government rejected this last attempt to save the Motherland. He understood perfectly well that this was the only way to avoid an imminent disaster. The Emperor repents of his abdication. “After all, he made this decision only in the hope that those who wanted to remove him would still be able to continue the war with honor and would not ruin the cause of saving Russia. He was afraid then that his refusal to sign the renunciation would lead to civil war in the face of the enemy. The Tsar did not want, so that even a drop of Russian blood would be shed because of him... It was painful for the Emperor to now see the futility of his sacrifice and realize that, having in mind then only the good of his homeland, he had harmed it with his renunciation,” recalls P. Gilliard, teacher Tsarevich Alexei.

Meanwhile, the Bolsheviks had already come to power in Petrograd - a period had begun about which the Emperor wrote in his diary: “much worse and more shameful than the events of the Time of Troubles.” The news of the October revolution reached Tobolsk on November 15. The soldiers guarding the governor's house warmed up to the Royal Family, and several months passed after the Bolshevik coup before the change in power began to affect the situation of the prisoners. In Tobolsk, a “soldiers’ committee” was formed, which, in every possible way striving for self-affirmation, demonstrated its power over the Sovereign - they either force him to take off his shoulder straps, or destroy the ice slide built for the Tsar’s children: he mocks the kings, according to the word of the prophet Habakkuk (Hab. 1 , 10). From March 1, 1918, “Nikolai Romanov and his family were transferred to soldiers’ rations.”

The letters and diaries of members of the Imperial Family testify to the deep experience of the tragedy that unfolded before their eyes. But this tragedy does not deprive the Royal prisoners of fortitude, faith and hope for God’s help.

“It’s incredibly hard, sad, offensive, ashamed, but don’t lose faith in God’s mercy. He will not leave the Motherland to perish. We must endure all these humiliations, nasty things, horrors with humility (since we are not able to help). And He will save, long-suffering and abundantly merciful - does not become angry to the end... Without faith it would be impossible to live...

How happy I am that we are not abroad, but with her [the Motherland] we are going through everything. Just as you want to share everything with your beloved sick person, experience everything and watch over him with love and excitement, so it is with your Motherland. I felt like her mother for too long to lose this feeling - we are one, and share grief and happiness. She hurt us, offended us, slandered us... but we still love her deeply and want to see her recovery, like a sick child with bad but also good qualities, and our homeland...

I firmly believe that the time of suffering is passing, that the sun will again shine over the long-suffering Motherland. After all, the Lord is merciful - he will save the Motherland..." the Empress wrote.

The suffering of the country and the people cannot be meaningless - the Royal Passion-Bearers firmly believe in this: “When will all this end? When God pleases. Be patient, dear country, and you will receive a crown of glory, a reward for all suffering... Spring will come and will please and dry tears and blood shed in streams over the poor Motherland...

There is still a lot of hard work ahead - it hurts, there is so much bloodshed, it hurts terribly! But the truth must finally win...

How can you live if there is no hope? You must be cheerful, and then the Lord will give you peace of mind. It’s painful, annoying, insulting, ashamed, you suffer, everything hurts, it’s punctured, but there is silence in your soul, calm faith and love for God, who will not abandon His own and will hear the prayers of the zealous and will have mercy and save...

How long will our unfortunate Motherland be tormented and torn apart by external and internal enemies? Sometimes it seems that you can’t endure it anymore, you don’t even know what to hope for, what to wish for? But still, no one like God! May His holy will be done!"

Consolation and meekness in enduring sorrows are given to the Royal prisoners by prayer, reading spiritual books, worship, Communion: “... The Lord God gave unexpected joy and consolation, allowing us to partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ, for the cleansing of sins and eternal life. Bright jubilation and love fill soul."

In suffering and trials, spiritual knowledge, knowledge of oneself, one’s soul, increases. Striving for eternal life helps to endure suffering and gives great consolation: “...Everything that I love suffers, there is no counting of all the dirt and suffering, and the Lord does not allow despondency: He protects from despair, gives strength, confidence in a bright future yet in this world."

In March it became known that a separate peace with Germany had been concluded in Brest. The Emperor did not hide his attitude towards him: “This is such a shame for Russia and it is “tantamount to suicide.” When rumors spread that the Germans were demanding that the Bolsheviks hand over the Royal Family to them, the Empress said: “I prefer to die in Russia than to be saved by the Germans.” The first Bolshevik detachment arrived in Tobolsk on Tuesday, April 22. Commissar Yakovlev inspects the house, gets acquainted with the prisoners. A few days later, he reports that he must take the Emperor away, assuring that nothing bad will happen to him. Assuming that they want to send him to Moscow for signing a separate peace with Germany, the Sovereign, who under no circumstances abandoned his high spiritual nobility (remember the Message of the Prophet Jeremiah: King, show your courage - Epistle Jer. 1:58), firmly said: “I’d rather let my hand be cut off, than sign this shameful agreement."

The heir was ill at that time, and it was impossible to carry him. Despite fear for her sick son, the Empress decides to follow her husband; Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaevna also went with them. Only on May 7, family members remaining in Tobolsk received news from Yekaterinburg: the Sovereign, Empress and Maria Nikolaevna were imprisoned in Ipatiev’s house. When the Heir's health improved, the remaining members of the Royal Family from Tobolsk were also taken to Yekaterinburg and imprisoned in the same house, but most of the people close to the family were not allowed to see them.

There is much less evidence left about the Yekaterinburg period of imprisonment of the Royal Family. Almost no letters. Basically, this period is known only from brief entries in the Emperor’s diary and the testimony of witnesses in the case of the murder of the Royal Family. Particularly valuable is the testimony of Archpriest John Storozhev, who performed the last services in the Ipatiev House. Father John served mass there twice on Sundays; the first time it was on May 20 (June 2), 1918: “... the deacon spoke the petitions of the litanies, and I sang. Two female voices (I think Tatyana Nikolaevna and one of them) sang along with me, sometimes in a low bass and Nikolai Alexandrovich... We prayed very hard..."

“Nikolai Alexandrovich was dressed in a khaki-colored tunic, the same trousers, with high boots. On his chest he had an officer’s St. George’s Cross. There were no shoulder straps... [He] impressed me with his firm gait, his calmness and especially his manner of looking intently and look firmly into the eyes..." wrote Father John.

Many portraits of members of the Royal Family have been preserved - from beautiful portraits of A. N. Serov to later photographs taken in captivity. From them one can get an idea of ​​the appearance of the Sovereign, Empress, Tsarevich and Princesses - but in the descriptions of many persons who saw them during their lifetime, special attention is usually paid to the eyes. “He looked at me with such lively eyes...” Father John Storozhev said about the Heir. Probably, this impression can most accurately be conveyed in the words of the Wise Solomon: “In the bright gaze of the king there is life, and his favor is like a cloud with the latter rain...” In the Church Slavonic text this sounds even more expressive: “in the light of life the son of kings” (Proverbs 16, 15).

Living conditions in the “special purpose house” were much more difficult than in Tobolsk. The guard consisted of 12 soldiers who lived in close proximity to the prisoners and ate with them at the same table. Commissar Avdeev, an inveterate drunkard, worked every day together with his subordinates to invent new humiliations for the prisoners. I had to put up with hardships, endure bullying and obey the demands of these rude people - among the guards were former criminals. As soon as the Emperor and Empress arrived at Ipatiev’s house, they were subjected to a humiliating and rude search. The Royal couple and the Princesses had to sleep on the floor, without beds. During lunch, a family of seven was given only five spoons; The guards sitting at the same table smoked, brazenly blew smoke into the faces of the prisoners, and rudely took food from them.

A walk in the garden was allowed once a day, at first for 15-20 minutes, and then no more than five. The behavior of the guards was completely indecent - they were even on duty near the door to the toilet, and they did not allow the doors to be locked. The guards wrote obscene words and made indecent images on the walls.

Only Doctor Evgeny Botkin remained with the Royal Family, who surrounded the prisoners with care and acted as a mediator between them and the commissars, trying to protect them from the rudeness of the guards, and several tried and true servants: Anna Demidova, I. S. Kharitonov, A. E. Trupp and the boy Lenya Sednev.

The faith of the prisoners supported their courage and gave them strength and patience in suffering. They all understood the possibility of a speedy end. Even the Tsarevich somehow escaped the phrase: “If they kill, just don’t torture...” The Empress and the Grand Duchesses often sang church hymns, which their guards listened to against their will. In almost complete isolation from the outside world, surrounded by rude and cruel guards, the prisoners of the Ipatiev House display amazing nobility and clarity of spirit.

In one of Olga Nikolaevna’s letters there are the following lines: “Father asks to tell all those who remained devoted to him, and those on whom they may have influence, that they do not take revenge for him, since he has forgiven everyone and is praying for everyone, and so that they do not avenge themselves, and so that they remember that the evil that is now in the world will be even stronger, but that it is not evil that will defeat evil, but only love.”

Even the rude guards gradually softened in their interactions with the prisoners. They were surprised by their simplicity, they were captivated by their dignified spiritual clarity, and they soon felt the superiority of those whom they thought to keep in their power. Even Commissar Avdeev himself relented. This change did not escape the eyes of the Bolshevik authorities. Avdeev was removed and replaced by Yurovsky, the guards were replaced by Austro-German prisoners and people chosen from among the executioners of the “extraordinary emergency” - the “special purpose house” became, as it were, its department. The life of its inhabitants turned into continuous martyrdom.

On July 1 (14), 1918, Father John Storozhev performed the last divine service in the Ipatiev House. The tragic hours were approaching... Preparations for the execution were being made in the strictest secrecy from the prisoners of the Ipatiev House.

On the night of July 16-17, around the beginning of three, Yurovsky woke up the Royal Family. They were told that there was unrest in the city and therefore it was necessary to move to a safe place. About forty minutes later, when everyone had dressed and gathered, Yurovsky and the prisoners went down to the first floor and led them to a semi-basement room with one barred window. Everyone was outwardly calm. The Emperor carried Alexei Nikolaevich in his arms, the others had pillows and other small things in their hands. At the request of the Empress, two chairs were brought into the room, and pillows brought by the Grand Duchesses and Anna Demidova were placed on them. The Empress and Alexei Nikolaevich sat on the chairs. The Emperor stood in the center next to the Heir. The remaining family members and servants settled in different parts of the room and prepared to wait for a long time - they were already accustomed to night alarms and various types of movements. Meanwhile, armed men were already crowded in the next room, waiting for the killer’s signal. At that moment, Yurovsky came very close to the Emperor and said: “Nikolai Alexandrovich, according to the resolution of the Ural Regional Council, you and your family will be shot.” This phrase was so unexpected for the Tsar that he turned towards the family, stretching out his hands to them, then, as if wanting to ask again, he turned to the commandant, saying: “What? What?” The Empress and Olga Nikolaevna wanted to cross themselves. But at that moment Yurovsky shot at the Sovereign with a revolver almost point-blank several times, and he immediately fell. Almost simultaneously, everyone else started shooting - everyone knew their victim in advance.

Those already lying on the floor were finished off with shots and bayonet blows. When it seemed that everything was over, Alexei Nikolaevich suddenly groaned weakly - he was shot several more times. The picture was terrible: eleven bodies lay on the floor in streams of blood. After making sure that their victims were dead, the killers began to remove their jewelry. Then the dead were taken out into the yard, where a truck was already standing ready - the noise of its engine was supposed to drown out the shots in the basement. Even before sunrise, the bodies were taken to the forest in the vicinity of the village of Koptyaki. For three days the killers tried to hide their crime...

Most of the evidence speaks of the prisoners of the Ipatiev House as suffering people, but deeply religious, undoubtedly submissive to the will of God. Despite the bullying and insults, they led a decent family life in Ipatiev’s house, trying to brighten up the depressing situation with mutual communication, prayer, reading and feasible activities. “The Emperor and Empress believed that they were dying as martyrs for their homeland,” writes one of the witnesses to their life in captivity, the Heir’s teacher Pierre Gilliard, “they died as martyrs for humanity. Their true greatness stemmed not from their royal dignity, but from that amazing moral "the height to which they gradually rose. They became an ideal force. And in their very humiliation they were an amazing manifestation of that amazing clarity of soul, against which all violence and all rage are powerless and which triumphs in death itself."

Along with the Imperial family, their servants who followed their masters into exile were also shot. These, in addition to those shot along with the Imperial family by Doctor E. S. Botkin, the Empress's room girl A. S. Demidova, the court cook I. M. Kharitonov and footman A. E. Trupp, included those killed in various places and in different months of 1918 of the year, Adjutant General I. L. Tatishchev, Marshal Prince V. A. Dolgorukov, "uncle" of the Heir K. G. Nagorny, children's footman I. D. Sednev, maid of honor of the Empress A. V. Gendrikova and goflektress E. A. Schneider .

Soon after the execution of the Emperor was announced, His Holiness Patriarch Tikhon blessed the archpastors and pastors to perform memorial services for him. On July 8 (21), 1918, during a service in the Kazan Cathedral in Moscow, His Holiness himself said: “The other day a terrible thing happened: the former Sovereign Nikolai Alexandrovich was shot... We must, obeying the teachings of the word of God, condemn this matter, otherwise the blood of the executed man will fall and on us, and not only on those who committed it. We know that, having abdicated the throne, he did this with the good of Russia in mind and out of love for her. After abdication, he could have found himself security and a relatively quiet life "abroad, but did not do this, wanting to suffer with Russia. He did nothing to improve his situation, resignedly resigned to fate."

The veneration of the Royal Family, begun by His Holiness Patriarch Tikhon in the funeral prayer and word at the memorial service in the Kazan Cathedral in Moscow for the murdered Emperor three days after the Yekaterinburg murder, continued - despite the prevailing ideology - throughout several decades of the Soviet period of our history.

Many clergy and laity secretly offered prayers to God for the repose of the murdered sufferers, members of the Royal Family. In recent years, in many houses in the red corner one could see photographs of the Royal Family, and icons depicting the Royal Martyrs began to circulate in large numbers. Prayers addressed to them, literary, cinematic and musical works were compiled, reflecting the suffering and martyrdom of the Royal Family. The Synodal Commission for the Canonization of Saints received appeals from ruling bishops, clergy and laity in support of the canonization of the Royal Family - some of these appeals had thousands of signatures. By the time of the glorification of the Royal Martyrs, a huge amount of evidence had accumulated about their gracious help - about the healing of the sick, the unification of separated families, the protection of church property from schismatics, about the streaming of myrrh from icons with images of Emperor Nicholas and the Royal Martyrs, about the fragrance and the appearance of blood stains on the icon faces of the Royal Martyrs colors.

One of the first witnessed miracles was the deliverance during the civil war of hundreds of Cossacks surrounded by red troops in impenetrable swamps. At the call of the priest Father Elijah, in unanimity the Cossacks addressed a prayer appeal to the Tsar-Martyr, the Sovereign of Russia - and incredibly escaped the encirclement.

In Serbia in 1925, a case was described when an elderly woman, whose two sons died in the war and the third was missing, had a dream vision of Emperor Nicholas, who reported that the third son was alive and in Russia - in a few months the son returned home.

In October 1991, two women went to pick cranberries and got lost in an impassable swamp. Night was approaching, and the swamp bog could easily drag in unwary travelers. But one of them remembered the description of the miraculous deliverance of a detachment of Cossacks - and, following their example, she began to fervently pray for help to the Royal Martyrs: “Murdered Royal Martyrs, save us, servant of God Eugene and Love!” Suddenly, in the darkness, the women saw a glowing branch from a tree; Grasping it, they got out to a dry place, and then went out into a wide clearing, along which they reached the village. It is noteworthy that the second woman, who also testified to this miracle, was at that time still a person far from the Church.

A high school student from the city of Podolsk, Marina, an Orthodox Christian who especially reveres the Royal Family, was spared from a hooligan attack by the miraculous intercession of the Royal children. The attackers, three young men, wanted to drag her into a car, take her away and dishonor her, but suddenly they fled in horror. Later they admitted that they saw the Imperial children who stood up for the girl. This happened on the eve of the Feast of the Entry of the Blessed Virgin Mary into the Temple in 1997. Subsequently, it became known that the young people repented and radically changed their lives.

Dane Jan-Michael was an alcoholic and drug addict for sixteen years, and became addicted to these vices from an early youth. On the advice of good friends, in 1995 he went on a pilgrimage to the historical places of Russia; He also ended up in Tsarskoe Selo. At the Divine Liturgy in the house church, where the Royal Martyrs once prayed, he turned to them with an ardent plea for help - and felt that the Lord was delivering him from sinful passion. On July 17, 1999, he converted to the Orthodox faith with the name Nicholas in honor of the holy Martyr Tsar.

On May 15, 1998, Moscow doctor Oleg Belchenko received an icon of the Martyr Tsar as a gift, in front of which he prayed almost every day, and in September he began to notice small blood-colored spots on the icon. Oleg brought the icon to the Sretensky Monastery; During the prayer service, all those praying felt a strong fragrance from the icon. The icon was transferred to the altar, where it remained for three weeks, and the fragrance did not stop. Later, the icon visited several Moscow churches and monasteries; the flow of myrrh from this image was repeatedly witnessed, witnessed by hundreds of parishioners. In 1999, 87-year-old Alexander Mikhailovich was miraculously healed of blindness near the myrrh-streaming icon of Tsar-Martyr Nicholas II: a complex eye operation did not help much, but when he venerated the myrrh-streaming icon with fervent prayer, and the priest serving the prayer service covered his face with a towel with marks peace, healing came - vision returned. The myrrh-streaming icon visited a number of dioceses - Ivanovo, Vladimir, Kostroma, Odessa... Everywhere where the icon visited, numerous cases of its myrrh-streaming were witnessed, and two parishioners of Odessa churches reported healing from leg disease after praying before the icon. The Tulchin-Bratslav diocese reported cases of grace-filled help through prayers before this miraculous icon: the servant of God Nina was healed of severe hepatitis, parishioner Olga received healing of a broken collarbone, and the servant of God Lyudmila was healed of a severe lesion of the pancreas.

During the Anniversary Council of Bishops, parishioners of the church being built in Moscow in honor of St. Andrei Rublev gathered for joint prayer to the Royal Martyrs: one of the chapels of the future church is planned to be consecrated in honor of the new martyrs. While reading the akathist, the worshipers felt a strong fragrance emanating from the books. This fragrance continued for several days.

Many Christians now turn to the Royal Passion-Bearers with prayer for strengthening the family and raising children in faith and piety, for preserving their purity and chastity - after all, during the persecution, the Imperial family was especially united and carried the indestructible Orthodox faith through all the sorrows and suffering.

The memory of the holy passion-bearers Emperor Nicholas, Empress Alexandra, their children - Alexy, Olga, Tatiana, Maria and Anastasia is celebrated on the day of their murder, July 4 (17), and on the day of the conciliar memory of the new martyrs and confessors of Russia, January 25 (February 7), if this the day coincides with Sunday, and if it does not coincide, then on the nearest Sunday after January 25 (February 7).

A certain Scythian monk, Dionysius the Younger, abbot of one of the Roman monasteries, who died in 556, attributed the birth of Jesus to 754 from the founding of Rome and to 4714 according to the Julian calendar. Until the 17th century, Christians everywhere kept to this year, and with it began the chronology known as the “commonly used, popular chronology.” But this number system was found to be erroneous. And there is no historian who does not know that Jesus was born at least three or four years earlier.

In the Gospel we will find four very important indications that allow us to fairly accurately determine the time of Christ’s birth.

According to ev. Matt., ch. II, 1 (Cf. Luke, I, 5 and Matt., II, 22), Jesus was born during the reign of Herod I the Great.

According to ev. Luke, ch. II, 1, He was born during the national census in Udea under the Emperor Augustus.

According to ev. Matt., ch. II, 2, 15, the star appeared to the wise men in the East and led them to Jerusalem and to the place where Christ was born.

Finally, according to ev. Luke, ch. III, 23, Jesus was about 30 years old at the time of His baptism. A careful consideration of these various data leads us to place the birth of Jesus some time after 746 and before 751 from the founding of Rome, because the census of Judea could not have been earlier than 747 from the founding of Rome; Herod died in 750/751 from the founding of Rome.

1. Year of death of King Herod

Josephus's instructions on this point are extremely precise. Let us open the books “Jewish Antiquities” (XVII, 8, 1,6, 10) and “The Jewish War” (I, 33, 8): in both of them we will see that Herod died 37 years after the decree issued by the Senate about his elevation to the kingdom, and 34 years after his actual possession of this power.

The Senate decree was issued only at the joint insistence of Octavius ​​and Antony. Both claimants had to be reconciled, but this reconciliation took place only after the death of Fulvius, [end p.791] in 714 from the founding of Rome, according to the testimony of Dio Cassius (48, 28). Consequently, it is only to this year that Herod’s accession to the throne of Judea must be attributed. Since he reigned for 37 years, his death followed in 750/751 from the founding of Rome.

Although the Senate named Herod king in 714, in reality his power in Judea was established only when he, with the help of the Romans, recaptured it from Antigonus and his followers. So Jerusalem was taken and Antigonus defeated three years later, in 717, and, as Josephus notes, in the third month of Sivan (June-July). Thirty-four years of reign, according to Josephus' account, also brings us to 750/751 from the founding of Rome.

It should be noted that, following the custom of his people, Joseph counted the years of his reign, starting from the month of Nissan, so that if one day fell short of the 1st Nissan or one day passed beyond this date, it was still considered equal to a full year.

The continuation and end of the reigns of the three sons of Herod lead us to the same conclusion.

Archelaus was dethroned and sent into exile in the tenth year of his reign, precisely in 759; consequently, he received his power in 750/751 from the founding of Rome. Philip, tetrarch of Ituria and Trachonitida, died in the 37th year of his reign, in 786; therefore he began his reign in 750/751, after the death of Herod.

Herod Antipas, tetrarch of Galilee, was sent into exile in the city of Vienne, in Gaul, after a 43-year reign, in 793. Therefore, the first year of his reign must be attributed to the year 750/751.

Astronomy comes to the aid of history by certifying and determining the accuracy of the year of Herod's death. Some time before his death, according to Joseph (Ant., XVII, 6.4), there was a lunar eclipse. And indeed, astronomical calculations establish with strict certainty (Ideler, Handbuch d. Chronohg.) that on the night of March 12-13 from 1:8 am to 4:12 am. there was a lunar eclipse observed in Jerusalem. The loss of the moon on the 15th of Nissan occurred in 750. on April 12. If Herod died, judging by the previous one, seven or eight days earlier, then, consequently, his death occurred in one of those months that followed Easter of 750. [end p.792]

2. General census under Augustus

According to the testimony of St. Evangelist Luke, the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem coincides with the general census that Augustus ordered and which was actually carried out in Syria during the reign of Quirinius.

Many researchers deny this nationwide census. Ev. Luke is accused of mistakenly confusing the fact of the census with that which took place ten years later, under the same Quirinius, governor of Syria, during the exile of Archelaus, when Judea was converted into a Roman province.

For Gospel history, this question is very important. If you solve it in a negative sense and agree with the accusation. Luke, then what remains of his testimony, which tells us about the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem and about the census that brought Elder Joseph and the Blessed Virgin Mary to this city?

Then it is incredible that St. the evangelist Luke could have confused both facts of the census, since he knew this and makes a clear allusion to them (Luke, II, 2. Wed. Acts, V, 37). The first census, which he speaks of in his Gospel, was only a census of the people: men, women, children at the place of their birth, while the second census (Acts, V, 37) was made for the purpose of calculating taxes and subordinating the Jewish people to their authority. people skillfully prepared for this by the first census. The first census took place under the leadership of the governor of Syria, Quirinius, and the second ended during the reign of the same Quirinius, who became praetor of Syria, to which he finally annexed Judea.

So, we should dwell on the fact that the nationwide census was carried out by order of Augustus, that it spread to all of Judea and took place shortly before the end of the reign of Herod; it was led by Quirinius, the imperial governor in Syria; this census cannot be confused with the one that was done ten years later and served as the end of the census begun under Herod. We think that we have the opportunity to impartially prove the historical reliability of these facts and thereby rid the Gospel of Luke of the anachronism for which it is reproached, and give ch. II, 1 and 2 art. this Gospel is the proper interpretation, which no scholar has the right to deny.

The famous novelist Momsen spoke out decisively not only against the fact of a nationwide census in Judea before the deposition of Archelaus in 759/760, but even against the possibility [end p.793] of this fact. But such a conclusion can easily be refuted; it is too absurd and offensive for the historian, when they mock theologians and everyone who, although imitating them, tries first to convince themselves, and then others, that such a census really took place at a certain time (Mommsen, Res gestoe August., 125).

It seems to me absolutely necessary to give a few precise details about this Roman census.

Its ultimate goal was to determine the number of Roman citizens and to have official information about the origin, name, age, class and condition of all free inhabitants of the empire.

The formal basis of this census was the distribution of taxes, which received the name “sepz”, “sepzsh” - land tax.

Each person's signature on the record was accompanied by an oath of allegiance. Thus, the census in the hands of the ruler became a means of subjugating the people under his authority.

Among almost all the peoples subject to Rome - the Gauls, Bretons, Spaniards, Silesians, Cilicians and Jews - the demand for taxes and oaths rarely went without indignation, often terrible in its consequences.

This administrative measure of taxation is closely connected with the general financial system introduced in Rome, and so skillfully and persistently applied by Augustus. To understand its meaning, it is necessary to remember the introduction of a land inventory throughout the empire and the general reform of calendar chronology. In essence, Rome wanted to establish a tax: in order to impose taxes on each individual, it was necessary to calculate the number of people; in order to introduce a land tax, it was necessary to have information about the property and property of the people; finally, in order to designate the time for collecting taxes, it was necessary to carry out a reform of the calendar reckoning.

Augustus did not lose sight of anything: he appointed special counters to count the people; his surveyors measured land ownership: and, starting with the first national census, Augustus proposed to the Egyptians and Greeks a calendar based on the solar year, already introduced in Rome.

All these actions culminated in the collection of land and poll taxes.

A personal census was to be carried out according to the place of origin and birth, following the custom sanctified by the consul Claudius, who lived two centuries BC [end p.794]

The census required a thorough explanation of every small detail. A free resident of the empire had to enter his name, take an oath of allegiance, indicate the value of his property, the name of his father, mother, wife and children (Dionysus. Halicarnassus. IV, 5, 15).

According to Ulpius of Tire (1.11, De censibus), everyone had to celebrate their own summers. And he explains that this was required: the tax was imposed according to the number of years, 1 just as in the provinces of Syria personal tax was taken from men only after 14 years, and from women after 12.

Women of the free class were also included in the census (Dionysus. Halicarnassus. IV, 15). This feature indicates the difference between the Jewish census and the Roman one. The Jews did not have this custom. Among the Romans, women had to pay their own poll tax once a year. However, all the solemnity is known "Paganalia", established by Servius Tullius, which is mentioned by Dionysius of Halicarnassus, a contemporary of Augustus (IV, 4). All residents of the villages (pagani) had to appear and everyone was obliged to bring "numisme". This coin was different for men, women and children. This reflected the Romans' ability to go into detail. Those who observed the contributions thus knew the number of inhabitants of each village, their age and gender.

The obligation of women to be included in the general census existed for a very long time. Sozomen (Hist.eccles., V, 4), mentioning a similar census in Caesarea during the reign of Julian the Apostate, writes that “many Christians, women and children were ordered to add their names to the general census.”

The census was carried out in the name and command of Augustus. “The emperor, says Suidas, chose twenty people, the most outstanding in their lives and merits, and sent them to all the provinces subject to him, in order to take a census of people and their property there in his name; at the same time, he ordered, after this census, to make a preliminary collection of taxes for the public treasury.”

From this instruction it follows that the enormous task of the national census was entrusted to a special commissioner of the emperor and was not entrusted to ordinary prefects who governed the provinces.

Such an order clearly shows the cautious and prudent character of the Roman. By dividing responsibilities, he strengthened the matter itself, and, entrusting the census to persons vested with the highest authority, thereby preventing the covetousness of the proconsuls. [end p.795]

These special commissioners were called "censitores"- land tax collectors, or "legati pro praetore". In the performance of their duties they were assisted by their subordinates "adjutores ad census".

The emperor himself personally supervised the census in Narbonne in 27, before the birth of Jesus Christ. When he subsequently appointed Drusus there to continue this census in the six provinces of Gaul, each of these provinces already had its own independent ruler.

Sixty years after R. X. Tacitus (Annals, XIV, 46 et seq.) speaks of a new census in Gaul. But who produced it? Ordinary provincial rulers? No, but authorized persons whose names he names: Quintus Volusius, Sextus Africanus, Trebellius Magnus.

Land tax collector - "censitor", as can be seen from the example of Germanicus, who was a collector for thirteen years (after R. X.), sometimes receives supreme command over the troops of the country in which he conducts the census (Tacitus, Annals, I, 31, 33).
Censuses played a huge role in the reign of Augustus. He ordered them to be produced every five years in Rome, and he had them produced more than once throughout the rest of Italy and in all the provinces of the empire.

From the time of the Battle of Actium to the day of his death, there are about nine censuses. Three of them are of great importance and were included in the famous inscription of Ancyra.

In any case, we must take into account that this damaged marble tells us only about the census of Roman citizens, and not all the inhabitants of the provinces of the empire.

Judging by the famous inscription on the marble, during the reign of Augustus these censuses were carried out three times: the first time in 726 from the founding of Rome, 26 years earlier than the beginning of the generally accepted chronology, together with Agrippa, his fellow consulate; the second time was carried out 7 years BC, in 746 from the founding of Rome, by him alone, when he was invested with the power of consul, during the consulate of Censorinus and Asinius; the third time in the 13th year after R. X. and in 767 from the founding of Rome, in the last year of his reign, together with Tiberius, his ally in the empire, during the consulate of Sextus Pompey and Sextus Appuleius. If a census in the provinces actually took place, then obviously only subsequently and as a supplement to the census of Roman citizens. Both censuses supplement [end p.796] one another; they were the greatest service that the city authorities, called upon to carry out these censuses, could render to the empire.

However, the custom of a nationwide census of all citizens, like a census of the population of the colonies and other free inhabitants, was observed even before Augustus. (Titus Livy, XXIX, 37; Tacitus, Annals, XIV, 16).

In the absence of an exact original, is it at least possible to find reliable evidence that this census was actually carried out in the provinces?

Tacitus, Suetonius and Cassius Dio speak of this in the affirmative.

Indeed, Tacitus (Annals, I, II) mentions one book, Libellum, written by the hand of Augustus, where all the attributes of the empire were precisely indicated: the number of citizens and troops, the number of fleets, subject kingdoms, provinces, duties and taxes, expenses and savings.

Suetonius (August, 101) also speaks of this book, which he calls Breviarium Imperii, where the emperor himself noted how many soldiers he had under his banners, money in the state treasury and how many arrears.

Dio (LVI, 33) repeats the words of Suetonius, adding: “and all such things pertaining to the government of the empire.”

Such detailed and precise instructions cannot be invented; they are possible only with extensive research on this issue, and I ask every historian in good conscience, by what name were all these actions called then in the empire, if not the national census?

Was this census renewed or continued during the three five-year periods mentioned in the Ankyra table? I do not know that; but it is most likely that the second census is more suitable than the other two to the great event of the Nativity of Christ.

In 746 from the founding of Rome and in 7 BC, complete peace and silence reigned in the empire. Temple of Janus closed for 12 years; Augustus, being at the zenith of his glory and power, was entirely occupied with administrative reforms. He measures the land, enumerates his subjects, redoes the calendar, approves the distribution of taxes and regulates their collections.

Thus, all purely historical arguments and very serious reasons support and justify the words of St. Luke: “In those days a command went out from Caesar Augustus to take a census of all the earth.” [end p.797]

Not to mention either Oroz (VI, 22), or Isidore of Seville (Orig. V, 36), whose impartiality is subject to doubt, Kaliador (Var., III) and Suidas, of whom the first, based on sources, is now , unfortunately, already lost, and the second, who lived among the monuments of antiquity that still survived, and from which several precious fragments have survived to our time - both of them testify, each in their own way, the truth and authenticity of the great event that took place in the 7th century. m year BC, several years before the death of Herod - an event whose results are indicated to us by Tacitus, Suetonius and Dion and about which only one evangelist Luke clearly stated.

But a new difficulty arises.

How could this nationwide census take place in Judea, when this small kingdom was not yet a province of the Roman Empire? The census was usually carried out in the provinces, and not in the allied kingdoms. That's the whole question.

Recognizing, on the one hand, the essential difference between the countries annexed to Rome as constituent parts of the empire, known as colonies and provinces, which were governed by Roman prefects, and, on the other hand, countries in which Rome allowed some semblance of independence by allowing them to choose kings, it would still be a huge mistake to believe that these countries enjoyed real independence.

Such allies of Rome were, in essence, like the peoples of Italy once upon a time, true subjects of the empire, and, like them, they were obliged to pay taxes. (Tacitus. Annals, IV, 41).

The same thing happened in Judea during the reign of Herod.

We must not forget what this small kingdom and its ruler represented to the Romans at that time. They looked upon Judea as their possession and its king as their vassal. If the Romans allowed the Jewish people to be ruled by their own king, it was only out of caution: they saw Judea as a bulwark against the raids of the rebellious Parthians and Arabs. However, the Romans disposed of everything there at their own discretion. Didn’t Anthony also give part of this province to Cleopatra, who asked him for all of Palestine?

If Herod was the king of the Jews, then who gave him this right? Was it not by decree of the Senate, Octavius ​​and Antony that he was elevated to the throne? In his administrative power] is he the freedom of a true ruler? [end p.798]

Far from it: every minute the rulers of Syria are the masters of both Jerusalem and all of Judea. Not a single command of this "Regulus" could have any significance without the approval of Roman authority. If he, at his own discretion, could collect taxes in his country, then he was obliged to pay tribute to the emperor for this. Even if he decided to judge and accuse his own children, he had to ask Augustus' permission every time. He was not only obliged to pay tribute to the emperor, but, in addition, also support, like all subordinate princes, "sosii"- auxiliary troops. In 747 from the founding of Rome, Herod destroyed several Arab bandits who were disturbing his borders from the west. In Rome they looked at this strictly, and Augustus brought to the attention of Herod that from now on he would consider him not as an allied prince, but as an ordinary subject.

Such a dictatorial form of government, judging even from these few characteristic details, sufficiently indicates how Rome treated small states and how necessary a census was for it, which served as the only basis for determining the amount of tax paid annually and the number of troops always ready to march on it. protection.

However, in order to show some respect for this illusory independence of the union state and not to offend the feelings of national pride, moreover, of such a people as the Jews, who are always ready for an uprising, in the oath formula the name of Herod was allowed to be attached to the name of Augustus. (Ant., XVII, 3).

Rome had a special and characteristic ability: to soften, always in accordance with the circumstances, its laws and apply them to the case at the right time.

There is no doubt that long before the transformation of Judea into a Roman province, which finally took away from the Jews any idea of ​​\u200b\u200bindependence and the beginning of which was laid to some extent thanks to the decision to levy taxes in the year 9 according to generally accepted chronology, during the reign of Quirinius Rome tried to skillfully political methods to prepare the Jewish people for this transformation. The census in 747 from the founding of Rome and 7 years before the beginning of the calendar introduced by Dionysius, on the part of Augustus, was the first decisive step in this subordination. [end p.799]

It is surprising that such a fact is passed over in silence by the historian Josephus, who in his Antiquities left a detailed and complete description of the reign of Herod. This silence was contrasted with the testimony of St. Luke, that rationalist critics did not fail to blame him. I do not believe that Joseph was deliberately silent about this; and just as Tacitus, Suetonius and Dio presented to us facts that cannot be explained without this nationwide census in the provinces of the empire and in the allied states, in the same way the Jewish historian, with a more impartial study of him, gives us many positive facts that are in themselves confirm this census taken in Judea.

Let's open the book “Jewish Antiquities” (XVII, 2, 4); we will read the following lines in it: “Pharisees are called especially those who have the courage to resist the royal power; these are people capable and at the same time inclined to open struggle and always ready to do harm.” Also, “when all the Jews were forced to take an oath of allegiance to Caesar and the interests of their king, they refused to take this oath. There were more than six thousand of them, and the king sentenced them to a fine.”

What kind of oath was this? Caesar's name? - then doesn't it indicate Roman origin? Isn't this the formula used in all Roman censuses? If the names and number of all the opposing Pharisees are known, does this not serve as proof that they, each individually, were called to the commissioners, whose duty was to take an oath of allegiance from them to the Roman Emperor and the King of the Jews?

Most scientists without hesitation accepted this conclusion as true, and it seems to us very difficult to refute it.

Some writers and, incidentally, Wieseler (Chronologische Synopse), explained the silence of Josephus this way. The cautious historian avoids, wherever possible, talking about anything that could arouse even the slightest suspicion among the Roman authorities regarding the unconditional obedience of his compatriots to them. From this it is completely clear, for example, such a biased presentation of the question of the Jews' expectation of the Messiah and the various impressions that it caused in the national life of the Jewish people. [end p.800]

One more and final difficulty arises from the narration of the Evangelist Luke: “this census was the first during the reign of Quirinius Syria.”

History requires accuracy. Quirinius became procurator of Syria only around the 6th or 7th year according to generally accepted chronology; therefore, he could not supervise the census, which had taken place nine or ten years earlier during Herod’s lifetime. The anachronism is obvious.

The solution to this issue gave rise to the formation of completely different systems, the merits of which, in our opinion, are far from equal.

We cannot agree with the "in extremis" way of those who treat this 2nd verse as a false interpretation of some erring, immature mind - an interpretation invented at leisure, which little by little has penetrated into the text itself. Since the evangelist mentioned another census, different from the one that took place under Quirinius, and which he knows (Acts, V, 37), why didn’t he say a single word about it, which would have prevented bewilderment among the reader? If this verse is only a later addition, how is it that no manuscript is complete without this verse, and how is it that the Vulgate included it with others without any fear of its error?

The most careful interpretations have resorted to grammar to justify St. Evangelist Luke; they proposed translating the phrase from the Gospel of Luke as follows: “this first census was carried out before Quirinius became the ruler of Syria.”
A similar solution to a controversial issue, which can be called quite competent, was proposed for the first time by Hervaert (Nov. vera Chronol., 1611).

Theophylact, Bishop of Bulgaria (1070), no doubt following the ancient Greek interpreters, interpreted this verse of the Evangelist Luke in a similar way.

This explanation, no less competent than any other, has the advantage that it mentions two censuses at once and establishes their chronological relationship.

The third system, instead of separating these two censuses, mixes them into one, and the enumeration of the people mentioned by St. Luke, was, as it were, the beginning of it, and the land re-[end p.801] census during the time of Quirinius, ten years later, was its end. It seems that it is even more difficult to defend grammatically such an interpretation, although, however, from the point of view of history it is excellent.

But why should we not adhere to the statement of the writer, who tells us that this first census, different from the second, which was taken ten years later, was actually carried out by Quirinius, governor of Syria?

True, we know that at that time the real ruler of Syria was, according to the testimony of Tertullian, who knew the text of the Gospel just as well as we do. Luke, not Quirinius, but Sextus Saturninus (Cont. Marc, IV, 19).

Couldn’t the census have been carried out by another authority instead of the real prefect? Why exactly at that time could not Quirinius be this governing authority regarding the census? This does not at all contradict either Roman customs or history.

In fact, it is known, and I have already mentioned this, that the conduct of the census during the reign of Augustus was entrusted to special authorized persons, known for their honesty and merits, and among others, Dionysius, the geographer (Pliny, Hist. nat., VI, 14) . On the other hand, Tacitus (Annals, III, 48) says that Quirinius, who knew how to provide the divine Augustus with services valued by his appointment as consul, twenty years before the beginning of the generally accepted calendar, a little time later, was awarded remarkable honors for destroying fortifications and forced the surrender of the Gomonads inhabiting Cilicia. Who could be the leader of this expedition, about whose brilliant victory Strabo (XII, 15) gives us new details confirming the reports of Tacitus? He says that Quirinius forced the stubborn people to surrender by starvation, took four thousand people captive and did not leave a single person in the whole country capable of bearing arms. In our opinion, Quirinius was the legate of Augustus, the commander of the army, and with his four legions ruled at the same time Cilicia, Syria and Phenicia. He received this title for conquering the Gomonads and leading the census of these eastern provinces, which submitted to the emperor. No one escaped this census, neither Archelaus, king of Cappadocia, in the province of Cilicia, nor Herod, king of Judea, in the province of Phenicia. [end p.802]

This is how the words of Ev are explained and fully justified. Luke: “this census was the first in the reign of Quirinius in Syria.”

Comparing this census with the edict of Augustus, written on the marble of Ancyra in 747 from the founding of Rome, or in the 7th year before the beginning of the generally accepted chronology, we are forced to attribute the time of the birth of Jesus, which occurred in Bethlehem, to the very moment of the census. On the other hand, if Jesus was born before the death of Herod, then His birth cannot be placed at 750 years after the founding of Rome. So, this greatest historical event took place between 747 and 750.

3. Star

What star of the Messiah, the King of the Jews, do the wise men say about, that they saw it in the East and that it appeared as a sign announcing His birth?

Undoubtedly, this must be seen as a heavenly phenomenon, about which the Evangelist Matthew says almost nothing.

If the above-mentioned extraordinary phenomenon was interpreted by the Magi as a sign of the birth of the King of the Jews, this speaks, first of all, of their astrological prejudices, and secondly, of their close acquaintance with religious traditions widespread in the East; according to the testimony of Tacitus and Suetonius, these legends announced that the time had come when people who would rule over the whole world should emerge from Judea: “percrebuerat Oriente toto, vetus et constsns opinio esse in fatis, ut eo tempore Judaea profecti, rerum potirentur” (Sueton., Vesp., IV; Tacitus, History, V, 13; Josephus, Jewish War, VI, 6,4.). The Jews scattered everywhere carried with them messianic hopes. Arabs and Parthians, even Chinese and Indians, Egyptians, Romans, Greeks - no one was alien to these beliefs and hopes; why could not the wise men from the land of Valaam retain a deeper memory of the appearance of the star that their ancestor saw rising from Jacob? The belief that the birth of the Messiah will be announced by the appearance of a star does not come from the Magi alone - it is also the heritage of the Jewish people awaiting the Messiah.

The Magi talk about this as an event known and expected by everyone: “We saw,” they testify, “a star in the east.” Before the passage of the Magi, neither Herod nor the Sanhedrin knew anything about the close connection between the appearance of the star and the birth of the Messiah; and when they brought them this news, Herod and the whole city were in confusion.

This universal belief in no way denies the historical character of the Gospel narrative, but rather confirms it.
All the ancient pagans, inclined towards astrology, thought that the extraordinary revelations marking the birth and death of great men depended on the appearance of stars, comets and constellations. (Lucain, 1,529; Sueton., Coes., 88; Seneca, Quoest nat, I, 1; Josephus, Jewish War, VI, 5, 3; Just., 37; Lamprid., Alex. Sev., 12).

The Jews were also no strangers to beliefs in the powerful influence of astrology. They believed that the birth of the Messiah they expected would be accompanied by a heavenly sign, and understood the words in a purely messianic sense: “a star rises from Jacob” (Num., XXIV, 17).

Belief in the star of the Messiah exists even after Christ, which is supported by numerous evidence. The covenant of the twelve patriarchs says: “a special star in the sky will rise over Him as over a king.” When, in the time of Hadrian, a false Messiah appears, who calls himself the son of a star (Bar Kochba), thereby hinting at the indicated chapter of the book Numbers, then why do the Jews greet him so warmly? Because they hoped to see in him the fulfillment of the ancient prophecy of Balaam.

The mythological school looked upon the appearance of the star as a pure invention, created in order to give the Messiah a new name.

The school of rationalists since the 17th century was inclined to see in this star a similarity to the one that appeared in 1604 between Mars and Saturn, near the constellation Ophiuchus, during the convergence of three planets - Jupiter, Saturn and Mars. This is the approach calculated for the first time by Kepler ( De nova stella in pede Serpentarii, et qui sub ejus exortum, de novo iniiit trigono igneo. Pragoe, 1606), and then by various astronomers, is repeated every 800 years.

The Orthodox school, without completely denying this astronomical explanation, generally did not consider it possible to connect it with the words of St. Matthew. The meaning that the star has in the Gospel narrative, in reality, has little to do with the idea of ​​an ordinary star. The star goes before [end p.804] the wise men, shows them the way and brings them to the place where the born Baby was. The Gospel text does not allow the appearance of two stars: one ordinary one, which the Magi saw in the East, where they came from, and another extraordinary one, which brought them to the place where the Child was. This is the same star. If we adhere to a strict interpretation, then we must agree that the evangelist clearly speaks of a supernatural phenomenon, exceeding the laws of nature, sent by God Himself to lead the Magi to the born Messiah to worship Him.

Although the Evangelist Matthew does not indicate the astronomical star that Kepler studied, his words were the reason for the discovery of this star.

In the first half of the 17th century, at a time when German theologians were heatedly arguing about the year of Jesus' birth, at the end of 1603 an extremely rare phenomenon appeared in the sky. On December 15, there was a convergence of two planets, Jupiter and Saturn. In the spring of 1604, the planet Mars joined them, and something like a large star appeared in the vicinity of the two planets on the eastern side of the sky, near the constellation Ophiuchus. This star of the first magnitude and extraordinary brilliance gradually paled. Barely visible in October 1605, it finally disappeared in March 1606. This convergence, to which astrologers and, undoubtedly, the Magi, as Kepler notes, attributed great significance and which repeats every 20 years, requires more than eight centuries to go around the circle of the Zodiac . The great astronomer decided to check whether there was a similar combination of stars at the beginning of the Christian era, at the time of the birth of Jesus. His research led to a brilliant result: indeed, in 747 from the founding of Rome, in the second half of the constellation “Pisces”, near the sign “Aries”, a conjunction of planets occurred, and in the spring of the next year, 748, they were joined by the planet Mars under the sign of Jupiter and Saturn.

This is how he explains the appearance of the star to the Magi. This extremely rare combination of three planets attracted the attention of the Magi, especially since it was apparently accompanied by the appearance of a very bright star in the sky. Assuming that the new star appeared primarily not only at the time when Saturn and Jupiter approached each other, that is, in June 747, but also in the same place where these planets were in 1603, 1604, 1605, they could not Did the Chaldean sages, following the rules of their art, which then had even greater power, conclude that some great event had happened on [End Page 805] earth? (Kepler, De nova Stella inpede Serpentarii 1606;- De vero anno quo oeternus Dei Filius humanam naturam in utero benedictoe Virginis Marioe assumpsit. Francf. 1614).

If it is strictly established by astronomical calculations that such a stellar phenomenon actually occurred, then it seems simply incredible that the Persian or Chaldean astrologers, known as the Magi, did not notice it; if they noticed, then it is quite natural to draw the conclusion from this that they attributed to this phenomenon some mysterious meaning, namely, the birth of the much-awaited Messiah in Judea, who, according to legend, was supposed to rule over the whole world. In Germany, Kepler's calculations were checked and confirmed at the beginning of the 19th century by Proff ( Der Stern der Weisen. Kopenhagen, 1827), Schubert ( Das Licht und die Weltgegenden sammteiner Abhanlung uber Planeten-Conjunctionen und den Stern der drei Weisen. Bamberg, 1827) n Ideler (Vermischte Schriften, Band I).

We can conclude that if the star that appeared at one time in conjunction with Jupiter, Saturn and Mars appeared in 747, and the Magi did not come to Jerusalem until the following year, then the year of Jesus' birth must be placed in 748 or 749 from the foundation Rome. It remains to be seen whether these mysterious travelers came at the very time of the birth of Jesus or a year later, as, by the way, St. believed. Epiphanius. Adhering to the last hypothesis, we have to attribute the birth of Jesus to a later time - to 747 or 748.

4. Baptism of Jesus

One of the most accurate and important chronological documents by which one can determine the time of the birth of Jesus and the time of His life is the Gospel of Luke, III, 23. According to the story of St. Evangelist, Jesus was about 30 years old when John the Baptist appeared on the banks of the Jordan and when Jesus Himself came to him to be baptized.
If we can determine the year of Jesus' baptism, then we will also determine the year of His birth.
We hope for success by relying on the chronological data of the fourth Gospel, which is the most reliable, less biased and most fully consistent with the words of the third Gospel. [end p.806]

Talking about the phenomena that accompanied the baptism of Jesus (I, 31-34; cf. I, 26), St. John mentions (II, 13) the first Passover, which Jesus celebrated in Jerusalem after His baptism. It is necessary to determine the date of this Easter in order to indicate the deadline to which we must place the baptism of Jesus: St. John gives us the opportunity to determine this precious number.

“Then the Jews said: This temple took forty-six years to build, and will You raise it up in three days?” (II, 20). So, at the time when the Jews said this to Jesus, 46 years had already passed since work began on the construction of the temple, which, according to the testimony of Josephus (Ant., XX, 9.7), was completed completely shortly before the start Jewish war. By adding the number 46 to those indicating the time when Herod began the restoration of the Second Temple, we get the year when the Jews uttered these words, and at the same time the year of the Passover that followed the baptism of Jesus. So, Herod began this grandiose undertaking (Ant., XV, II, 1) in the 18th year of his reign, probably on the feast of the Renewal of the Temple in the month of Kislev (734 from the founding of Rome) and, in any case, probably before Easter holiday 735. Adding 46 years, we come to Easter 781, therefore, Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist in the second half of 780 from the founding of Rome. Since, according to the testimony of the Evangelist Luke, Jesus was about 30 years old when He was baptized, His birth should be dated to 749/750 from the founding of Rome.

Now it is necessary to reveal the fallacy of the interpretation allowed by the majority of exegetes regarding the 15th year of the reign of Tiberius. This error was the beginning of the difficulties that arose in the chronology of the life of Jesus.

The most important data regarding time taken from Luke's Gospel cannot be attributed either to the baptism of Jesus or to the entry of John into the field of public ministry. In fact, if John the Baptist began his activity and Jesus received baptism from him in the 15th year of the reign of Tiberius, that is, in 782 from the founding of Rome, then, consequently, Jesus, whose birth, undoubtedly, should have been earlier than 750, I was already 33 years old then. Meanwhile, as the Gospel of Luke authoritatively states, Jesus was 30 years old at the time of his baptism. Who has the right to deny this such clear confirmation of St. evangelist and say that the third Gospel contradicts itself? [end p.807]

The time indicated by the Evangelist Luke really marks the end of the public ministry of John and the beginning of the apostolic ministry of Jesus, which the weather forecasters tried to connect not with His baptism, but with the imprisonment of John the Baptist.
Regarding the baptism of Jesus, the question arises: at what time did John begin to baptize?

In the Gospels we do not find an exact indication; for, as we have already seen, the 15th year of the reign of Tiberius, known to us from the Gospel of Luke (III, 1,2), indicates a completely different event.

There is nothing surprising. The evangelists describe the life of Jesus, not John; they mention the Baptist to the extent necessary to explain the activities and significance of the Messiah.

In any case, it is possible to arrive at an approximate definition. The account of Jesus' baptism shows that John had already begun to baptize before Jesus came to him on the banks of the Jordan.

So Jesus was baptized in 780; It follows from this that the preaching of John the Baptist could not begin after this time.

Following Jewish custom, which required that a person enter the public sphere at the age of thirty, we can conclude that John, who was six months older than Jesus, began his preaching around the year 779.

A little later, the new Prophet attracted the attention of the Sanhedrin, whose solemn embassy is described in the fourth Gospel (I, 19-27).

The following circumstance is worthy of attention: somewhat earlier than the time when John the Baptist turned thirty years old, in 779-780, the Jews began a Sabbath year, the most holy year, a year of rest, freedom, forgiveness, a year repeated every seven years (Leviticus , XXV; Deuteronomy, xv). Many such years have been mentioned throughout the centuries by both sacred and pagan writers.

The Books of Maccabees (Book I, Chapter VI, 49-53) mentions the year 150 following the Seleucid era, and the years 590 and 591 from the founding of Rome; in Josephus (Ant., XIII, 8.1) - about 716 and 717; the Talmud also speaks of 821 and 822.

All these numbers are precisely determined by multiplying the number 7; and as Wieseler notes ( Chronologische Synapse, 5, 205), adding 189 years to the first Sabbath year, which is mentioned [end p.808] in Book. Maccabees, and subtracting 42 years from the latter mentioned in the Talmud, we get the Sabbath year in 779 from the founding of Rome.

There is no doubt that at the beginning of this year John the Baptist heard the voice of God, which called him to ministry, and received a command to begin preaching among the people, whose consciousness he could more easily influence and act during the year of rest and rest, when agricultural work gave way to religious thoughts .

In any case, the baptism of Jesus took place about the middle of this seventh year.

Obviously, no matter what path is chosen to determine the time of the birth of Christ, the result is the same. All data corresponds to each other: the year of Herod’s death, the national census, the star of the Magi and, finally, the baptism of Jesus.

_____________________

[p.803] 1 CM. Magnan, De anno natatil Chrisli. Sanclemente, De vulg. oeroe. emendat. Abbe Memain, Chronologiucs, etc. etc.