Prophecies and counsels of St Seraphim of Viritsa

by abbamoses

St Seraphim of Viritsa

Father Seraphim used to say that the role of the youth will be very great in the future revival of the ecclesiastical life. He also used to say that there will come a time when corruption and lewdness among the youth will reach the utmost point. There will hardly be any virgin youth left. They will see their lack of punishment and will think that everything is allowable for them to satisfy their desires. God will call them, however, and they will realize that it will not be possible for them to continue such a life. Then in various ways they will be led to God… That time will be beautiful. That today they are sinning greatly, will lead them to a deeper repentance. Just like the candle before it goes out, it shines strongly and throws sparks; with its light, it enlightens the surrounding darkness; thus, it will be the Church’s life in the last age. And that time is near.

There will come a time when not the persecutions but money and the goods of this world will take people far from God. Then many more souls will be lost than in the time of the persecutions. On the one hand, they will be putting gold on the domes and will put the crosses on them and, on the other hand, everywhere evil and falsehood will reign. The true Church will always be persecuted. They who want to be saved will be saved with illnesses and afflictions. The way in which the persecutions will occur will be very sly and it will be very difficult for one to foresee the persecutions. Dreadful will be that time; I pity those who will be living then.

Many times we become sick because we do not pray before beginning our food and we do not seek from God to bless it. In olden times everything people did they did with prayer. They prayed when they plowed the earth, in the sowing they prayed; they also prayed when they harvested the fruits. We today do not know who produces these things we are eating, and many times we do not know who is cooking our food. These people may be cursing and blaspheming, when they are cooking it. For this reason it would be good before eating our food to throw some holy water on it.
All these things which we use for food are God’s gifts to people. Through them all of nature and the noetic world of angels serve man. For this reason each time we sit down to eat, we should pray with much diligence.

 

from Life–Miracles–Prophecies of Saint Seraphim of Viritsa: The New Saint of the Orthodox Russian Church, 1866–1949. Orthodox Kypseli Publications, 2005

The elder (named for St Seraphim of Sarov at the time of his taking the Great Schema) labored in Russia during the Soviet persecutions. He was proclaimed a Saint by the Church of Russia in 2005. His commemoration is on March 21. More biographical information can be found here.