The robber enlightened

The robber enlightened 

In a small village located on the banks of a picturesque river, celebrated the day of the Most Holy Trinity. A neatly dressed old man came out of the gate, white as a harrier, with a gentle face and kindly smiling eyes. The teenagers, seeing him, ran with joyful shouts to him: 

- Hello, grandfather Egor! Tell something, tell us! 

This old man was a retired non-commissioned officer, a man well-read, pious and who had seen much in his lifetime. Having sat down on a mound, grandfather Egor waited, while all settled down nearby, and began the story. 

“More than 40 years have passed since the celebration of the Holy Trinity became especially memorable. I was then 25 years old, I have not yet joined the regiment, and worked as a clerk. My friend, also a clerk, Pyotr Ivanovich, was the son of a merchant, at ten he was left an orphan and lived with his aunt, a landowner, a gentle and pious woman. Peter Ivanovich was quiet, modest, and could give the beggar one last penny. 

But man is not without sin, and Peter Ivanovich also had his own oddities. For some reason he did not like to go to church. I told him: 

- Peter, why do you rarely go to church? If only I could have gone by the afternoon!

He would smile, and say: 

- All the same, where to pray: at home or in church, God is one! So I can pray at home! 

One day, on the eve of the feast of the holy apostles Peter and Paul, he went to the field. The sun was quietly setting behind the forest, the evening was wonderful, nothing foreshadowed bad weather. When Peter Ivanovich approached the field, the weather changed dramatically: a strong wind blew, a black thundercloud appeared in the sky. Soon the rain poured, lightning flashed. He stepped off the dirt road to the grass and stopped. At that moment, lightning flashed and struck the ground two steps away. If Peter Ivanovich had not gone out of the way, then lightning would have struck him.

Another time, on the feast of the Exaltation of the Cross of the Lord, he and the guard went to the forest lodge. Peter Ivanovich sent the guard to the attic, while he himself was waiting for him in the passage. Suddenly a force pushed him into the upper room. As soon as Peter Ivanovich entered and closed the door behind him, a terrible roar was heard in the passage. 

When he opened the door, he could not believe his eyes: the ceiling in the hallway collapsed. It turns out that the watchman, when he began to get out of the attic, leaned on the crossbar supporting the ceiling. The crossbar was rotten, and it collapsed. Peter Ivanovich would have been crushed if he had stayed in the hall. 

There were other instances of God's miraculous help in his life, but he did not heed and still did not go to the temple. I only hoped that the Lord Himself would turn him on the right path and make him go to church!

On the eve of the Most Holy Trinity holiday, Pyotr Ivanovich went to the city to transfer his money from the city bank to the provincial bank. He was a very hardworking man, and he saved money for a rainy day. After he took the money from the bank, Peter Ivanovich decided to take it home first. In the city, his acquaintances began to dissuade him: 

- Where are you going, because tomorrow is a big holiday! Let us  go to church, pray, and tomorrow after dinner, go. Now it is dangerous to go. It is: evening and a storm is coming.. 

But Peter Ivanovich did not obey.

As soon as he set off, a bell rang in the temple to the vigil. But he still did not go to the temple. Soon it began to drizzle, gradually turning into a downpour. When Peter Ivanovich entered the forest, he thought: “I’ve already gone half the way, I’ll soon get to the house!” With these thoughts he continued on his way. Suddenly, someone grabbed his horse by the bridle and shouted: 

- Stop! 

Although Peter Ivanovich was not a timid one, he was very frightened. Several people attacked him, hit him on the head and dragged him from the cart ... 

When he woke up, he saw that morning had already come. He lay on the ground, undressed, there was no horse nearby. From weakness Peter Ivanovich could not even move. Then he turned to God with a prayer:

- Lord! I am very sinful before You, I did not go to Your temple! Forgive me, help me, do not let me die without repentance! I promise I will go to church! 

After that, he lost consciousness, and woke up in my house. It happened like this. After the liturgy that day, I had to go to town on business. When I was driving through the forest, I heard someone's moans. I look and see someone is lying. I crossed myself, got off the cart and walked closer. How surprised I was to see Peter Ivanovich in front of me! He, poor, was covered in blood and unconscious ... I somehow dumped him on the cart and brought him to my home. 

A day later he came to himself. 

Peter Ivanovich was ill for half a year. The owner fired him, and he was left without a piece of bread. During his illness, he never once complained to the Lord God, prayed all the time and said:

- I deserve it. Glory to Thee, Lord! 

When he got better, he decided to look for a job, but I didn’t let him go: 

- Where are you going? You are not quite well yet. Thank God, there are some things, you and I will have enough, I will feed you. And then my relatives have died, now you will leave too. I would never let you go! 

So Peter Ivanovich stayed with me. He began to go to church often, he prayed a lot, thanked the Lord for everything. 

A year passed unnoticed, the feast of the Most Holy Trinity came again. On this day, Peter Ivanovich prayed on his knees for a long time in the temple. When he came home, I asked: 

- Why did you pray so hard? 

- I asked the Lord to settle me somewhere. I can't eat your bread for nothing! - And wept. 

And I said:

- What are you saying, God be with you! Who reproaches you with bread? God is merciful, will not leave. 

Only I said these words, as they brought a parcel and a letter addressed to Peter Ivanovich. What is this, I thought,, because he never received letters. 

And he says to me: 

- They probably sent this to you, but by mistake they wrote my name. 

I took the letter, began to read and could not believe my eyes. This letter was sent by the one who robbed Peter Ivanovich at Troitsin that day and whom he left without a piece of bread! You might ask, who was this man? I do not know, he did not say anything about himself. 

This unkind person wrote that he wanted to hide the stolen money for a rainy day. But conscience did not give him peace of mind, with each passing day it became increasingly difficult. Finally he decided to return the money.

I silently handed the letter to Peter Ivanovich. After reading it, he began to cry, knelt in front of the icon of the Savior and began to pray. 

And I also could not hold back tears. 

"Stories of the priests"