The Lord Saviour 101.080

“O Lord, be the defender of my soul, since I am walking among numerous the meshes” – this old pleading prayer of Righteous St. John of Damascus is written on the cross reverse. It is directed to the Lord whose image is pictured on the cross obverse. The Lord is depicted full-length, in quivering garments. He is as if meeting us with His hand lifted up in benediction gesture. In His lowered left hand a rotulus lies. It is a symbol of the New Testament that Jesus Christ brought to people, as well as a token of personal obligation of every person towards God that one takes when getting baptized.

At baptismal bowl godparents repudiate Satan thrice for their godchild. But an adult when being baptized repudiate Satan and all kinds of his evil personally. Thereby one promises God to obey the Scripture, to fulfill His commandments of love and good. But the Archenemy tries in every possible way to make a Christian break his vows; lay cunning nets of falsehood, flattery, and envy; decoys him into fetters of sin греха through money, glory, pleasures – no matter whether all that is in plenty, or taken away at all. And one is oblivious of the fact that one has become a slave thereof, believing that one is free in one’s desires.

When one withstands temptations spiritually, Church calls that an invisible struggle. And human soul is unable to come out of it victorious without God’s help, without His mighty support.

“O Lord, be the defender of my soul, since I am walking among numerous the meshes; deliver me of them and save me, Good, as our God who loves mankind”.

Many of the ghost-filled elders and the Church Fathers recommended reading him everyday, and repeating particularly in difficult circumstances. Because the Lord hears a prayer directed towards Him, and meets your wishes.