The Story of Mercury in Smolensk
Once upon a time there was a certain man in the city of Smolensk, named Mercury, He was young and pious. He learned day and night the precepts of the Lord, blossoming with the venerable life. He shone with fasting and prayer, like a star of God in the middle of the world. He was sensitive and sublime. He often came to the cross to pray for all laity in the Petrine hundred,
At that time, the evil King Batu captivated the Russian land, shedding innocent blood, like abundant water, and tormented Christians. And the king approached with a great army to the God-saved hill of Smolensk, and stopped in 30 arenas from the city. Many of them he burned the holy churches, many Christians interrupted and prepared to take the city. The people were in great sorrow, they were constantly in the cathedral church of the Virgin Mary, they prayed, crying with great mourning and many tears, the almighty god, and the most pure of the Mother of God, and all the saints, so that they would save the city
And God heeded the prayers of the townspeople. Near the city, beyond the Dnieper River, in the Pechersky Monastery, the most blessed Virgin Mary appeared to the sexton of that church and said: “O man of God, quickly go to the cross where my Mercury prayed, and say to him:” God’s mother calls you. “The sexton went there and found Mercury at the cross praying to God, and called the sexton by his name: “Mercury!” He asked: “What brings you here, my lord?” And the sexton said to him: “Go quickly, brother, God calls you mother in the Pechersk church. “
When the wise man entered into the holy church, he saw there the immaculate Mother of God, sitting on the throne with Christ in his bosom, surrounded by angelic warriors. He fell at her feet, bowed with affection and fear. She was lifted from the earth by the blessed mother of God and said to him: “My child, Mercury, my chosen one, I send you: go quickly and avenge the Christian blood.” Win the evil king Batu and all his army. His hand is all his weapons, and he will cut off your
The wicked king, having learned about the defeat of his people, was overwhelmed with great fear and horror and quickly fled from the city of that one with a small squad. And he ran to the Hungarians, and there the wicked was killed by Stefan the Tsar.
Then a beautiful warrior appeared before Mercury. Mercury bowed to him and gave all his weapons, bowing his head, And he was beheaded by a warrior. And then he took his blessed head in his hand, and in the other hand, his horse’s bridle, and came to his city beheaded. People who saw such a miracle were surprised by God’s providence. And Mercury reached the gates of Mologinskys. Then a certain girl appeared on the water and, seeing a saint walking without a head, began to abuse him with abuse. He fell in those gates and betrayed his honest soul to his Lord. And the horse at the same moment became invisible.
The Smolensk archbishop went on a procession with a multitude of people to take the honest body of a saint. And the saint did not give them. Then a great cry and sobbing rose among the people, for they could not lift the bodies of the saint. And the archbishop was in great perplexity and prayed for that god. And he heard a voice that turned to him: “O servant of the Lord, do not grieve over this: who sent him to victory, he also will bury him.” And for three days Mercury lay unburied here. The Archbishop stayed up all night without sleep, praying to God that he would reveal this secret to him. And he looked with fear in the window that was opposite the church of the cathedral. And he sees: it became light, and in great radiance, like a sunny dawn, the pure-anointed Mother of God with the archistrategists Mikhail and Gabriel left the church. And she went to the place where the body of the saint lay.
(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)