الحمام الطائر

The Flying Pigeons

The simple young man, Kriako, stopped to wipe off his sweat and rest, as his feet had become very heavy, and he felt unable to carry the simple bag containing only a few clothing items. Signs of physical exhaustion appeared on his features.

The young man resumed his journey, repeating the name of Jesus Christ, reassuring himself that he was very close to the town of Tarih, where he would enjoy the blessings of the monastery and the presence of his fathers. Indeed, the domes of the monastery began to appear from afar, adorned with crosses, which made him very joyful.

Immediately, Kriako knelt on the ground, raising the eyes of his heart towards heaven and praying:

“Thank you, my Lord Jesus Christ… You who have brought me to this hour to see the monastery. Allow me to enjoy the blessing of its fathers. Will you accept me as a servant to my fathers? Will you accept my whole life as a sacrifice of love to You who have loved me? May I spend the rest of my earthly exile in Your arms?! I only ask that You be with me and I with You!”

Tears began to flow from his eyes, but his longing to reach the monastery drew him to get up quickly, as joy filled his heart, and he felt as if he was carried by a cloud towards paradise, or given the wings of a dove to fly to paradise…

All physical fatigue left him, and he hurried towards the monastery, as the long-awaited time had arrived.

Young Kriako gently and calmly pulled the rope to ring the monastery’s bell without causing disturbance. After a few minutes, Kriako heard a gentle voice from behind the door asking: “Who is at the door?”

“It’s your son, Kriako, Father!”

“What do you want, my son?”

“Allow me to enter, Father, for I have come from a very distant place to receive the monastery’s blessing and the blessing of its monk fathers.”

“There are many churches in the world, my son. If you wish, you can receive blessings there, and there are many fathers of confession to support you!”

“My father, I have heard about the mobks. I need your prayers and guidance. Allow me a few minutes with the head of the monastery.”

“Forgive me, my son, I cannot open.”

“I beg you, for the sake of love, accept me, for I am a stranger and have endured much to receive the monastery’s blessing.”

“Where did you come from, my son, so I can tell the head of the monastery? Perhaps he will allow you to enter for a short time.”

The head of the monastery went to the guest area to meet young Kriako, who insisted on meeting him, and the father’s face was cheerful.

Kriako was overjoyed and rushed towards the father, kissing his hands and asking for his prayers.

The young man opened his heart to the monastery’s head, telling him about his long-standing desires for monastic life. The father asked him about his father of confession, his spiritual practices, and his readings. After a simple, calm dialogue lasting about two hours, the head said:

“My son, I cannot promise you anything, but I will leave you here for a period that may be long, to test yourself. The path of monasticism is not easy, its war is fierce and bitter. I will take care of you personally, but I want you to be honest with yourself and with me. Monasticism is not an end in itself but a path not granted to everyone. Your eternal life and living with Christ must be above all!”

As the spiritual session was about to end and the head of the monastery wanted to excuse himself from Kriako to prepare a place for him to live under trial, the young man asked:

“Don’t you recognize me, Father?”

The head was surprised by this question after a spiritual session that lasted hours, in which the young man revealed all aspects of his spiritual life, but he simply replied:

“What do you mean, my son?”

“I am Kriako, your nephew, Father!”

The head looked closely at him, as he had not seen him for a long time. Then he asked: “How are your parents, my son?”

“All is well, Father.”

“Does your father approve of your monastic life?”

“Yes, my father, he also went to one of the monasteries to become a monk.”

“And where is your mother?”

“She was reposed in paradise.”

The head of the monastery nodded his head without losing his smile, saying: “Your mother has gone to her resting place. And your father knew to flee this world for his eternal life.”

Then the head of the monastery asked his nephew to disregard their physical kinship and to focus only on worshipping God… and that made Kriako very happy.

Years passed, and Kriako grew in grace, deeply attached to his Christ, his heart burning with love for eternity. This was reflected in his features, always cheerful, known for his extreme simplicity, with many coming to him for his prayers, trusting in his holiness.

Some envied him for his fame that spread in many lands in Armenia, so they came to the monastery and slandered him to the head of the monastery, claiming that the monk Kriako, known for his extreme simplicity and frequent forgetfulness, was only pretending to be holy and acting with asceticism.

Strangers asked the head of the monastery to introduce them to the monk Kriako as a group of guests, to reveal the truth about this monk. The head granted their request, and indeed, the monk welcomed them with great attention and his usual love. After talking with them for a log while about the kingdom of God, he asked them to bless him and dine with him, and they accepted his invitation.

Knowing they had come from a distant land and were hungry, Kriako quickly slaughtered “pigeons” and grilled them, then placed them before them and sat among them praying… and it was “Wednesday”, which he did not know. A brother excused himself and quickly summoned the head of the monastery to see the ascetic monk Kriako eating grilled pigeons on a Wednesday.

The head of the monastery entered alone, and the brother stayed outside the cell so as not to reveal his presence. Then one of the guests asked the monk Kriako: “Don’t you know, Father Kriako, that today is a fast, so why did you prepare pigeons for us?” intending to humiliate him in front of the head of the monastery.

The simple monk was silent for a moment without disturbance, then calmly asked: “Is this true our father?… today is Wednesday?” And when the head of the monastery did not answer, the monk said: “I am very sorry, I did not know that today was Wednesday… Would you allow the pigeons to fly?”

The attendees laughed mockingly as they saw him make the sign of the cross over the grilled pigeons and say: “Since today is a fast, why do you stay here, pigeons?! So fly then!” But soon everyone stopped laughing as they saw the grilled pigeon fly out of the dish into the air!

A true story from the book: “Short Stories for Boys”.

A verse to memorize:

✝ “Do not judge, so that you will not be judged” (Matthew 7:1)