The Concept of Consolation in the Patristic Heritage

Abstract

Purpose of the paper presentation of research results studying the concept of consolation in the heritage of the holy fathers of the Church.

The research methodology is based on theoretical analysis as a way of working with the material. The main method used in the study was the scientific and theological method. The methods of literature analysis, generalization, induction and deduction, the method of theoretical synthesis and the method of abstraction were used as additional. The methodological basis of the research is the Holy Scriptures, the works of St. John Chrysostom, St. Gregory the Theologian, St. Ephraim the Syrian, St. Tikhon of Zadonsk and Archimandrite John (Krestyankin). Explanatory dictionaries by S. I. Ozhegov and V. I. Dalia were also the basis for this study.

The research assumes that consolation is one of the main reasons a human comes to the Church. Therefore, the pastor's ability to consolation can be directly related to the growth in the number of parishioners.

The main part of the research was devoted to the concept of pastoral consolation in the writings of the Fathers of the Church of great authority in modern theology. A historical analysis was made of the use of the concept of consolation since the first centuries of Christianity, to the present day. Also analyzed the approach of Russian theology to the research topic.