A POOR MONK IN A LUXURIOUS RESTAURANT

A POOR MONK IN A LUXURIOUS RESTAURANT

One day my friend Eve and I were having breakfast at an Italian restaurant. We were talking about what I needed to change in my life to stop feeling despondent. There was no one in the restaurant except us. 

Then a monk came in. It was clear that he was not from Moscow - he was dressed in a plain coat, faded cassock, and a crumpled hat. His beard face was wide and weathered. He didn’t belong here, he didn’t correspond to the atmosphere of an expensive restaurant. The monk studied the menu, saw the prices and was about to leave when my friend Eve hurried to him and invited him to join us.

He agreed, sat down at the table and in a loud bass voice introduced himself: “Good morning, my name is Malachi, which means “the messenger of God”. I am travelling from Athos to Siberia, my native land, to get some documents. Do you believe in Christ?” “We do,” we replied. “Do you pray?” was his next question. “We do.” “Well, let's pray then!”

He took a paper icon of the Mother of God of Smolensk out of his pocket and placed it on the table: “God, have mercy on me, a sinner!”

And then together, the three of us read aloud the morning prayer rule! The waiter served the food and without saying a word, tiptoed away. 

The restaurant was getting full of people, some giving us the side eye, but we continued our rule. I was praying all in tears, Eve was praying and smiling. When we finished, the monk advised: “Never forget to pray. The first thing in the morning, when you open your eyes - talk to Christ, and everything will be fine with you!”

Then he ate his breakfast and left. 

Stunned, I asked Eva: “What was that?” She smiled again and said: “It was the answer to your question. You asked what you should do and the answer was given to you. Any more questions? No? God be praised!”

Tutta Larsen, a Russian TV presenter.