Maria Tobolova
During the wedding ceremony, they drank from the shared cup to the last drop: wine mixed with water. In the Orthodox marriage sacrament, the wine in the cup symbolizes the joys of married life, while the water represents their shared sorrows, troubles, and pains. The newlyweds would have much joy in their future life, but even more sorrow and pain.
The Tsarevich wrote in his diary: “If they kill us, I only hope they won’t torture us for a long time...”
Metropolitan Vadim (Lazebny)
If we can send a spiritual “recruit” out of our midst into the monastic “army”, then we are more or less spiritually healthy. If a monastery becomes a center that attracts those seeking spiritual life, then many problems of people in the world will disappear too.
The Tsarevich had a very gentle and kind heart. He often exclaimed, ‘When I become the Tsar, there will be no poor and unhappy people. I want everyone to be happy.’”
St. Seraphim (Chichagov)
We don’t see Jesus Christ, but we feel and are clearly aware that He is our sole hope, our only joy, our one salvation, and without Him we can only be unhappy, powerless, perishing, and deprived of truth, righteousness, justice, and goodness.
