Are there any secrets in Christianity? Certainly, very much. We are not talking about a creed, open the Lord God through Scripture and tradition. But there are paradoxes, especially in hagiographic literature, which are clearly very difficult to assess. Some believe such hagiography fictitious. Though to dismiss always easier than to try to understand.

In one of the Epistles of the Holy Apostle Paul is the following lines: "For the creature looked forward to the revelation of the sons of God; for the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but the will to conquer it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God" (ROM. 8: 19-21). What can be discussed if in another Scripture says that "the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned" (2 Peter. 3:10)? Means "beast" - not necessarily the current nature, doomed to destruction? In addition hardly something inanimate can wait and hope. Therefore, we can assume that it's written just about living beings, capable of experiencing such feelings.

It is known that even the Holy fathers allow multiple interpretations of the same quotes from the Bible, and not because some of them wrong (of course, if there is a discrepancy with the doctrine of the Church). But the depth of the meaning of Scripture is that when all the desire not to go into the most perfect of human thinking. However, you can try to guess, what is this thing if I go to another blessed by the Church source - hagiographic descriptions of the lives of the saints.

For example, in the life of the monk Paul of Thebes, the famous Egyptian wilderness-dweller, which was blessed Jerome of Stridona described one rather interesting case: "...during the night of the Sabbath was revealed to Anthony that there is another monk much better than he, and that he should go to see this ascetic. And now, when the first rays of light, Reverend, elder, supporting staff infirm members, went forth, not knowing whither. Already noon, and despite the strong solar heat, the old man kept on walking, saying, " ... I do believe my God that He will show me His servant, promised me".

But more of this miracle: Anthony sees a strange creature, part man, part horse, which in the language of poets called hippocastanum: they saw him, Anthony came upon the forehead of the image saving signs. "Hey you, " said he, " in which part of the desert servant of God dwells"? Hypocenter, murmuring something barbaric, and rather mangling than saying the words, when the horror of the old man, tried gently to speak with him, stretching out his right hand, he pointed to him desirable way, and ran in the race for a wide fields with the speed of a bird, had disappeared before the elder. We know it, did the devil ghostly creature to intimidate the elder, or indeed in the wilderness, rich monstrous animals, born and such animals. Anthony, wondering and thinking to himself what he had seen, goes further.

A little later, in a rocky valley Anthony saw a small man with a hooked nose and with horns on his forehead, and the lower part of his body ended in a goat's-legs. Impressed by this spectacle, Anthony, as a good soldier, assumes the shield of faith and the armor of hope. The animal in question brought him to the road food palm fruit in peace. Seeing this, Antony stopped, asking unknown beings: "Who are you"?, got this response: "I'm a mortal, one of the inhabitants of the desert, which attracted all sorts of misconceptions paganism honors under the name of fauns, satyrs and nightmares of pressing during sleep. I sent to you from your brethren. Please pray for us to the Lord, Who, as we heard, came once to save the world, and all the earth was broadcasting It". - Hearing these words, the elderly traveler watered face

abundant tears, slivovskaya out of the abundance of the heart the joy. He rejoiced over the glory of Christ and of the destruction of Satan, and wondering, what can understand speech desert dweller, striking with a stick in the ground, said, "Woe to you, Alexandria, instead of God-honoring different wonders! Woe to you, hail harlot, where flocked evil spirits (daemonia) around the world. What she'll say now? Animals call upon the name of Christ, and you will honor different wonders"! No sooner had the old man finished speaking these words, as a horned animal retired as if flying running..."

You can imagine the demon who calls out the name of Christ, calling on the God-man is not to expel him. But the devil is asking for prayer for his ascetic, - that is nonsense, if to remember the scale of satanic pride. Therefore, it is appropriate to assume how much God mansions in heaven (Jn. 14:2), and a variety of His earthly creation. Of course, this is no reason to trust everyone who appeared to you ' desert", which is likely to be peretvoryvsja friendly demon. But this fantastic Chapter Christian history calls first of all to remember about the relativity of his knowledge of the outside world and thanks to humble the pride of their own mind.

Some argue that, say, in hippocastanum and other creatures is absurd to believe. If such claim atheists-materialists, that is, of course, these things are very clear. But Christians who doubt the veracity of hagiographies of these here "fantastic" elements in them, I want to ask: more real than walking on water and the creation of food for several thousand people from five loaves? Finally, the resurrection of the dead is also contrary to what is considered the unbelievers common sense. But it is one of the main points of Christian doctrine, resulting from the human to the divine. By the way, the Roman historian Pliny wrote that ippocastano led to Rome, which aroused the wonder and delight of Roman citizens.

There is another example paradoxical "fantastic" hagiography - the Vita of the Holy Martyr Christopher Isegawa, who lived in the THIRD century A.D. According to legend, he was descended from a tribe of barbarians, which has the head of a dog, the cynocephalus. It is possible that the ascetic was just ugly in appearance, so his face was called the analogy of a dog's muzzle. There is another version: from birth the Saint was endowed with beauty, but seeing that she was tempted by women and enters them into temptation, he turned to God with prayer on termination of this and began to seem surrounding isegawa. Whatever it was, along with images depicting the Holy just as the giant bearing on the shoulders of the infant Christ, widespread zoomorphic iconography of the Martyr. And this again suggests that the superhuman beings who are not simultaneously angels or devils may not absolute fiction.

In the end, not in vain in the Church from the earliest times there is a special rite of baptism, through which the children born with a rather strange look. This rite, inter alia, provides clarification: "If (if) people...". The answer to the question why children are born with "beast" deformities, remains open. Although it has been many versions: from a random deformations of the bullock of the baby inside the mother's womb to have taken place in the genus poor kid bestiality.... But none is not yet recognized by science as correct.

So scientists are puzzled why the world is such shocking sensation, the Church earnestly praying for this world and will be glad, if the Lord, but the people will save other kinds of creatures, too, need His help and forgiveness...