Can you imagine life without electricity? Of course it's difficult! But it is known that earlier people read and wrote by candlelight and splinter. Imagine life without writing. Some of you will now think to yourself, well, well, that would be great: you don’t have to write dictations and essays. But then there will be no libraries, books, posters, letters, and even e-mail and text messages. Language, like a mirror, reflects the whole world, our whole life. And when reading written or printed texts, we seem to sit in a time machine and can be transported both to recent times and to the distant past.
But people have not always mastered the art of writing. This art has been developing for a long time, over many millennia. And do you know to whom we should be grateful for our written word, on which our favorite books are written? For our diploma, which we study at school? For our great Russian literature, which you get acquainted with and will continue to study in high school.
Cyril and Methodius lived in the world,
Two Byzantine monks and suddenly
(No, not a legend, not a myth, not a parody)
Some of them thought: “Friend!
How many Slavs without Christ are speechless!
It is necessary to create an alphabet for the Slavs ...
It was thanks to the work of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles brothers Cyril and Methodius that the Slavic alphabet was created.
The brothers were born in the Byzantine city of Thessalonica in the family of a military leader. Methodius was the eldest son, and, having chosen the path of a military man, he went to serve in one of the Slavic regions. His brother, Cyril, was born 7-10 years later than Methodius, and already in childhood, having passionately fallen in love with science, amazed teachers with his brilliant abilities. At the age of 14, his parents sent him to Constantinople, where he quickly studied grammar and geometry, arithmetic, astronomy and medicine, ancient art, mastered the Slavic, Greek, Hebrew, Latin and Arabic languages well. Rejecting the high administrative position offered to him, Cyril took the modest position of a librarian in the Patriarchal Library and at the same time taught philosophy at the university, for which he received the nickname "philosopher". His older brother Methodius entered the military early. For 10 years he was the ruler of one of the regions inhabited by Slavs. Being an honest and straightforward man, intolerant of injustice, he retired from military service and retired to a monastery.
In 863, ambassadors from Moravia arrived in Constantinople to ask them to send preachers to their country and tell the population about Christianity. The emperor decided to send Cyril and Methodius to Moravia. Cyril, before setting off on his journey, asked if the Moravians had an alphabet for their language - “for the enlightenment of the people without the writing of their language is like trying to write on water,” Kirill explained. To which he received a negative answer. The Moravians did not have the alphabet, so the brothers began work. At their disposal were not years, but months. They worked from early morning, barely blossoming, and until late evening, when their eyes were already rippling from fatigue. In a short time, an alphabet for the Moravians was created. It was named after one of its creators - Cyril - Cyrillic.
With the help of the Slavic alphabet, Cyril and Methodius very quickly translated the main liturgical books from Greek into Slavonic. The first book written in Cyrillic was the “Ostromir Gospel”, the first words written using the Slavic alphabet were the phrase “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” And now, for more than a thousand years, the Church Slavonic language has been used in the Russian Orthodox Church during worship.
The Slavic alphabet existed in Russia unchanged for more than seven centuries. Its creators tried to make each letter of the first Russian alphabet simple and clear, easy to write. They remembered that the letters should also be beautiful, so that a person who barely saw them would immediately want to master the letter.
Each letter had its own name - "az" - A; "beeches" - B; "lead" - B; "verb" - G; "good" D.
This is where the catchphrases "Az and beeches - that's all the sciences", "" Who knows "Az" and "Beeches" book in hand." In addition, letters could also denote numbers. In total, there were 43 letters in the Cyrillic alphabet.
The Cyrillic alphabet existed in the Russian language without changes until Peter I, who removed the obsolete letters, without which it was quite possible to do - “yus big”, “yus small”, “omega”, “uk”. In 1918, 5 more letters left the Russian alphabet - “yat”, “fita”, “izhitsa”, “er”, “er”. For a thousand years, many letters have disappeared from our alphabet, and only two have appeared - “y” and “ё”. They were invented in the 17th century by the Russian writer and historian Karamzin. And finally, 33 letters remained in the modern alphabet.
And what do you think, where did the word "AZBUKA" come from - by the name of the first letters of the alphabet, "az" and "beeches"; in Russia, there were several more names for the alphabet - "abevega" and "letter letter".
Why is the alphabet called alphabet? The history of this word is interesting. Alphabet. It was born in ancient Greece and consists of the names of the first two letters of the Greek alphabet: "alpha" and "beta". Native speakers of Western languages call it “alphabete”. We pronounce it like the alphabet.
The Slavs were very happy: other peoples of Europe (Germans, Franks, Britons) did not have their own written language. The Slavs now had their own alphabet, and everyone could learn to read a book! “It was a wonderful moment!.. The deaf began to hear, and the dumb began to speak, for until that time the Slavs were like deaf and dumb,” is written in the annals of those times.
Not only children, but also adults began to learn. They wrote with sharp sticks on wooden boards coated with wax. The children fell in love with their teachers Cyril and Methodius. Little Slavs went to classes with joy, because the journey along the roads of Truth was so interesting!
With the advent of the Slavic alphabet, written culture began to develop rapidly. Books appeared in Bulgaria, Serbia, and Russia. And how they were designed! The first letter - the initial letter - began each new chapter. The initial letter is unusually beautiful: in the form of a beautiful bird or flower, it was painted with bright, often red flowers. That is why the term “red line” exists today. A Slavic handwritten book could be created within six or seven years and was very expensive. In a precious salary, with illustrations, today it is a real monument of art.
A long time ago, when the history of the great Russian state was just beginning, "she" was expensive. Her one could be exchanged for a herd of horses or a herd of cows, for sable fur coats. And the point here is not in the decorations in which the beautiful and clever girl was dressed up. And she walked only in expensive embossed leather, in pearls and precious stones! Gold and silver clasps adorned her outfit! Admiring her, people said: “Light, you are ours!” They worked on its creation for a long time, but its fate could have been very sad. During the invasion of enemies, she was taken prisoner along with people. She could have died in a fire or a flood. She was greatly valued: she inspired hope, returned strength of mind. What kind of curiosity is this. Yes, folks, this is Her Majesty the Book. She has preserved to us the Word of God and the traditions of distant years. The first books were handwritten. It took months and sometimes years to rewrite one book. The centers of book learning in Russia have always been monasteries. There, in fasting and prayer, industrious monks copied and decorated books. A collection of books in 500-1000 manuscripts was considered a rarity.
Life goes on, and in the middle of the XVI century book printing appeared in Russia. The printing house in Moscow appeared under Ivan the Terrible. It was led by Ivan Fedorov, who is called the first book printer. Being a deacon and serving in the temple, he tried to realize his dream - to rewrite sacred books without scribes. And so, in 1563, he set about typesetting the first page of the first printed book, The Apostle. In total, he published 12 books in his life, among them was the complete Slavic Bible.
The Slavic alphabet is amazing and is still considered one of the most convenient writing systems. And the names of Cyril and Methodius, "the first teachers of Slovenia", became a symbol of spiritual achievement. And every person who studies the Russian language should know and keep in his memory the holy names of the first Slavic enlighteners - the brothers Cyril and Methodius.
Across wide Russia - our mother
The bell ringing is spreading.
Now brothers Saints Cyril and Methodius
They are glorified for their work.
“Learning is light, and ignorance is darkness,” says a Russian proverb. Cyril and Methodius, brothers from Thessalonica, are Slovenian enlighteners, creators of the Slavic alphabet, preachers of Christianity. They are called holy teachers. Enlighteners are those who bring light and illuminate everyone with it. Without the alphabet, there is no writing, and without it there is no book that enlightens people, and therefore moves life forward. Monuments to the great enlighteners around the world remind us of the spiritual feat of Cyril and Methodius, who gave the world the Slavic alphabet.
In memory of the great feat of Cyril and Methodius, on May 24, the Day of Slavic Literature is celebrated all over the world. In the year of the millennium from the date of the creation of the Slavonic script in Russia, the Holy Synod adopted a resolution that established "every year, starting from this year 1863, on May 11 (24), the church celebration of St. Cyril and Methodius." Until 1917, a church holiday was celebrated in Russia, the Day of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Brothers Cyril and Methodius. With the advent of Soviet power, this great holiday was forgotten. In 1986 it was revived. This holiday began to be called the Day of Slavic Literature and Culture.
Quiz
1. Who created the Slavic alphabet? (Cyril and Methodius)
2. What year is considered the year of the emergence of Slavic writing and book business? (863)
3. Why are Cyril and Methodius called "Thessalonica brothers"? (Birthplace of the brothers-enlighteners the city of Thessalonica in Macedonia)
4. Who was the elder brother: Cyril or Methodius? (Methodius)
5. What was the name of the first book written in Cyrillic? (Ostromir Gospel)
6. Which of the brothers was a librarian, and who was a warrior? (Cyril is a librarian, Methodius is a military leader,)
7. What was Cyril called for his mind and diligence? (Philosopher)
8. In whose reign the Slavic alphabet was changed - simplified. (Peter 1)
9. How many letters were there in Cyrillic before Peter the Great? (43 letters)
10. How many letters have become in the modern alphabet? (33 letters)
11. Who was the first printer in Russia? (Ivan Fedorov)
12. What was the name of the first printed book? ("Apostle")
13. What words were first written in the Slavic language? (In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God)
Cyril and Methodius are known for creating the Old Slavonic alphabet, which laid the foundation for the creation of writing in Ancient Russia. The two brothers were born in Byzantium, more specifically in Thessaloniki.
The education of Cyril and Methodius was at the highest level, which soon affected their great merits. However, Methodius was a military man and created a successful career for himself, having received the rank of strategist. But Cyril most of all studied not military affairs, but linguistics and various languages. Cyril also studied arithmetic, astronomy and even geometry, and he received these lessons from the best teachers in Constantinople.
Soon Cyril became the custodian of the library in the main temple of Constantinople, and this temple was called "Hagia Sophia". After spending a short amount of time as a custodian, Kirill did not linger and began to teach various lessons at the university. For all the merits of Cyril, he receives the nickname "Philosopher". The brothers perfectly knew not only the Greek language, but also Slavic, the knowledge of which helped to create a new alphabet.
Cyril's first mission was the "Khazar" mission, during which the two brothers went to Khazaria. Methodius remained at home, in Constantinople. In Khazaria, Cyril spoke about religion, trying to force the kagan to change his faith, but this did not happen, and Cyril returned back to Byzantium.
The main merit of Cyril and Methodius is the creation of the Old Slavonic alphabet. The prerequisite for this event was the sending of ambassadors to Constantinople from Prince Rostislav. The ambassadors asked to send Rostislav teachers who could teach ordinary people the alphabet and literacy, and also spread the new language. After that, Cyril and Methodius were sent from Constantinople to Moravia, who created the Old Slavonic alphabet and began to translate various church books from Greek into Slavic, so that common people could study these books calmly. Also in Moravia, Cyril and Methodius taught the Slavs, and specifically - reading and writing. The brothers translated some other church books into Bulgarian for ordinary people who did not yet know Old Church Slavonic.
Option 2
There are few people in our country who have not heard of Cyril and Methodius. The brothers gave the world the Slavic alphabet, the translation of books from Greek into Slavonic.
About the life of Cyril and Methodius, written evidence of that time has been preserved. The brothers were born in Greece in the city of Thessalonica. In addition to them, five more brothers grew up in the family. Their father Leo, a Byzantine commander, held a high rank, the family lived in abundance. At birth, the boys received the names Michael and Constantine, the eldest of them was Michael, born in 815, Constantine was born in 827.
Michael chose the military path and rose to the rank of strategist in the Macedonian province. An influential patron, the courtier Feoktist, noticed a talented young man and in every possible way contributed to the promotion of Mikhail in his service.
Konstantin from an early age became interested in science, studied the traditions of other peoples, and was engaged in translating the Gospel into the language of the Slavs. In Constantinople, where Konstantin studied, in addition to linguistics, he received knowledge in geometry, arithmetic, rhetoric, astronomy, and philosophy. With his noble position and success in scientific activities, he was predicted to serve in the highest positions, but for himself he chose a modest position as a curator of books in the library of St. Sophia Cathedral. Having served in this position for a short time, Konstantin begins teaching at the university. His knowledge, the ability to conduct philosophical discussions, secured him the nickname Philosopher, which is not uncommon in the annals of the life of the brothers.
Constantine was a member of the imperial court and often traveled on behalf of the Byzantine emperor to other lands to glorify the Orthodox faith. The preacher received his first such commission at the age of 24. The life of the brothers describes how clearly, firmly and with conviction he answered the difficult questions of Muslims and Khazars about the Christian faith.
Michael, having served for about 10 years as the rector of one of the Slavic regions, renouncing the rank of archbishop, in 852 took tonsure with the name Methodius, becoming the rector of the monastery on the Small Olympus, where Constantine arrived with his students in 856, the brothers begin to create an alphabet for the Slavs.
Their ecclesiastical seclusion did not last long, in 862, on behalf of the emperor, the preachers arrived in Moravia, where for three years they had been teaching literacy and Christian preaching. During this period, the Psalter, the Apostle, the "Writing on the Right Faith" and many other liturgical texts were translated into Slavic. The active work of the brothers was not to the liking of the German clergy, who considered it possible to carry out Orthodox worship only in the three languages \u200b\u200bspecified in Scripture, so they filed a complaint against the brothers with the Pope, since Moravia was under the rule of Pope Adrian II. The brothers were called to Rome. Having presented the Pope of Rome with part of the relics of Clement I, the preachers received approval for worship in the Slavic language, Methodius was promoted to the rank of clergyman.
At the beginning of 869, Constantine, being on his deathbed, takes tonsure and receives the name Cyril.
After the death of his brother, Methodius continued the joint work already in the rank of archbishop of Moravia and Pannonia. The representatives of the German church did not like the ebullient activity of the archbishop, and in 871 the preacher was arrested and placed in a monastery prison in Germany, only the intervention of Pope John VIII allowed him to leave prison three years later.
Until the last minutes of his life, Methodius did not stop translating, the last was the translation of the "Old Testament". Methodius died in 885.
The brothers are revered both in the East and in the West. In Russia, on May 24, in honor of Saints Cyril and Methodius, the holiday of Slavic writing and culture was approved.
CYRIL AND METHODIUS, Slavic enlighteners, creators of the Slavic alphabet and literary language, the first translators from Greek into Slavonic, preachers of Christianity, Saints Equal to the Apostles.
According to the lives, the brothers Cyril (before becoming a monk - Constantine) [about 827, Thessalonica (Thessalonica) - 14.2.869, Rome] and Methodius (the name is unknown before becoming a monk) [about 815, Thessalonica (Thessaloniki) - 6.4.885, Velegrad ] came from the family of a drungaria (Byzantine commander and middle-ranking administrator). Methodius, in his youth, entered the civil service, for some time ruled the region with the Slavic population, then retired to the monastery. Constantine was educated in Constantinople, among his teachers was the future Patriarch of Constantinople Saint Photius. Having completed his education, Constantine took the position of librarian of the Hagia Sophia in Constantinople, according to another version, the position of a skevophylax (cathedral sacristan). Leaving the capital, he settled in one of the monasteries of Asia Minor. For some time he taught philosophy in Constantinople, participated in polemics with iconoclasts (see Iconoclasm). In 855-856, Constantine took part in the so-called Saracen mission to the capital of the Arab Caliphate, where, according to his life, he had theological discussions with Muslims. In 860-861, as part of a diplomatic mission, he traveled to the Khazar Khaganate, led a debate with Jews and Muslims. During this journey, Constantine found near Korsun (see Chersonese) the relics of the Hieromartyr Clement I, Pope of Rome; he took some of the relics with him.
"Cyril and Methodius". Icon by G. Zhuravlev (1885). Samara Diocesan Church History Museum.
According to the lives of Cyril and Methodius, an embassy from the Great Moravian prince Rostislav, who arrived at the end of 862 to the Byzantine emperor Michael III, asked for a “teacher” to be sent to Moravia to expound the Christian faith in the Slavic language. The mission was entrusted to Constantine and Methodius, who knew the Slavic language well. In Constantinople, in preparation for the trip, Constantine compiled an alphabet (Glagolitic alphabet) for the Slavs, which is an independent graphic system. The Glagolitic alphabet is based on the phonemic principle: in general, it is characterized by a one-to-one correspondence between a phoneme and a letter. Having created an alphabet and a writing system, Constantine set about translating the liturgical gospel from Greek. The first recorded Slavonic phrase (John 1:1) in Glagolitic was
(in Cyrillic - from time immemorial vѣ word). The main merit of the brothers-enlighteners is that thanks to their labors, on the basis of an unwritten Slavic dialect, a book-written language has developed, suitable for translating Holy Scripture and liturgical texts, capable of conveying the most complex theological ideas and features of Byzantine liturgical poetry (see Old Slavonic language, Church Slavonic language) .
"Bishop Methodius dictates to the scribe the text of the Slavic translation." Miniature of the Radziwill chronicle. 15th century
At the end of 863, Constantine and Methodius went to Great Moravia, where they continued their translation activities. The Apostle, the Psalter, a number of liturgical texts, the essay “Writing about the Right Faith” (the translation is based on the “Great Apologist” by Nicephorus of Constantinople), a summary of the main dogmas of the Christian faith, were translated into Slavic, and a poetic preface to the Gospel (“Proglas "). At the same time, the training of local residents of Slavic writing was actively going on. The success of the missionaries angered the German priests who served in the Moravian churches in Latin. In disputes with Constantine and Methodius, they argued that worship could be performed only in one of three languages: Hebrew, Greek and Latin, in which, according to the Gospel, an inscription was made on the cross over the crucified Jesus Christ (Luke 23:38). Since the territory of Great Moravia was under the jurisdiction of the Roman Church, Constantine and Methodius were summoned to Rome. The brothers brought to Rome part of the relics of the Hieromartyr Clement I, which predetermined the favor of Pope Adrian II for them, he approved the books they translated, approved the Slavic worship, and ordained Methodius to the priesthood. While in Rome, Constantine fell ill, took the schema with the name of Cyril, and soon died. By order of the pope, he was buried in the Basilica of St. Clement.
Returning with his disciples to Moravia, Methodius enlisted the support of the princes Rostislav and Kotsel, again went to Rome, where, no later than the end of the summer of 869, he was appointed archbishop of the restored Sirmian diocese, which included Great Moravia and Pannonia, and continued to strengthen and spread the Slavic writing and worship. The activities of Methodius continued to cause opposition from the German clergy, who, taking advantage of the successes of the East Frankish king Carloman in the war with Rostislav, achieved his arrest and trial. For two and a half years, Methodius and his closest disciples were imprisoned in the Ellwangen Abbey (according to another version - Reichenau). Thanks to the intercession of Pope John VIII, in the spring of 873, Methodius was released and returned to the pulpit. However, the opposition of the German clergy did not stop. Methodius was accused of rejecting the doctrine of the Filioque. In 880 he was summoned to Rome, where he was acquitted, after which he returned to Moravia.
Methodius directed his efforts to organizing a full-fledged church life and spreading Byzantine legal norms in Great Moravia. To this end, he translated the Nomocanon and compiled the "Law Judgment of People" - the first Slavic legal collection. On the initiative of Methodius, and possibly with his participation, the life of Cyril and the service to him were written (originally in Greek). In the last years of his life, according to his life, Methodius, with the help of two assistants, translated into Slavonic the entire Old Testament (except for the Maccabees), as well as the "books of the fathers" (in all likelihood, Paterik). Shortly before his death, he named Gorazd, one of his disciples, as his successor. Methodius was buried in the cathedral church of Velehrad, the capital of Moravia (the grave has not been preserved). Shortly after the death of Methodius, his students were expelled from Moravia, and most of them (Clement of Ohrid, Naum of Ohrid, Constantine of Preslav) ended up in Bulgaria, where the tradition of Slavic writing was continued.
The veneration of Cyril and Methodius began, probably, immediately after their death. Their lives and services to them were created in the 9th century. The names of Cyril and Methodius appear in the month-word of the Assemanian Gospel (1st half of the 11th century). The early veneration of Cyril and Methodius in Russia is evidenced by the inclusion of their names in the months of the Ostromir Gospel (1056-57) and the Archangel Gospel (1092). At the end of the 17th century, during the correction of the Menaion (see Book on the right), the names of Cyril and Methodius were excluded from the church calendar. The resumption of veneration dates back to the middle of the 19th century and is associated with the ideas of Slavic unity that were relevant for that time. The days of memory of Cyril and Methodius were included in the calendar of the Russian Orthodox Church in 1863.
Images of Cyril and Methodius are quite widespread. Cyril is depicted in monastic attire - in a dark chiton and a mantle with a hood, Methodius - in episcopal vestments. The earliest depiction of Cyril and Methodius is considered to be the miniature "Transfer of the Relics of St. Clement, Pope of Rome" from the Menology of Basil the Great (between 976 and 1025, Vatican Library). Sometimes a 9th-century fresco from St. Clement's Basilica in Rome is cited as the earliest depiction. In Russia, images of Cyril and Methodius have been found since the 15th century among the miniatures of the Radziwill Chronicle and in menaine icons, where saints of the entire month were depicted. In Russian iconography, their images have become especially popular since the middle of the 19th century.
Memorial days according to the calendar of the Russian Orthodox Church - February 14 (27) (Equal to the Apostles Cyril), April 6 (19) (Holy Methodius), May 11 (24) (Equal to the Apostles Methodius and Cyril); according to the calendar of the Roman Catholic Church - February 14. Since 1991, an annual secular holiday, the Day of Slavic Literature and Culture, has been established in Russia, which falls on the day of church memory of Cyril and Methodius.
Lit .: Lavrov P. A. Kirilo and Methods in Old Slavonic writing Kiev, 1928; he is. Materials on the history of the emergence of ancient Slavic writing. L., 1930; Kirilo-Metodievsk Encyclopedia. Sofia, 1985-2003. T. 1-4; Vereshchagin E. M. The history of the emergence of the ancient common Slavic literary language. Translation activities of Cyril and Methodius and their students. M., 1997; Florya B.N. Legends about the beginning of Slavic writing. St. Petersburg, 2004; Takhiaos A.-E. N. Holy brothers Cyril and Methodius, enlighteners of the Slavs. Sergiev Posad, 2005.
In the 9th century in Byzantium in the city of Thessalonica lived two brothers - Constantine and Methodius. They were smart, wise people, knew the Slavic language well.
At the request of the Slavic Prince Constantine, the Greek Tsar Michael sent brothers to the Slavs. The brothers Constantine and Methodius were supposed to tell the Slavs about the holy Christian books. Later, having become a monk, Constantine received the name Cyril.
The Slavs who lived in those days knew how to plow, mow, weave canvases, embroider them with patterns. But they didn't know how to read books and write letters.
The younger brother Cyril decided to write books understandable to the Slavs, but for this it was necessary to invent Slavic letters.
In a narrow monastery cell,
In four blank walls
About the land of ancient Russian
The story was written by a monk.
He wrote in winter and summer,
Illuminated by dim light.
He wrote from year to year
About our great people.
Cyril thought a lot, worked. And now the alphabet was ready. It had 44 letters. Some of them were taken from the Greek alphabet, and some were invented to convey the sounds of Slavic speech. So the Slavic peoples got their own written language - the alphabet, which is called Cyrillic.
Each letter in the ancient Slavic alphabet was special. The names of the letters reminded people of the words that should not be forgotten: “good”, “live”, “earth”, “people”.
The Thessalonica brothers are the pride of the entire Slavic world. The entire Slavic world is grateful to the brothers Cyril and Methodius for giving us the Slavic alphabet. This happened in 863. They also translated Greek books into Slavic, so that the Slavs had something to read.
Cyril and Methodius are often depicted walking along the road with books in their hands. A torch held high illuminates their path. 44 sister letters look at us from this ancient scroll.
The exceptional intellect of one and the stoic courage of the other - the qualities of two people who lived very long before us, turned into what we now write in their letters, and add up our picture of the world according to their grammar and rules.
Message
on the topic: "Cyril and Methodius - the first teachers of Slovenia."
2nd class students
MKOU "Secondary School No. 1"
G. Efremov
Dorokhova Ekaterina.
Cyril and Methodius - saints, equal to the apostles, Slavic enlighteners, creators of the Slavic alphabet, preachers of Christianity, the first translators of liturgical books from Greek into Slavonic. Cyril was born around 827, died on February 14, 869. Before becoming a monk at the beginning of 869, he bore the name Constantine. His elder brother Methodius was born around 820 and died on April 6, 885. Both brothers were from Thessalonica (Thessalonica), their father was a military leader. In 863, Cyril and Methodius were sent by the Byzantine emperor to Moravia in order to preach Christianity in the Slavic language and assist the Moravian prince Rostislav in the fight against the German princes. Before leaving, Cyril created the Slavonic alphabet and, with the help of Methodius, translated several liturgical books from Greek into Slavonic: selected readings from the Gospel, apostolic letters. Psalter, etc. In science, there is no consensus on the question of which alphabet Cyril created - Glagolitic or Cyrillic, but the first assumption is more likely. In 866 or 867, Cyril and Methodius, on the call of Pope Nicholas I, went to Rome, on the way they visited the Blaten Principality in Pannonia, where they also distributed the Slavic letter and introduced worship in the Slavic language. After arriving in Rome, Cyril fell seriously ill and died. Methodius was consecrated Archbishop of Moravia and Pannonia and in 870 returned from Rome to Pannonia. In the middle of 884, Methodius returned to Moravia and was busy translating the Bible into Slavonic. Through their activities, Cyril and Methodius laid the foundation for Slavic writing and literature. This activity was continued in the South Slavic countries by their students, who were expelled from Moravia in 886 and moved to Bulgaria.
CYRIL AND METHODIUS - ENLIGHTENERS OF THE SLAVIC PEOPLES
In 863, ambassadors from Great Moravia from Prince Rostislav arrived in Byzantium to Emperor Michael III with a request to send them a bishop and a person who could explain the Christian faith in Slavonic. The Moravian prince Rostislav strove for the independence of the Slavic church and had already applied to Rome with a similar request, but was refused. Michael III and Photius, just as in Rome, reacted to the request of Rostislav formally and, having sent missionaries to Moravia, did not ordain any of them as bishops. Thus, Constantine, Methodius and their entourage could only conduct educational activities, but did not have the right to ordain their disciples to the priestly and deacon ranks. This mission could not be crowned with success and be of great importance if Constantine had not brought to the Moravans an alphabet perfectly developed and convenient for the transmission of Slavic speech, as well as a translation into Slavonic of the main liturgical books. Of course, the language of the translations brought by the brothers differed phonetically and morphologically from the living spoken language spoken by the Moravans, but the language of liturgical books was initially perceived as a written, bookish, sacred, sample language. It was much more understandable than Latin, and a certain dissimilarity to the language used in everyday life, gave it greatness.
Constantine and Methodius read the Gospel in Slavic at divine services, and the people reached out to the brothers and to Christianity. Konstantin and Methodius diligently taught the students the Slavic alphabet, worship, continued their translation activities. Churches where the service was conducted in Latin were empty, the Roman Catholic priesthood was losing influence and income in Moravia. Since Constantine was a simple priest, and Methodius was a monk, they did not have the right to appoint their disciples to church positions themselves. To solve the problem, the brothers had to go to Byzantium or Rome.
In Rome, Constantine handed over the relics of St. Clement to the newly ordained Pope Adrian II, so he received Constantine and Methodius very solemnly, with honor, accepted worship in the Slavic language under his guardianship, ordered to put Slavonic books in one of the Roman churches and perform worship over them. The Pope ordained Methodius as a priest, and his disciples as presbyters and deacons, and in a letter to the princes Rostislav and Kotsel, he legitimizes the Slavic translation of the Holy Scripture and the celebration of worship in the Slavic language.
The brothers spent almost two years in Rome. One reason for this is Constantine's deteriorating health. At the beginning of 869, he took the schema and the new monastic name Cyril, and on February 14 he died. By order of Pope Adrian II, Cyril was buried in Rome, in the church of St. Clement.
After the death of Cyril, Pope Adrian ordained Methodius to the rank of Archbishop of Moravia and Pannonia. Returning to Pannonia, Methodius launched a vigorous activity to spread Slavic worship and writing. However, after the removal of Rostislav, Methodius did not have strong political support left. In 871, the German authorities arrested Methodius and held a trial against him, accusing the archbishop of having invaded the possessions of the Bavarian clergy. Methodius was imprisoned in a monastery in Swabia (Germany), where he spent two and a half years. Only thanks to the direct intervention of Pope John VIII, who succeeded the deceased Adrian II, in 873 Methodius was released and restored to all rights, but the Slavic service became not the main one, but only an additional one: the service was conducted in Latin, and sermons could be delivered in Slavonic.
After the death of Methodius, the opponents of the Slavic worship in Moravia became more active, and the worship itself, which rested on the authority of Methodius, was first oppressed, and then completely faded. Some of the students fled to the south, some were sold into slavery in Venice, some were killed. The closest disciples of Methodius Gorazda, Clement, Naum, Angellarius and Lawrence, imprisoned in iron, kept in prison, and then expelled from the country. The writings and translations of Constantine and Methodius were destroyed. This explains the fact that their works have not survived to this day, although there is a lot of information about their work. In 890, Pope Stephen VI anathematized Slavic books and Slavic worship, finally banning them.
The work begun by Constantine and Methodius was nevertheless continued by his disciples. Clement, Naum and Angellarius settled in Bulgaria and were the founders of Bulgarian literature. Orthodox Prince Boris-Michael, a friend of Methodius, supported his students. A new center of Slavic writing appears in Ohrid (the territory of modern Macedonia). However, Bulgaria is under a strong cultural influence of Byzantium, and one of Constantine's students (most likely Clement) creates a script similar to the Greek script. This happens at the end of the 9th - beginning of the 10th century, during the reign of Tsar Simeon. It is this system that gets the name Cyrillic in memory of the person who first attempted to create an alphabet suitable for recording Slavic speech.
THE QUESTION OF THE INDEPENDENCE OF THE SLAVIC ALPHABETs
The question of the independence of the Slavic alphabets is caused by the very nature of the outlines of the Cyrillic and Glagolitic letters, their sources. What were the Slavic alphabets - a new writing system or just a kind of Greek-Byzantine writing? In deciding this issue, the following factors must be taken into account:
In the history of writing, there was not a single letter-sound system that would have arisen completely independently, without the influence of previous writing systems. So, the Phoenician letter arose on the basis of the ancient Egyptian (although the principle of writing was changed), ancient Greek - on the basis of Phoenician, Latin, Slavic - on the basis of Greek, French, German - on the basis of Latin, etc.
Consequently, we can only talk about the degree of independence of the writing system. At the same time, it is much more important how accurately the modified and adapted original writing corresponds to the sound system of the language that it intends to serve. It is in this respect that the creators of Slavic writing showed a great philological flair, a deep understanding of the phonetics of the Old Slavonic language, as well as a great graphic taste.
THE ONLY STATE CHURCH HOLIDAY
PRESIDIUM OF THE SUPREME SOVIET OF THE RSFSR
RESOLUTION
ABOUT THE DAY OF SLAVIC WRITING AND CULTURE
Attaching great importance to the cultural and historical revival of the peoples of Russia and taking into account the international practice of celebrating the day of the Slavic enlighteners Cyril and Methodius, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR decides:
Chairman
Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR
In 863, 1150 years ago, the Equal-to-the-Apostles brothers Cyril and Methodius began their Moravian mission to create our written language. It is mentioned in the main Russian chronicle "The Tale of Bygone Years": "And the Slavs were glad that they heard about the greatness of God in their own language."
And a second anniversary. In 1863, 150 years ago, the Holy Synod of Russia decided: in connection with the celebration of the millennium of the Moravian Mission of the Holy Brothers Equal to the Apostles, to establish an annual celebration in honor of St. Methodius and Cyril on May 11 (24 CE).
In 1986, at the initiative of writers, especially the late Vitaly Maslov, the first Writing Festival was first held in Murmansk, and the following year it was widely celebrated in Vologda. Finally, on January 30, 1991, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR adopted a resolution on the annual holding of the Days of Slavic Culture and Literature. Readers do not need to be reminded that May 24 is also the name day of Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia.
Logically, it seems that the only state-church holiday in Russia has every reason to acquire not only a national sound, as in Bulgaria, but also a pan-Slavic significance.