1 April 14:42
The rector of the Church of the Hieromartyr Amphilochius in Krasnoyarsk, Priest Rodion Petrikov, visited a rehabilitation center for addicts.
The priest told people suffering from alcohol and drug addiction about the life of the Venerable Mary of Egypt, a Christian saint whose life’s journey is a shining example of repentance.
At the age of 12, Maria left home in Alexandria, where she became carried away with a vicious life. For more than 17 years she lived in sin, until one day she joined a group of pilgrims heading to the Holy Land. Once in Jerusalem, she wanted to enter the Church of the Resurrection of Christ, but was stopped by an invisible hand. Mary realized that the Lord did not allow her into the holy place for uncleanness.
Seized with horror and a feeling of deep repentance, she began to pray to God to forgive her sins, promising to radically correct her life. Seeing an icon of the Mother of God at the entrance to the temple, Mary asked the Mother of God to intercede for her before the Lord. After this, she immediately felt enlightenment in her soul and entered the temple without hindrance.
From Jerusalem, Mary retired to the harsh and deserted Jordanian desert and spent almost half a century there in complete solitude, in fasting and prayer.
At the end of the meeting, Father Rodion answered questions from the center’s wards, and also performed the Sacrament of Repentance for those who wished and distributed crosses.
The priest notes that the care of the rehabilitation center is carried out on a regular basis.
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