Memorial Day of the Holy Prophet Zephaniah

The ninth book of the Tanakh, as the Old Testament is called in Hebrew, was written by one of the twelve "minor" prophets of the Bible Zephaniah, who lived in the 17th century BC, canonized in Catholicism, Orthodoxy and Islam, in the Dolchalcedonian (Ancient Eastern) churches The prophet, who came from a noble family, lived at the royal court Josiah, who ruled at that time, was distinguished by modesty and other virtues, putting law and order above all else However, not all subjects shared the king’s views Zephaniah, who had the gift of foresight, predicted the decline of Judea, whose inhabitants were idolaters and preached the cult of Baal and Molech The remaining chapters of the book written by the prophet predict the death of other pagan kingdoms, Ascalon, Gaza and Crete, the Philistines, Ethiopians and other peoples, as well as the coming of the Messiah - Jesus Christ Saint Zephaniah, who preached repentance, meekness and humility, helped Josiah fight the priests who served the heavenly bodies and other pagans A contemporary of the prophet Jeremiah and the prophetess Huldah predicted the salvation of believers in the Almighty and the future flourishing of renewed Jewish communities The Christian Church venerates the saint, holding solemn services in his honor every year The Memorial Day of the Prophet Zephaniah is celebrated on December 16th Very little is known about the life and activities of the descendant of King Izekiah, who came from the tribes of Simeon Zephaniah revered King Josiah for restoring Solomon's temple, which had fallen into disrepair, and destroying pagan altars At that time, the cult of idolatry dominated Judea, and significant wealth accumulated in the hands of the ruling elite and merchants The secular and spiritual aristocracy, which served mammon, corrupted the people, making them immune to the teachings of the prophets and calls to convert to the true faith Zephaniah became one of those who predicted God's judgment with the destruction of all life on Earth and the punishment of the wicked The prophet, shining with piety, preached and fervently prayed for the conversion of the Jews to the path of truth in the form of a refusal to serve idols and the golden calf His prophecies contain both predictions of troubles that will befall those who do not believe in one God, as well as joyful events For people who are pure in heart and soul, the Almighty will become not a judge, but a savior, wrote Zephaniah The Prophet lived during a time of struggle between two religious teachings in the Promised Land - monotheism and paganism His speeches, despite their eschatological nature and predictions of the end of the world, gave people faith and hope for a bright future On Remembrance Day, during services in Christian churches, candles are lit and a kontakion and troparion to the prophet Zephaniah are sounded