June 3 is St. Helena's Day. Church Orthodox holiday of June

Every year on June 3, the Orthodox Church celebrates the memory of the ruler of the Roman Empire, Tsar Constantine Equal to the Apostles and his mother, Empress Helen. Saint Constantine is famous for being the first Roman emperor to support Christianity.

What holiday is celebrated on June 3: the becoming of Constantine the monarch

Saint Constantine was the son of Constantius and Helena. He was born in 272. In 306, when his father died, he was proclaimed successor to the throne. In 312, he went to Italy, where, being at the head of his troops, he saw in the sky a shining pillar in the shape of a Cross with the words: "You will win." The next night, the Lord Jesus Christ appeared to him in a dream and announced to him the power of the Cross and its significance. In the morning, he immediately ordered to make a labarum in the form of a cross, and inscribed on it the Name of Jesus Christ.

On October 28, he attacked Maxentius, and the next day he entered Rome in triumph and became monarch over the West and East. During his reign, all persecution against the Christian Church ceased. Christianity triumphed and paganism was overthrown.

In 325 he convened the First Ecumenical Council in Nicaea. In 324 AD, in the ancient city of Byzantium, he laid the foundations for the new capital of his kingdom and inaugurated it on May 11, 330 AD, naming it Constantinople. Since the throne of imperial power was transferred to Constantinople from Rome, it was called New Rome, the inhabitants of its area were called Romans, and this was considered a continuation of the Roman Empire.

What holiday is celebrated on June 3: the adoption of Christianity by Constantine

Christian historians have been of the opinion that Constantine "adopted" Christianity as a sort of replacement for official Roman paganism. Although it has been proven the document titled The Donation of Constantine was a forgery, it has been attributed as documenting the conversion of the Roman Empire to Christianity over the centuries. Even Christian skeptics have accepted this formulation, although Constantine's vision of politics is more political than spiritual.

By the end of the 3rd century, the Christian communities and their bishops had become a force to be fought, in the urban centers especially the Christians preferred high positions of state; The Church has been granted various special privileges; and churches such as the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem.

Christian bishops adopted aggressive social stances that were known among other cult leaders, even among Jews. Proselytism was to be publicly outlawed, simply to maintain public decorum. However, in the main legions, Christianity was despised, and the soldiers followed the pagan cults of Mithras and Isis.

What he did was legalize Christianity, return confiscated church property, and establish Sunday as a day of worship. Although the Church flourished under Constantine's patronage, it also fell into the first of many social schisms. He called on the First Ecumenical Council to solve the problem of heresy, the dispute about the person and divinity of Jesus Christ. Constantine produced a creed that favored the position of St. Athanasius, the adversary of Arius, and became the official teaching of the Church.

What holiday is celebrated on June 3: the legacy of Constantine

Constantine's legacy can be seen in the translation of Christianity from a private sect to a public church embracing the whole of society. He placed it on an institutional footing that enabled the Church to become the leading cultural force in the ancient world.

However, a balanced assessment of the historical record shows that, as Constantine may have contributed to the Christianization of the Roman Empire, Constantinople - New Rome. With his decision to turn the village of Byzantium into the New Capital City of the Roman Empire, Constantine laid the foundation for what would become the main spiritual center, the Patriarchate of Constantinople.

As New Rome, Constantinople was meant to signal the break of the Roman Empire with its pagan past and communion with Christianity. By order of Constantine, there were no pagan ceremonies in the city. Constantinople flourished as a spiritual and political capital and was also the springboard from which came the missionary outburst in Russia.

What holiday is celebrated on June 3: St. Constantine is honored as equal to the apostles

The Orthodox Church sees Saint Constantine as an emperor who helped the early Church in the evangelization of the Roman Empire. For this reason, she honors him as Saint Constantine, equal to the apostles.

Saint Constantine issued a Decree in 313 that guaranteed religious tolerance for Christians. The emperor revered the victorious Sign of the Cross of the Lord and wanted to find the real Cross on which Christ was crucified. He sent his mother Helen to Jerusalem, where she did many jobs, including giving money to the poor.

Helena also ordered that all places connected with the earthly life of the Lord and His All-human Mother be freed from traces of paganism and directed that churches be built in each of these places.

Saint Helena continued to travel to holy places, building more than 80 churches. Constantine gave the order to build a church in Jerusalem in honor of the Resurrection of Christ. Saint Helena entered the Eternal Kingdom in 327. Due to her great service to the Church and her efforts to find the Cross of Life, Empress Helena is also called "equal of the apostles".

March 19 and June 3 are commemorated Saint Equal-to-the-Apostles Empress Helena (circa 250-330), mother of the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great. Elena raised her son in Christianity and contributed a lot to the fact that later Constantine made Christianity the state religion of the Roman Empire. Queen Elena did a lot to spread Christianity in other countries. At the age of about 80, she made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, where she excavated at the places of execution and burial of Jesus Christ. Among the relics found were four nails and the Life-Giving Cross, on which the Lord was crucified. In memory of the events of the earthly life of Christ, Elena founded several churches in the Holy Land, of which the Church of the Holy Sepulcher is the most famous throughout the world. On the way back to her homeland, she founded a number of monasteries, for example, the Stavrovouni Monastery in Cyprus. For her great services to the church, Elena was canonized as Equal-to-the-Apostles (besides her, only five other women received such an honor - Mary Magdalene, the first martyr Thekla, the martyr Apphia, Princess Olga and the Enlightener of Georgia Nina).

An interesting story is connected with the transfer of the relics of the holy Empress Helena from Rome to France. According to Nikolai Nikishin, cleric of the Three Saints Metochion of the Moscow Patriarchate in Paris, today the relics are in one of the Catholic churches on the main street of Paris, dotted with low-class entertainment establishments. Initially, the relics were kept in the church of the holy martyrs Marcellinus and Peter in Rome. But in the 9th century, a French monk who received healing from the relics secretly took them to his abbey.

When the Pope found out about the fate of the stolen relics, he did not demand their return, and they remained in France. During the revolution, persecution began against the Church, and shortly before the destruction of the monastery, the relics were transferred to a church located in a neighboring village. And in 1820, the relics ended up with the knights of the Royal Brotherhood of the Holy Sepulcher, which considered Queen Helen its founder (since she founded the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem). So the relics ended up in the church of Saint-le-Saint-Gilles in Paris, where they are still kept in a sarcophagus suspended high under the arches. There are many testimonies in history about miraculous healings of people who turned their prayers to Equal-to-the-Apostles Empress Elena. However, today few pilgrims come to the relics - for many Orthodox Christians, the location of the relics remains a mystery.

Princess Olga (884-969) - the first Russian saint - received the name Elena in baptism(in honor of Empress Helena). Olga, just like Empress Elena, contributed a lot to the fact that Christianity came to her land. After the death of her husband, Prince Igor, Olga herself ruled Kievan Rus, rejecting proposals for remarriage. She took upon herself the burden of state administration and improvement until the time when the heir to the throne, Prince Svyatoslav, grew up. However, even after Svyatoslav officially began to reign, Olga managed all affairs, because her son spent a lot of time on military campaigns. Princess Olga turned out to be a strong and wise ruler, she was able to strengthen the country's defense power, and introduced a unified system of taxes. Olga's baptism in Constantinople predetermined the adoption of Christianity by all the ancient Russian people (the baptism of Russia took place already under her grandson Vladimir, whom Olga raised in the Christian faith). Memorial Day of Princess Olga (St. Helena) - July 24.

Another Saint Helena - Blessed Elena Serbian(date of death - February 8, 1314), wife of King Stefan Uros I Nemanich. She raised two sons, the future kings of Serbia - Saints Milutin and Dragutin. Elena became famous for her patronage of the poor and orphans. In her yard in Brnyatsy, she founded a school for orphans, where she taught them faith, literacy, and needlework. When they grew up, she provided them with a rich dowry and gave them in marriage. Elena built houses for the impoverished peasants, arranged cloisters for those who wished to live in purity and virginity, and made generous donations to churches and monasteries. Before her death, she accepted monasticism with the name Elizabeth. She was buried in her monastery - Gradac Monastery in Serbia. Three years after the burial, when it was discovered that the body of the queen remained incorrupt, the Serbian Orthodox Church canonized Elena as a saint. Until the beginning of the 17th century, the relics of St. Helena of Serbia were kept in the Gradac church, and today they are in Montenegro, not far from the city of Herceg Novi, in a monastery founded by St. Sava of Serbia. The memory of Elena Serbskaya is celebrated on November 12 - the day when her holy relics were found incorrupt.

Few can leave indifferent history Reverend Elena Diveevskaya. Elena Vasilievna Manturova (1805-1832) was born into a noble family. At the age of 17, she vowed to enter a monastery, and after three years of trials and preparation for monasticism, Father Seraphim of Sarov blessed her to enter the Diveevo Kazan community. In addition to general obediences, Elena always carried out the most difficult assignments of the priest - not only because she received a good education and, unlike many sisters, she was literate.

She also knew how to "reason with her heart", to distinguish between good and bad, and to do what pleases God. When the Mill Monastery was founded in the monastery, the priest appointed Elena Vasilyevna as the head of it. Elena received her last, most difficult obedience when her brother, Mikhail Vasilievich Manturov, a benefactor of the Diveevo community and beloved disciple of St. Seraphim, fell seriously ill. “He needs to die, mother,” said Father Seraphim. - And I still need it for our monastery, for orphans. So here is obedience to you: you die for Mikhail Vasilievich! “Bless, Father,” Elena Vasilievna humbly answered.

Returning home, she took to her bed and died a few days later. Memorial Day of the Reverend nun Elena is celebrated on June 10.

Christian history remembers another Helen - but not as an ascetic who knows how to kindle spiritual fire in hearts, but, on the contrary, as a violator of one thousand-year tradition. As you know, a woman's foot never sets foot on the land of Athos. However, history knows one exception, and her name is Elena. In 1347, King Stefan Urosh IV Dušan of Serbia and Queen Elena spent several months on Athos, fleeing the plague.

In Russia, parents often call their daughters Elena. In the first third of the 20th century, this name was among the ten most common in Moscow. In the 50-80s, it firmly held the first place in popularity. Today, the name Elena has lost its former position - in the 2000s, it does not even fall into the top ten most common female names.

*** Equal-to-the-Apostles Tsar Constantine (337) and his mother Queen Helena (327). ** Blessed Prince Konstantin (Yaroslav) (1129) and his sons Michael and Theodore (XII), Miracle Workers of Murom. Venerable Cassian the Greek, Wonderworker of Uglich (1504). *** Icons of the Mother of God of Vladimir (a holiday established in memory of the salvation of Moscow from the invasion of the Crimean Khan Makhmet Giray in 1521).
Saint Cyril, Bishop of Rostov (1262). Venerable Martyr Agapit of Markushevsky (1584). Blessed Andrei Simbirsky (1841). Honored lists from the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God: Vladimirskaya-Rostovskaya (XII), Pskov-Pecherskaya "Tenderness" (1524), Syrkovskaya (1548), Zaonikievskaya (1588), Krasnogorskaya or Montenegrinskaya (1603), Oranskaya (1634), Florishchevskaya (XVII ), Tupichevskaya-Rostovskaya.

Day Equal-to-the-Apostles Tsar Constantine and his mother Queen Helena

The Holy Emperor Constantine (306-337), who received from the Church the name Equal-to-the-Apostles, and in world history was called the Great, was the son of Caesar Constantius Chlorus, who ruled over the countries of Gaul and Britain.
The huge Roman Empire was at that time divided into Western and Eastern, headed by two independent emperors who had co-rulers, one of whom in the Western half was the father of Emperor Constantine.
Holy Empress Helena, mother of Emperor Constantine, was a Christian. The future ruler of the entire Roman Empire - Constantine - was brought up in respect for Christian religion. His father did not persecute Christians in the countries he ruled, while in the rest of the Roman Empire, Christians were subjected to severe persecution by the emperors Diocletian (284-305), his co-ruler Maximian Galerius (305-311) - in the East and the emperor Maximian Hercules (284-305) - in the West.
After the death of Constantius Chlorus, his son Constantine in 306 was proclaimed Emperor of Gaul and Britain by the troops. The first task of the new emperor was to proclaim in the countries subject to him the freedom of confession of the Christian faith. The fanatic of paganism Maximian Galerius in the East and the cruel tyrant Maxentius in the West hated Emperor Constantine and plotted to depose and kill him, but Constantine warned them and in a series of wars, with the help of God, defeated all his opponents. He prayed to God to give him a sign that would inspire his army to fight bravely, and the Lord showed him in heaven the shining sign of the Cross with the inscription "By this win."
Having become the sovereign ruler of the Western part of the Roman Empire, Constantine issued the Edict of Milan on religious tolerance in 313, and in 323, when he reigned as the only emperor over the entire Roman Empire, he extended the Edict of Milan to the entire eastern part of the empire. After three hundred years of persecution, for the first time, Christians were able to openly confess their faith in Christ.
Having abandoned paganism, the emperor did not leave the capital of the empire Ancient Rome, the former center of a pagan state, but moved its capital to the east, to the city of Byzantium, which was renamed Constantinople. Constantine was deeply convinced that only the Christian religion could unite the huge, heterogeneous Roman Empire. He supported the Church in every possible way, returned Christian confessors from exile, built churches, and took care of the clergy.
Deeply honoring the Cross of the Lord, the emperor wished to find the very Life-Giving Cross on which our Lord Jesus Christ was crucified. For this purpose, he sent his mother, the holy Empress Helen, to Jerusalem, giving her great powers and material means. Together with Patriarch Macarius of Jerusalem, Saint Helen began to search, and by the Providence of God the Life-Giving Cross was miraculously found in the year 326.
While in Palestine, the holy empress did a lot for the benefit of the Church. She ordered that all places connected with the earthly life of the Lord and His Most Pure Mother be freed from all traces of paganism, she ordered that Christian churches be erected in these memorable places. Above the cave of the Holy Sepulcher, Emperor Constantine himself ordered the construction of a magnificent temple to the glory of the Resurrection of Christ. Saint Helena gave the Life-Giving Cross to the Patriarch for safekeeping, and she took part of the Cross with her to present to the emperor. Having distributed generous alms in Jerusalem and arranged meals for the poor, during which she herself served, the holy Empress Helena returned to Constantinople, where she soon died in the year 327.
For her great services to the Church and her labors in obtaining the Life-Giving Cross, Empress Elena is called the Equal-to-the-Apostles.
The peaceful existence of the Christian Church was disturbed by the moods and strife that arose within the Church from the heresies that appeared. Even at the beginning of the activity of Emperor Constantine in the West, the heresy of the Donatists and Novatians arose, demanding a repetition of baptism over Christians who had fallen away during the persecution. This heresy, rejected by two local councils, was finally condemned by the Council of Milan in 316.
One can be surprised at the deep ecclesiastical consciousness and feeling of Saint Constantine, who singled out the definition of "Consubstantial" heard by him in the debate of the Council, and proposed that this definition be included in the Creed.
After the Council of Nicaea, Equal-to-the-Apostles Constantine continued his active work in favor of the Church. At the end of his life, he received holy baptism, preparing for it with his whole life. Saint Constantine died on the day of Pentecost in the year 337, and was buried in the Church of the Holy Apostles, in a tomb he had prepared beforehand.

Equal-to-the-Apostles Tsar Constantine

Holy Tsar Constantine is called equal to the apostles because, like the apostles, he did a great deal for the Christian Church. Before him, the Christian faith was persecuted and Christians were persecuted and punished, but he made it dominant in the Roman Empire. His parents were Constantius Chlorus, who ruled the western regions of the Roman Empire in Spain, Gaul and Britain and respected Christians for their good qualities, and Elena. In 306, after the death of his father, Constantine ascended the throne and, like his father, did not persecute Christians. At the same time, Maxentius, an evil and greedy man, reigned in Rome. Under his rule, it was hard not only for Christians, but also for pagans, so the Romans turned to Constantine with a request to free them from the tyrant. Constantine went against Maxentius; and so, when he was approaching Rome, suddenly, in the middle of the day, he and his army saw in heaven a cross of stars with the inscription: "Conquer by this." The next night, the Lord appeared to Constantine in a vision and ordered to make a banner like a cross and depict the cross on the weapons, shields and helmets of the soldiers. Constantine did so and defeated the enemy, in spite of his strong army; fleeing, the tyrant drowned in the Tiber River. Then Constantine accepted Christianity, although he had not yet been baptized; he was baptized shortly before his death. In the eastern regions of the Roman Empire, Licinius reigned, who persecuted Christians. Constantine declared war on him and, having defeated him, became the sole ruler of the entire Roman Empire, and from that time on the Christian faith became dominant in the empire. The Christians were given back their rights, their positions, privileges and estates taken away by the persecutors. All those condemned to imprisonment for disrespecting idols were released. Temples were erected everywhere, and idol temples were destroyed. Constantine chose for himself a new capital instead of Rome, the former capital of paganism, a city near the Black Sea, Byzantium, and called it New Rome, Constantinople (read May 11). He adorned Constantinople with many holy temples and charitable houses. Constantine restored Jerusalem and erected here, on the site of the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ, a magnificent temple. During the reign of Constantine, the heresy of Arius appeared and the schism of Meletius. He convened the First Ecumenical Council in Nicaea, at which heresy and schism were condemned, and the first half of the Creed was drawn up. Constantine died in 337 at the age of 65: his body was buried in Constantinople in the Church of the Holy Apostles he created.

Queen Elena

The Holy Empress Helena was the companion of her son Constantine in matters for the benefit of the Christian religion, therefore she is also called Equal-to-the-Apostles. Upon the conversion of her son, she was not slow to accept Christianity. In 326, already at an advanced age, she set off to travel around the Holy Land. There she destroyed the idol temples built on the places consecrated by Christ, having built Christian churches instead, opened many relics of various saints, found the Holy Life-Giving Cross of Christ and showed many different graces. Returning to her son, she brought with her a part of the wood of the Cross of the Lord and the holy nails of the crucifixion. Saint Helena died in 327, 80 years old. Particles of the relics of St. Constantine and Helena are kept on Mount Athos in the Intercession Cathedral of the St. Panteleimon Monastery and in Kyiv, in the Lavra. Hand of St. Helena is kept in Rome in the Lateran Cathedral, and her relics in the Church of the Mother of God on the Capitoline Hill.

Blessed Prince Konstantin

St. Prince Konstantin was the youngest son of Grand Duke Svyatoslav Yaroslavich and reigned in Murom. He himself begged from his father this city, which was among the Finns, who were rude and stubborn pagans, in order to introduce Christianity there. He arrived in Murom in 1096. His family, clergy, army and servants went with him. Approaching the city, the prince sent his son Mikhail ahead to convince the people of Murom to accept him without resistance; but the people of Murom killed Mikhail and began to prepare for battle. St. Constantine approached the city with an army. The people of Murom resigned themselves, agreed to accept the prince, but on the condition that they were not forced to accept the Christian faith. Constantine entered the city and immediately began his apostolic work: he built the Church of the Annunciation on the site of the burial of the body of his murdered son, Prince Michael, and then the Church of Sts. Boris and Gleb. The clergy, at the behest of the prince, began preaching, and he himself often called the elders of the city to him and ardently urged them to accept the Christian faith. The most stubborn of the pagans with an armed crowd once approached the house of the prince, but he, after praying with his retinue, went out to the crowd with the icon of the Virgin. The rebels were amazed and wished to be baptized. Baptism was performed solemnly on the Oka River. The prince gave gifts to the baptized. So laboring for the spread and establishment of the Christian faith, St. Constantine died in 1129. His body was laid in the Church of the Annunciation, next to his sons, Michael and Theodore. Miracles were performed at the tomb of the holy princes, and their relics turned out to be incorrupt.

Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God

The Vladimir icon of the Mother of God, according to legend, was written by the Evangelist Luke on a board from the table at which the Holy Family ate. The icon was brought to Russia from Byzantium at the beginning of the 12th century as a gift to Yuri Dolgoruky from the Patriarch of Constantinople Luke Chrysoverha. The icon was placed in the nunnery of Vyshgorod, not far from Kyiv, and the rumor about its miraculous works reached the son of Yuri Dolgoruky, Prince Andrei Bogolyubsky, who decided to transport the icon to the north. Passing Vladimir, the horses carrying the miraculous icon stood up and could not move. Replacing the horses with new ones also did not help. The prince interpreted this sign as the desire of the Mother of God to stay in Vladimir, where in two years the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin was built.
In 1395, when Tamerlane moved his hordes to Moscow, the holy icon was brought from Vladimir. For ten days they carried the icon in their arms to Moscow. The place where the “meeting” of the icon by the Grand Duke, metropolitans and bishops took place is still called Sretenka, and the Sretensky Monastery was founded there. Tamerlane suddenly turned his troops back from under Yelets, "fled, driven by the power of the Blessed Virgin." The icon was never returned to Vladimir, leaving it in Moscow.
In 1451, the army of the Nogai Khan approached Moscow with Prince Mazovsha. The Tatars set fire to the Moscow suburbs, but Moscow was never captured. Saint Jonah during the fire made religious processions along the walls of the city. Warriors and militias fought with the enemy until night. The small army of the Grand Duke at that time was too far away to help the besieged. The chronicles tell that the next morning there were no enemies at the walls of Moscow. They heard an unusual noise, decided that it was the Grand Duke with a huge army and retreated. The prince himself, after the departure of the Tatars, wept in front of the Vladimir icon.
The third intercession of the Mother of God for Russia was in 1480. Remember the "great stand on the Ugra" known from school history lessons: Ivan III refused to pay tribute to the horde and regiments of Khan Akhmat were sent to Russia. The meeting with the Russian army took place near the Ugra River: the troops stood on different banks and waited for a reason to attack. In the front ranks of the Russian troops they kept the icon of Our Lady of Vladimir. There were skirmishes, even small battles, but the troops did not move, in front of each other. The Russian army moved away from the river, giving the Horde regiments the opportunity to start crossing. But the Horde regiments also retreated. The Russian soldiers stopped, while the Tatar ones continued to retreat and suddenly rushed away without looking back.
Before this glorious icon, all the most important state acts of Russia were performed: the oath of allegiance to the Motherland, prayers before military campaigns, the election of the All-Russian Patriarchs.
The feast in honor of the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God takes place three times a year in gratitude for the threefold deliverance of our Fatherland from enemies with Her help: May 21, June 23 and August 26 (O.S.).
The Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God belongs to the iconographic type of Glycophyllus (Sweetly Kissing), the Infant leaned his cheek against the cheek of the Mother. The icon conveys the full tenderness of the communication between the Mother and the Child. Mary foresees the suffering of the Son in His earthly journey. Icons of this type received in Russia the name "Tenderness" (in Greek, Eleusa). A distinctive feature of this image is that the left leg of the Infant Jesus is bent in such a way that the sole of the foot is visible.
The icon stood before in the Cathedral of the Assumption left side The Royal Doors Robe on the icon of pure gold with precious stones was estimated at about 200,000 gold rubles (confiscated by the Bolsheviks). Icon long time was in the hall of ancient Russian art of the Tretyakov Gallery, now it is in the Church of Nikon in Stolpakh, which is behind the Tretyakov Gallery, where prayers are performed in front of it. On the great patronal feasts, the shrine is transferred to the Assumption Cathedral of the Kremlin to participate in the most solemn prayer services.

The history of the Christian faith knows many examples of real exploits that people went to, sincerely believing in the help and intercession of the Lord. It was these qualities that later granted them the recognition of their loved ones, those around them and an honorable place among the saints and the righteous. Not every person in the name of his faith can sacrifice something important and significant, so such people should not only be respected, but also appreciated.

History of the holiday.

On June 3, a bright holiday is celebrated annually - the Day of Remembrance of Saints Helena and Constantine. Today, in the history of the church, everyone knows Constantine as Equal to the Apostles, that is how he was christened for all good deeds in the name of his faith and of all Christianity in general. The story of mother and son begins at the time of the Roman Empire. Elena was the wife of the ruler of the Western half of the empire, since at that time the whole country was divided into two parts. Elena was a true Christian, and her husband did not infringe on her in his faith, therefore, from childhood, the child was brought up not only in the attention of this religion, but also in respect for the entire Christian world. It should be noted that the loyal attitude of the ruler towards the Christians did not end only with his wife. In those countries where he was the ruler, no one was persecuted for the fact that a person chose Christianity as his faith. In other parts of the empire, such people were not only handed over, but also brutally tortured in front of the rest as an example.

Constantine became the ruler of Gaul and Britain after the death of his father, this happened in 306. First of all, immediately after he ascended the throne, Constantine declared complete freedom to practice the Christian faith. This tactic was not liked by the two dictators who ruled in the adjacent parts of the empire, they all the time tried to kill Constantine, but his faith in the Lord and his intercession helped get rid of all enemies, they were defeated, none of their cunning plans came true. According to legend and sources, during one of the battles, the ruler sincerely prayed to the Lord to send a sign to his troops that could inspire them and inspire faith in victory. After that, people saw a shining Cross in the sky and the inscription "Conquer this".

Gradually, the power of Constantine was fully established in the western part of the Roman Empire, and in this part of the country he issued a decree "on religious tolerance" after he became the sole ruler of the entire empire, by his order the edict extended to other areas. Constantine stopped any persecution and punishment of those people who professed Christianity. For the first time in several hundred years, people no longer hide their true beliefs, they have the freedom and the right to choose what to believe, the choice of a god to worship and according to what commandments to build their lives.

These were not all the changes that the emperor made during his reign. The capital of the state was Byzantium, which after some time was called Constantinople. The ruler really believed that a single faith among the people would help everyone unite and eventually get a large and strong state with common views on important things and common goals. Konstantin tried in every possible way to provide all possible assistance to people who chose their occupation - preaching among the common people. The clergy could always count on the help and support of their ruler in all good undertakings.

Life-giving cross.

Constantine was deeply convinced that he was simply obliged to find the Life-Giving Cross, which became the mortal refuge of Jesus Christ. In order to implement this plan, Constantine asked his mother Elena for help, since she fully shared his views on religion and was a real support and support. Elena went on an expedition to Palestine, endowed with very large powers from her son and significant material resources that could be needed in this matter.

Patriarch Macarius of Jerusalem helped Elena in her search, together they slowly searched for the Life-Giving Cross, overcame obstacles that arose, and eventually found this significant shrine. While on the expedition, Elena was busy not only searching for the Life-Giving Cross, at that time many recognized her as a determined woman who was able to do a lot for her brothers in faith. It was by her order that all the holy places that concerned the life of Jesus and the Mother of God were delivered from traces of pagan faith. All the monuments and altars were destroyed, and in their place she ordered the erection of Christian churches.

At the moment when a burial with a cross was discovered under a pagan temple, Elena saw three crosses there, and in order to understand which one was life-giving, they applied each in turn to a dead person. And only one of them was able to bring him back to life. This shrine was left for storage to the Jerusalem patriarch, and Elena took with her only a part of the life-giving cross. Before leaving Jerusalem, Helen ordered a generous feast to be prepared, at which she herself served the poor and sick people. The guests of this banquet were not only able to eat deliciously and communicate with Elena, but also receive generous alms from her hands, with the warmest sincere wishes.

Holiday today.

Today Equal-to-the-Apostles Constantine and his mother Helena are venerated in all churches. People remember their accomplishments for the sake of their faith, their devotion to the people and the desire to give Christians as much as possible. On this holiday, you should definitely go to church and thank the saints for the opportunity to speak freely about your faith and not be afraid of anything.

The history of Christianity knows many beautiful names and it is the duty of every person today not to leave this memory in books, but to share it with their children, passing the story on and on.

1. Saints Equal-to-the-Apostles Constantine and Helena are not husband and wife, but son and mother.
2. Saint Constantine was baptized at the very end of his life.

In the 4th century, the custom was widespread to postpone the celebration of the sacrament for an indefinite time, in the hope that with the help of baptism, accepted at the end of life, to receive the remission of all sins. Emperor Constantine, like many of his contemporaries, followed this custom.

At the beginning of 337, he went to Helenopolis to take baths. But, feeling worse, he ordered to be transported to Nicomedia, and in this city he was baptized on his deathbed. Before his death, having gathered the bishops, the emperor admitted that he dreamed of being baptized in the waters of the Jordan, but, by the will of God, he accepts it here.

3. Empress Elena was of a simple family.

According to modern historians, Elena helped her father at the horse station, poured wine for travelers who were waiting for harnessing and shifting horses, or simply worked as a servant in a tavern. There, apparently, she met Constantius Chlorus, under Maximian Herculius, who became Caesar of the West of the Roman Empire. In the early 270s, she became his wife.

4. Roman Catholic Church did not include the name of Emperor Constantine in the calendar, but the Western bishops relied on his authority in an attempt to gain supreme power in the Church and in Europe in general.

The basis for such claims was "Konstantin's gift" - a forged donation act of Constantine the Great to Pope Sylvester.

The “letter” says that Constantine the Great, when he was baptized by Pope Sylvester and when he was healed from leprosy, which he had previously been stricken with, presented the pope with signs of imperial dignity, the Lateran Palace, the city of Rome, Italy and all Western countries. He moved his residence to Eastern countries on the ground that it is not proper for the head of an empire to reside where the head of a religion resides; finally, the Pope of Rome was given headship over the four sees of Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem, and Constantinople, as well as over all the Christian churches throughout the universe.

The fact of the forgery was proved by the Italian humanist Lorenzo della Valla in his essay On the Gift of Constantine (1440), published in 1517 by Ulrich von Hutten. In Rome, this document was completely abandoned only in the 19th century.

5. Emperor Constantine legalized Christianity, but did not make it the state religion.

In 313, Emperor Constantine issued the Edict of Milan, proclaiming religious tolerance in the territory of the Roman Empire. The direct text of the edict has not come down to us, but it is quoted by Lactantius in his work On the Death of the Persecutors.

In accordance with this edict, all religions were equalized in rights, thus, traditional Roman paganism lost its role as an official religion. The edict specifically singles out Christians and provides for the return to Christians and Christian communities of all property that was taken from them during the persecution.

The edict also provides compensation from the treasury to those who have come into possession of property formerly owned by Christians and have been forced to return that property to the former owners.

The opinion of a number of scientists that the Edict of Milan proclaimed Christianity the only religion of the empire does not find, according to the point of view of other researchers, confirmation both in the text of the edict and in the circumstances of its compilation.

6. The Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross appeared in church calendar thanks to the work of Saints Constantine and Helena.

In 326, at the age of 80, Empress Elena went to the Holy Land in order to find and visit the places consecrated by the main events of the Savior's life. She undertook excavations at Golgotha, where, having dug out a cave in which, according to legend, Jesus Christ was buried, she found the Life-Giving Cross.

The Exaltation is the only holiday that began simultaneously with the event to which it is dedicated. The First Exaltation was celebrated at the very acquisition of the Cross in the Jerusalem Church, that is, in the 4th century. And the fact that this holiday was soon (in 335) connected with the consecration of the magnificent, built by Constantine the Great on the site of the very acquisition of the Cross, the Church of the Resurrection, made this holiday one of the most solemn of the year.

7. A number of churches were built in the Holy Land thanks to Empress Elena.

The earliest historians (Socrates Scholastic, Eusebius Pamphilus) report that during her stay in the Holy Land, Elena founded three churches on the sites of the gospel events.

• on Golgotha ​​- the Church of the Holy Sepulcher;
• in Bethlehem - the Basilica of the Nativity of Christ;
• on the Mount of Olives - a church over the site of the Ascension of Christ;

The Life of St. Helena, written later, in the 7th century, contains a more extensive list of buildings, which, in addition to those already listed, includes:

• in Gethsemane - the Church of the Holy Family;
• in Bethany - a church over the tomb of Lazarus;
• in Hebron - a church near the oak of Mamre, where God appeared to Abraham;
• at Lake Tiberias - the Temple of the Twelve Apostles;
• on the site of the ascension of Elijah - a temple in the name of this prophet;
• on Mount Tabor - a temple in the name of Jesus Christ and the apostles Peter, James and John;
• at the foot of Mount Sinai, near the Burning Bush - a church dedicated to the Mother of God, and a tower for monks.

8. The city of Constantinople (now Istanbul) was named after Saint Constantine, who moved the capital of the Roman Empire there.

Having renounced paganism, Constantine did not leave ancient Rome, which was the center of a pagan state, as the capital of the empire, but moved his capital to the east, to the city of Byzantium, which was renamed Constantinople.

9. One of the oldest Bulgarian resorts on the Black Sea coast bears the name of Saints Constantine and Helena. It is located 6 kilometers northeast of the city of Varna.

In addition to the usual entertainment centers, hotels and sports facilities, there is a chapel on the territory of the complex, which was once part of a monastery built in honor of Emperor Constantine and his mother, Empress Helena. Even before the Bulgarians, this coast was inhabited by the Greeks. The whole area around was a colony Byzantine Empire and was called Odessos.

10. Saint Helena, to which Napoleon Bonaparte was exiled, is also named after the mother of Saint Constantine. It was discovered by the Portuguese navigator João da Nova while traveling home from India on May 21, 1502, the feast day of this saint.

The Portuguese found the island uninhabited, it had plenty of fresh water and timber. The sailors brought in domestic animals (mainly goats), fruit trees, vegetables, built a church and a couple of houses, but they did not establish a permanent settlement. Since its discovery, the island has become critical for ships returning cargo from Asia to Europe. In 1815, Saint Helena became the place of exile for Napoleon Bonaparte, who died there in 1821.

The island is in the possession of Great Britain, but a small part of it - two houses where Napoleon lived, and the valley where he was buried - belong to France.