@article{Leśniewski_2014, title={Kim jest Jezus Chrystus dla ruskich i rosyjskich Świętych? Teologiczna analiza Żywotów Świętych św. Dymitra Rostowskiego}, url={https://elpis.uwb.edu.pl/index.php/Elpis/article/view/104}, DOI={10.15290/elpis.2013.15.09}, abstractNote={Christian hagiography reveals not only the facts of life of individual saints, but first of all, it is a description of the<br />experience of God loving mankind. From the beginning of Christianity, of great importance in building faith, hope and<br />love had had stories about those believers who responded with a particular radicalism for the prevenient love of God in<br />the Trinity of Persons. These stories have been written in various forms of literature.<br />Author in the introductory part of the article introduces into the lives of the saints and their role in the Ruthenian and<br />Russian Orthodoxy. Essentially he focuses on presenting The Menaia edited by St Dimitry Rostovski. This book was<br />published in the years 1711 to 1718 in Old Church Slavonic. At the beginning of the twentieth century, it has been rewritten<br />and translated into Russian. This monumental work appeared in the years 1903-1911 under the title The Lives of the<br />Saints. It has been a rich source of information for researchers from many disciplines.<br />From a theological point of view, the author studied The Lives of the Saints in order to find direct references to the<br />person and teaching of Jesus Christ. For this purpose, he analyzed quotations from the New Testament, especially from<br />the Gospel, referring directly to the Person and teaching of Jesus Christ, as well as the prayers addressed to Him. In his<br />analysis, he searched for answers to the questions: Who is Jesus Christ for the Ruthenian and Russian saints, and what<br />kind of His images predominate in The Lives of the Saints.<br />The first part of the article, on the basis of source texts, indicates personal qualities of Jesus Christ. The Savior has<br />been experienced by the Ruthenian and Russian saints as God who is close to man, the blessed King, the best Lord, the<br />Comforter of the crying, the Light, the merciful God, and the Foundation of all good. The image of Christ as sinless,<br />innocent suffering and merciful shines especially in the devotion of Saints Passion-Bearers Boris and Gleb. In the consciousness<br />of the Ruthenians Christ is not God who condemns the sinners, but God who wants to bring them to a change<br />of heart and holiness. Christ is also the true Physician of souls and bodies.<br />In the second part of the article were shown images of Christ that occur while reading The Lives of the Saints. Some of<br />these images relate to the Gospels, and others have as their bases an existential expression of faith in Jesus Christ. The Saints<br />refer to Earthly life of Jesus by recalling images of Jesus in various situations (the image of Jesus tempted the desert;<br />the image of the merciful Christ, who wants to lead a mind of man mired in spiritual disease to change and salvation; the<br />image of Christ suffering voluntarily for the salvation of man). An important element of the image of Jesus Christ, typified<br />in The Lives of the Saints is a reference to His suffering and death on the cross, which is supplemented by a triumphant<br />image of the Risen Lord, who won the death by His death and gave us eternal life. An interesting part of The Lives of<br />the Saints (attributable to the month of April) is a description of the appearances of Jesus Christ after His resurrection. It<br />shows the primordial light infinitely brighter than sunlight. In the mystical experience of the saints Christ is revealed as<br />the glorious Light radiating with passionate love. It is characteristic for the spiritual experience of Ruthenian and Russian<br />Saints that their Saviour is God who desires for the salvation of all.}, number={15}, journal={Elpis}, author={Leśniewski, Krzysztof}, year={2014}, month={grudz.}, pages={69–77} }