Coming with a religious mission to the Slavic lands, they accomplished a great deed for the development of culture and science, which cannot be overestimated - they made up the Old Slavonic alphabet. They are brothers, Cyril and Methodius. Monuments to them stand all over Russia and in the cities of the countries of the former USSR: Khanty-Mansiysk, Samara, Sevastopol, Odessa, Kyiv, Murmansk and Moscow. Every year there are more of them. Why?
Historical background
These events began in the year 862, when Prince Rostislav sent with his ambassadors a petition to the Roman lands, so that enlightened people were sent to carry the word of God to Moravia (Bulgaria).
This mission was entrusted to the brothers - Methodius and Cyril. They were famous for their education, intelligence and Christian good deeds.
Brothers were born in the family of a military man - chief in Thessaloniki.
Cyril was younger than Methodius. He studied in the glorious Constantinople, was strong in the sciences, and the University of Magnavra accepted him into their walls to teach. He was also appointed as a tutor to the young Emperor Michael the Third. EvenCyril had a nickname - "philosopher".
The eldest of the seven brothers - Methodius was in military service, which he went after his father. For about ten years he ruled one Slavic region, and then he went to the monastery, but he diligently helped the younger one in everything.
Arriving in Moravia with his students, the brothers, or rather Cyril, compiled the alphabet for the Old Church Slavonic language. According to it, the comrades translated the main Christian books from Greek.
A lot of work has been done, but the Roman Church did not appreciate the work of the brothers, defining only three sacred languages for the true word of God - Hebrew, Greek, Latin.
Upon his return to Rome, Cyril was overcome by a serious illness, and a month and a half later he died. His brother went back to Moravia. There, all his life, he served for the benefit of education and Orthodoxy.
In 876, Methodius finally obtained permission to read sermons in Slavonic and translated the Old Testament into it.
Description
The monument to Cyril and Methodius in Moscow is a monument. It consists of a pedestal and two statues - the brothers stand side by side in full growth. In their hands, Methodius and Cyril hold the main attributes of Orthodoxy - the cross and Holy Scripture. In front of the monument stands a lamp with an "eternal" unquenchable fire.
On the pedestal itself there is an inscription: "To the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles First Teachers of the Slavic Methodius and Cyril. Grateful Russia". It is inscribed using the Old Slavonic alphabet. Modern dictionaries have found five grammatical errors there!
Where is it
The monument to Cyril and Methodius was opened in Moscow in 1992. This event was timed to coincide with the holiday dedicated to the Day of Slavic Literature and Culture (May twenty-fourth is Cyril's memorial day).
The monument to Cyril and Methodius stands at the entrance to Ilyinsky Square. Previously, there was a Board of Honor, on which industrial enterprises of the Moscow region in Soviet times hung out photos of their best workers.
This part of the square was renamed, now it is called Slavyanskaya Square.
Traditions
Every year, the monument to Cyril and Methodius in Moscow is the starting point for those who celebrate the holiday dedicated to Slavic culture and writing. Fiery solemn speeches are made at the pedestal, flowers are brought.
Opposite Slavyanskaya Square stands the Church of All Saints on Kulishki, so sometimes a procession passes by the monument, which looks very symbolic.
Many tourists take beautiful photos here - the monument to Cyril and Methodius is one of the sights of the capital.
Monument in Muransk: history
The monument to Cyril and Methodius in Moscow owes its very existence to the active work of Murmansk writers.
It was there, in the Arctic, since 1986 they began to celebrate the Day of Slavic Literature and Culture. After some time, the date was made state and began to be celebrated throughout the country.
In 1988, a group of Soviet writers was on an official visit toBulgaria. It was there that the idea arose - to erect a monument to the authors of the Slavic alphabet in Murmansk. Yes, not just put, but give as a token of gratitude to the residents of the city for the revival of this cultural tradition in Russia.
Murmansk: monument to Cyril and Methodius
The monument in this city exactly repeats the monument, which is located in Sofia at the entrance to the National Library.
The statues of Cyril and Methodius are cast in bronze. They stand on a concrete plinth. Under the whole composition lies a reliable foundation, it is made up of twelve slabs of granite.
Graphic representations of the enlighteners have not survived to this day. But the author (Vladimir Ginovsky) created laconic and majestic images. Cyril is a young man with a thin spiritual face. His hand is holding a pen. Methodius is a mature man with a strong and wise look, in his hand is the Holy Scripture. Both are dressed in the clothes of monks of their time, in their hands they have a scroll with the beginning of the Slavic alphabet. A copy of the monument was created by the original author himself.
The monument was consecrated by His Holiness Patriarch Maxim of Bulgaria on the Independence Day of Bulgaria (May 3, 1990). After the consecration ceremony, the monument to the Enlighteners Cyril and Methodius was officially handed over to the representatives of the city of Murmansk.
The truck that transported the monument six meters high covered more than four thousand kilometers. Along the way, the participants, along with valuable cargo, visited such Slavic cities as Varna, Odessa, Kyiv, Minsk, Novgorod, Petrozavodsk. We traveled along the Black Sea by ferry.
And here is the twenty-second of May of the sameYears square near the building of the regional scientific library of Murmansk announced solemn speeches on the occasion of the opening of this wonderful monument.
In the square, not only a monument with a base has been erected, but also a platform in front of it, finished with stone fragments, has been prepared. The square itself is framed by gray granite blocks. But that is not all. The architects plan to restore the pedestal, facing it with a monolithic polished stone, which should be decorated with several belts of an ornament consisting of the letters of the Old Slavonic alphabet.
