It is a relief to hear of truly repentant 'bad guys'. Here is one such narrative from the Life of St Feofil.
Each of these, by the way, would be ideal for a movie scene as they have internal drama and tension [ often between good and evil : Feofil and his either persecutors or interlocutors ].
The episodes are described in such a fresh, lively way that the reader feels right there observing the events.
Every word of conversation is related in such a realistic way that one expects that the author had followed St Feofil around throughout his life with a tape recorder in hand and transcribed everything exactly as it was said by each party.
And, with a few adjustments of accoutrements and modes of transport, the people we meet on the pages of this biography are timeless. We can easily recognize people we know today, ~ 170 years later, amongst the wide variety of colorful characters described here.
"The Profiteer
In the town of Vasilkovo, there lived a profiteer who had made a fortune in shady business dealings. All his life had been lived in depravity, dishonesty, and evil. He had built up a large estate for his old age, but having retired to take advantage of it, he became afflicted with a gnawing conscience. He resolved to repent of his sins and seek forgiveness. He had heard many stories about the great podvizhnik, Hieroschemamonk Feofil, and he set out for Kiev in the hope of spending some time with him.
The visionary Starets, foreseeing the visit of the profiteer, decided to anticipate his arrival by meeting him before he reached the hermitage. For this purpose he set out into the woods and for days awaited the merchant on the road where the Red Tavern was located. Soon the carriage appeared with the profiteer-merchant seated importantly within.
He noticed the monk walking in his direction, and he came out of the carriage and walked towards the monk.
"How do you do, Batiushka!?
"Well, and how do you do, sir merchant!"
"Is it far from here to the hermitage?"
"Which one do you want?"
"Kitayevskaya."
"It is high unto God, far to the Tsar, but the hermitage is closest of all. What is your matter? To pray to God?"
"Something like that, but most of all I want to see the schemamonk that is called Feofil. You couldn't tell me where he lives?"
"Of what use is he to you?"
"They say that he is very holy, a visionary."
"Who, Feofil?"
"Yes, the hieroschemamonk."
"What kind of holiness is that? You have believed all that old wives' nonsense?"
"How could this be? All say..."
"You don't say ! But he is such an evil-doer, such a fornicator, you couldn't find such a villain in the whole world. He ravished other women, seduced maidens, stole his neighbours horses at night, lent money to the poor at outrageous interest rates. How many orphans he has let out into the world without any clothing, how many people he has destroyed through shady business and deception ! He has grown a fat belly on other people's goods and now he has the desire to approach God. He has come to Starets Feofil with a pile of deathly sins on stolen horses.
"Well, repent, repent. Pray to God. The Lord is merciful. He doesn't want a sinner's death, only his change to a life for Him."
But the amazed horse-dealer had already felt in his heart that this was Feofil and had already dropped to the feet of the Starets weeping tears of repentance on them.
"Forgive me, Batiushka. Absolve me, accursed murderous swindler and villain that I am."
"God will forgive, God will forgive. Go to God's saints. Bow to them. Pray to them. They will expiate you. They will forgive everything. Your father was a righteous man and for his prayers God will have mercy on you."
"No, He will not have mercy on me. I have angered His infinite benevolence too much."
"He will forgive, He will forgive. Only don't fall into errors again through carelessness and thereby litter the beneficent sources which have cleaned the soul today by your repentance.
"Don't cease praying, don't give freedom to your passions. Guard your forgiveness, love and retain the fear of God. Go!"
+++
The merchant promptly set out for the Lavra and spent many hours telling the monks of the Caves about his encounter with Feofil>"
http://livingorthodoxfaith.blogspot.com ... art-6.html
[ illustration added by Barbara ]