On the eve of commemoration day of Blessed Xenia, we asked our readers to share their stories about the saint’s miraculous help.
St. Xenia of St. Petersburg ***
“You’ll serve molebens to her in some ten years.”
Marina Zakharchuk
In the late 1970s, when studying at Leningrad State University, I set a goal to visit all churches then opened in the city of Leningrad. Once, I headed for Smolensk Cemetery, named after the church located there. There was something that amazed me during the service, especially during the Pannikhida—the name of Blessed Xenia appearing in each note.
I went for a stroll along the snow-covered cemetery after I left the church, and soon stopped by a locked chapel. There was no one around. I was about to leave, when an elderly woman wearing shabby clothes came from behind the chapel (that I had just walked around).
“What kind of a chapel is it?” I turned to her.
“Holy Blessed Xenia is buried here, my dear. Pray to her.”
“Holy? Why did we pray for her repose? Molebens are usually served to saints, and not Pannikhidas.”
“You will serve molebens to her in ten years,” said the elderly woman. She disappeared as swiftly as she turned up, while I was examining the chapel.
It happened in the winter of 1978. I recollected the encounter ten years later, when the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church, opened in the summer of 1988, on the eve of the 1000th Anniversary of the Baptism of Russia, canonized Blessed Xenia of St. Petersburg.
***
“Blessed Xenia asked for two at once.”
Svetlana Galaninskaya
A commentator of the web portal Religare.ru
Blessed Xenia helped both my family and me many times. We always feel her prayers and intercession before the Lord. In fact, she is our family’s patron saint. Thus, commemorating her, we celebrate not only the name day of one of our daughters, but also a kind of Slava [the Serbian Orthodox tradition of glorifying the family’s patron saint].
For a long time after my son was born, I could not get pregnant for various reasons, though I was desperate to. I had always dreamt of a large family. Then I went on pilgrimage that was to radically change my whole life. I travelled to my beloved Xenia of St. Petersburg. Being at Smolensk Cemetery, I prayed that she would plead God to grant me a child. I already had son, and that time I would rather have had a girl, of course. But, believe me, another boy would be a great happiness for me, too. So I promised: If a girl is born, I will definitely call her Xenia.
Blessed Xenia must have pleaded the Lord, indeed... And she asked for two at once, so that I would not grieve so much over the past nine years when I had no children. Unexpectedly, not only Xenia but also Sophia came to our family. While still pregnant, I again travelled to St. Petersburg to thank Blessed Xenia for her prayers, but I had no idea that I was already pregnant with twins.
Amazingly enough, shortly before my pregnancy I wrote to a friend of mine, “I’d like to have a girl, and two girls would be even better.” I did not dare dream about such a happiness—if only one baby were born... Moreover, neither my husband nor I had ever had twins in our families.
In fact, it is frightening when the Lord makes our greatest dreams come true, including those that we did not have courage to ask for. He truly reads it in our heart: “Do you really want to have many children? Then, you will. Now.” My husband would later remind me: “You prayed to Blessed Xenia, didn’t you? That’s the fruit of your prayer.” St. Xenia has intercession before the Lord.
By the way, my twins will turn five soon, in February. They are very kind, generous, beautiful girls, they always help me. Sure, they know perfectly well the story of their coming into this world. Every morning, we pray to the Lord and Blessed Xenia with the words of gratitude.
***
“I began to pray St. Xenia asking her to grant me a husband.”
Irina
In the 1980s, I came upon a small book describing the life and miracles of Blessed Xenia of St. Petersburg. I began to pray to St. Xenia asking her to grant me a husband. Soon I married a very good man. By her prayers, we—my husband and I—managed to miraculously build our private house, though we did not really have any money. Pray to this great God-pleaser, and everything in your life will settle down!
***
“That man had been in prison for ten years on a charge of murder.”
Kira Razdobarina
Hello!
I would like to tell you about St. Xenia’s help. It was not long ago that I chatted with a young man on the Internet. As he said to me, he came from my hometown, but lived in Moscow holding a senior position in one of the factories. Thus, our communication began and lasted for almost a year. We became friends, and I liked him very much. As I presumed from his letters, he was the man I had always dreamt of.
He promised me to meet but was overwhelmed with his work, so there was no chance to meet soon. I was anxious about all that uncertainty. Nevertheless, in my dreams, I perfectly imagined our meeting and future happy family life. A number of people might say I was stupid. Probably, I was. But I was single and quite unlucky in personal life. Therefore, I admit I almost fell in love. I was longing for letters from my new friend.
In the spring of 2013, a friend of mine and I visited St. Petersburg to venerate Blessed Xenia. It was so wonderful there that it beggars any description. Anyone may understand the ineffable joy of coming to her—as if her invisible hand embraced me, instilling a sense of quietude in my soul... I begged St. Xenia to help me arrange a meeting with the man. When I came back home, I began to read the Akathist asking her to resolve the problem.
Soon (about two months after my coming home) I learned that that man was in my hometown; he had been in prison for ten years on a charge of murder. I was not really upset. That was a weight off my shoulders.
A story from Blessed Xenia’s life came to my mind. Once, she did not let a girl marry a man who pretended to be a nobleman, but in fact, was a murderer and had escaped prison. A similar thing happened to me. This marvelous story reminds us that everything in our life happens for a reason. Believe in miracles, pray, be patient and everything will be fine! May the Lord keep you!
***
“The diagnosis was an imminent cause for disability.”
Timothy and Olga Kordonsky
Our story is as miraculous as it is simple. Hardly had our one-year-old daughter begun to walk, when she came down with a fever. A week later, at Moscow’s Filatov Hospital, she was diagnosed with a terrible illness—osteomyelitis of the lift hip. Such diagnosis is an imminent cause for disability. However, a week later osteomyelitis seemed to be a blessing as Nastenska was diagnosed with tuberculosis.
There was only one hospital where children diagnosed with osteomyelitis could be operated on. It was in St. Petersburg. We headed there. The examination confirmed the diagnosis, and we went to Smolensk Cemetery to venerate Blessed Xenia. It was in the evening, and the chapel was already closed by that time. We prayed by its walls, and then wrote a note begging the saint to heal our little child.
Nastya was getting ready for the operation; all the necessary tests had been done, when the doctors announced there was no TB. Moreover, the inflammation in the bone had stopped. She had to undergo an operation anyway. We would never have believed that it all befell us just two years ago but for a scar on the leg, which Nastenka now calls “a little thread”.
***
“They suggested that I terminate my pregnancy.”
Anna D.
My name is Anna, and I would like to share with you my miraculous story about St. Xenia’s help. I have turned to her many times. Her prayers helped me in various occasions: Blessed Xenia helped me to find a work and a husband; I felt her prayerful support when I was pregnant and gave birth to my first child.
When I was pregnant, the baby was diagnosed with Down’s syndrome. We went to Blessed Xenia to pray to her, and a healthy boy was born; he is starting school this year.
We were desperate for another child, but it just wasn’t happening. I was happy when I learned I was expecting a baby. When I came for a regular ultrasound test, the doctor said I had to terminate my pregnancy as the child had a pathology of the internal organs and would not survive. To terminate pregnancy was unacceptable for me, therefore there was only one way out—to pray and give birth to the baby. How could I “terminate” the pregnancy? The baby had both hands and legs, its heart was beating, it was moving inside. I saw another doctor to make an additional observation, but it was all the same.
My husband and I went to the Smolensk Cemetery. Four days later I had another ultrasound test; the doctor could not believe her eyes: there were no problems any more, no threat to life, and everything was almost fine.
I had to have examinations and tests more often than usual, and each time the doctor would get more and more astonished at the miracle. It was the first case in her life. She asked me to give her a call after the child was born. In January, I gave birth to a lovely baby. Now it’s four and a half months old, it’s healthy and cheerful. Finally, I called the doctor, and she said my story proves that we have to believe in miracles and that “there might be some good powers in heaven that help us.” She promised to tell my story to women to stop them from making the irrevocable decision to “terminate pregnancy”.
St. Blessed Xenia, pray to God for us!
Glory to God we have you!!!
Thank you very much for all your prayers!