A Miraculous Healing at the Grave of the Holy Man and Wonder-worker St. John of Kronstadt

And in that same hour he cured many of their infirmities and plagues, and of evil spirits; and unto many that were blind He gave sight. (Luke 7:21)

On February 4, I was witness to the miraculous healing of four possessed women at the tomb of dear Batiushka; two of them I myself led to the coffin.  I wrote down their names and addresses, and later inquired about the details.  And now I consider it my duty to make these facts known, for a city that is set on a hill cannot be hid.  Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house (Matt. 5:14-15).

When they brought one possessed woman into the sepulchre, the woman fell down at once and began beating herself; she went into frightful spasms; from her mouth came blasphemous words uttered in a most unnatural, savage voice…

One of the nuns said:  “Someone, help” and I quickly threw down my coat and hastened to her aid.

Two strong men and I barely managed to lead the possessed woman to the coffin.  Within a few minutes she calmed down and was completely cured.  Her name is Maria Ivanovna Yakovlevka, and she lives on Yekaterinskaya Prospect, house 3, apartment 20.  Here is what she told me. 

In the course of the past 18 years, I had terrible dizzy spells, especially in church or when I looked at icons.  I would fall unconscious and I neither felt nor understood what happened to me.  But I was told that during these attacks I would beat myself furiously, tear my hair and clothing, stretch out my tongue…When I came to, I would always feel exhausted, battered.  I would feel acute pain in all my members and in my mouth; my clothing would be ripped.  I was treated by the old village women and by city doctors, — to no avail.  Despairing of ever getting better through the help of treatments, I entrusted myself to the will of God, and the Merciful Lord did not desire the cruel death of a sinful woman.

On February 3 my friend said to me:  “Let’s go tomorrow to Karpovka, to the convent, to dear Batiushka in order to pray at his coffin.  Maybe he will heal you.”  I agreed, and the next day we set out.  When we arrived at the convent my head began spinning and I wasn’t so sure about going into the sepulchre.  We stood for some time in the large church, and then, at the insistence of my friend, I began descending the stairs into the sepulchre… What happened next, I don’t remember.  When I came to, I was standing by dear Batiushka’s coffin and I felt an extraordinary flow of strength within me, vigor, lightness – as though a mountain had fallen from my shoulders.  I was reborn.  I felt no pain in my members, nor do I at the present time.  Now I am able to partake of the Holy Mysteries, whereas before I couldn’t even thinkig of such a thing.

The night of the 4th I had a dream that I was surrounded by a crowd of people.  Many of them had snakes crawling out of their mouths…and out of my mouth came what looked like a red snake.

Waking up, I told my neighbor that I had such a dream because I had eaten some herring. But the Lord judged otherwise.

Glory to the All-merciful Lord and His Holy Righteous One!… 

            Seeing such miracles and conscious of one’s unworthiness in the face of God’s inexhaustible mercy, one involuntarily recalls King David and cries out with him to the Lord:

Not according to our iniquities has He dealt with us, neither according to our sins hath He rewarded us  (Ps. 102:9)