A well-deserved place in the history of the formation and development of the Church is occupied by Father Gregory, who was called Dvoeslov. He, being a Christian Pope, shared food with the poor, wrote many books, which were later re-read by scientists. The memory of him is very closely intertwined with Great Lent, his name is immediately associated with Lenten services, the reading of psalms, and the singing of troparia. The Church calls him the compiler of a special Liturgy, which is served during Great Lent. As Pope, St. Gregory composed hymns, choir singing, organized services in the church.
A bit of biography
The future holy father Gregory (a photo of his face today can be bought in church shops) came from a noble family of Anitsiev, he was born in 540. His family was revered in the Roman Church, in modern times his father and mother are recognized as saints. Gregory's youth took place during the restoration of culture and traditions in Italy, he received an education in the field of law, and in 573 he entered the civil service and became the highestofficial in the capital. After the death of his father, he left politics and became a monk. He began to study Holy Scripture and theology, held various positions in the church, wrote Creations, which were revered by various theologians. In Sicily, Father Gregory built six monasteries, and in Rome, the monastery of the Apostle Andrew.
Papal representative
In 579, Pope Pelagius II appointed Gregory a deacon and sent him to Constantinople as his envoy to the emperor. While there, the deacon lived in seclusion among the monks, studying the biblical scriptures. As a representative of the Roman Church, Father Gregory urged the emperor to protect Rome from the barbarians, but he was refused. In 585, the Pope recalled his envoy back.
The Pope
After the death of Pelagius, Gregory became his successor, and five years later he was consecrated as a bishop, and then the people elected him the new Pope. At that time, Italy was going through a crisis related to military and political actions. At the same time, only the Church was the structure that took care of the welfare of the country. Also, the holy father Gregory, whose biography is briefly described in this article, made peace between the warring parties. As a representative of church authorities, he led a modest life, was engaged in charity and missionary work. He also carried out a church reform, he converted unbelievers to Christianity.
Empire and Church
Holy Father Gregory believed that the Church is the authority that must fulfill the mission of conversion toChristianity the whole world and prepare for the second coming of Christ. The main task here was the observance of all the rules, so the rulers had to be led by God, true Christians. He argued that the authorities serve the Church, that the empire and the Church complement each other. But the Pope himself had limited influence on the imperial power, he could not control the local religious communities. The church, however, honored Father Gregory as its teacher; he managed by his labors to form a new Christian west in a divided empire. In the last years of his life, the Pope was very ill. He died in 604 and was buried in Rome.
Grigory Dvoeslov
In the Orthodox tradition, Fr. Gregory was called "Dvoeslov", which is connected with the title of one of his books "Dialogues". It describes the life of the Italian saints. The term "Double Word" itself has been misinterpreted by a translation from the Greek title of the book, Dialogus. This book quickly spread, it was translated into Slavic and Greek. Such popularity of the book of Gregory led to the fact that the title "Devozlov" became his second name for all Christians.
Grigory's Dialogues
The popular book "Dialogues" is a collection of stories about Italian saints that Gregory loved to tell his spiritual son. At the same time, descriptions of mystical events that are often found in the work aroused great interest. Here you can also find the exorcism of demons, descriptions of the afterlife, punishments of sinners, etc. Gregory the Great created the concept of purgatory, whichis a place where the souls of dead people go to be cleansed from sins by suffering. He established what sin corresponds to this or that period of stay in purgatory. This concept he invented suggests that Father Gregory was a true believing Christian. In the same work, Gregory focused on the meaning of prayer, humility and labor.
Finally…
Strict, honest and logical, Pope Gregory remained in the memory of many people. He always did good deeds, gave alms, took care of the suffering and unfortunate. He received beggars in his house, and also ordered that the income from church possessions be directed to their maintenance. There is evidence that when Gregory had nothing to donate, he gave the beggar a silver platter on which vegetables were served. Currently, the name of Father Gregory is combined with the word "Great", he is revered at all times.
