| St. Silouan’s solitary life could be roughly divided into three phases, matching the exodus of the Hebrew people from Egypt: the crossing of the Red Sea, the period of time in the desert, and the entrance to the Promised Land. Each of these eras is symbolically rooted, as I just mentioned, in the biblical story of the Jewish people. The first period comprises Silouan’s calling from God, marked by an accompanying joy granted by the Holy Spirit. “I did not bring anything with me to the Monastery other than my sins, and I have no idea why the Lord has given me, at that early phase in my monastic career as a novice, such a plentitude of the Holy Spirit’s Grace, which filled my soul and body with immense joy.” He further goes on to say that “the received Grace was akin to the one enjoyed by the martyrs, while my body longed to suffer from Christ.” Those who are ignorant of Grace do not seek it. Those that seek to accumulate wealth and leadership for themselves in this world are blind, literally captives of earth. They are similar to the village rooster, so content as he is to be confined within a small, apparently safe yard. The eagle, by contrast, who soars above the clouds, knows many lands, seeing as he does forests and meadows, rivers and mountains, seas and cities. If we cut the eagle’s wings and have him live in the narrow yard ruled by the rooster, he would no doubt spend the rest of his life in misery and homesickness for the skies. The second period in Silouan’s monastic career corresponds to the very difficult time of the withdrawal of Grace, experienced as what his biographer, Archimandrite Sophrony called [Silouan’s] abandonment by God. Such an agonizing development in one’s monastic life as the eclipse of God and His Grace is a recurrent theme in the literature of Christian spirituality, repeatedly spoken of by Makarius of Egypt, Diadochos Fotikes, Isaac the Syrian, Maximus the Confessor, Symeon the New Theologian, and many more Church Fathers. In this context, St. |
| The monastic settlement on Iona was characterized by communal possession of property, as well as humility and compassion. The latter extended towards animals as well, in agreement with the Irish love for the Creation. As was the case with thousands of Orthodox saints such as St Guthlac of Crowland, St Symeon the New Theologian or St Seraphim of Sarov, St Columcille was at times seen to be radiating a divine, immaterial light. While at prayer the saint was seen surrounded by a heavenly light, descending and filling the entire church building. At other times St Columcille was seen with angels hovering about him, or with a column of light rising from his head. In Orthodox Christian theology, phenomena like these are ascribed to the uncreated energies of God, in which the saints through their exceeding holiness are allowed to participate. St Columcille also played a key role in the establishment of an independent Scottish kingdom, granted at the Irish assembly at Drumceat around 575. Until that time the Scottish king was under Irish suzerainty, since the south of Scotland was colonized by Irish settlers who founded the kingdom of Dalraida around 490. Columcille was a prolific writer of Gospel books and hymns, and also wrote the Cathach, the earliest Irish manuscript of note. Such was the saint’s versatility that he prevented a plan to expel the bards from Ireland and defended their traditional organisation. On Iona he passed into eternity on 9 June 597, afterwards to be celebrated as his feast day. Irish Saints: St Moluag Also born in the north of Ireland, around 530, was St Moluag. He first went to the monastery at Bangor, and in 562 he crossed the sea and founded a monastery on the Scottish island of Lismore. From there he made missionary journeys to Skye and the Outer Hebrides, and to the Great Glen to the east. He founded Christian settlements at Fort Augustus and Glen Urquhart on the shores of Loch Ness, and Rosemarkie on the Black Isle. St Moluag reposed in 592. His crozier, made of blackthorn and originally covered in copper, is still preserved on Lismore Island. Feast day: 25 June. |
| Unto thee shall be his desire (Gen. 4:1-24) Now we come to the actual subject of today’s meeting: is any service pleasing to God? The following words belong to St. Symeon the New Theologian, “The good done in a not good way is not good.” What does it mean? It may seem to be a cavil: after all, the person did good, and as they say: “work done, have fun.” But, it is not so. It is said: the good done in a not good way is not good. This is very vividly illustrated in the Biblical narration about the two brothers, children of Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel. Cain and Abel. A fresco in Monreale Cathedral, Sicily, Italy. We read: And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the Lord (Gen. 4:1). It’s a very interesting verse. Recall again the good news that we read in the third chapter of Genesis, the words of God addressed to the serpent: And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel (Gen. 3:15). For the devil, these words were like a death sentence, but for Adam and Eve, they were good tidings. As Apostle Paul put it, the Gospel is a sweet savor of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish: … the savor of death unto death (see 2 Cor. 2:15-16). And Eve remembered this promise of God, this good news, and, having given birth to Cain, said: I have gotten a man from the Lord . However, she “got ahead of herself,” for she gave birth not to the promised Messiah, but to Cain, the first murderer. Falling away from God, Who is Life, always leads to death. We read further: And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord. A nd Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering: But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. |
| Ascetic struggle consists of praying more deeply within oneself and of being focused. The Fathers once spoke of two monks who were walking to church. One of them constantly repeated: “O Come, let us worship and fall down before Christ… O Come, let us worship…” The other could not restrain himself, and asked: “Why don’t you read the Psalms, but instead are always repeating just this?” The former replied: “I’m summoning all my senses, so they would come together to worship Christ.” Incidentally, according to Gregory the Sinaite – and Symeon the New Theologian spoke of this earlier – the Fall of man consisted of his dispersion: his senses, thoughts, will, desires – each pulls the body in its own direction. Grace is like a good coordinator. Thus, in some governments there are the ministers of such-and-such and such-and-such, and then there is the minister of coordination, of communication, who links them all together. The grace of the Holy Spirit unites us, making us into one person. And indeed, when someone senses and receives God’s gift, then within himself he immediately becomes one, unified. This is what hesychasm affirms. The purpose, or fullness, is the manifestation of the grace of God: that one would with all one’s being not only feel, but taste and even see it. The hesychasts said that they saw the same light as the Apostles on Tabor; they said that this light is Divine; that this light is Divine energy, which can be distinguished but not separated from the Godhead. Therefore, when Divine grace comes, God comes – but He is present in His energy, and not in His essence. And, of course, His presence is personal, because essence is always the essence of someone, and essential energy is likewise the energy of someone – it is the activity of his nature, of his essence. In this Palamas already confessed the fullness of triadological theology. Barlaam, as a philosopher following Aristotle, rejected this, saying that such categories cannot be distinguished in God, because God’s being is simple (aplotis) and without complexity, and this introduces complexity. Palamas responded very cleverly: could it really be that God’s Essence and His Hypostases are the same? We believe in three Hypostases and one Essence. Does this in fact divide God? Does this make God complex? No, God remains simple. Thus, if we confess God to be tri-hypostatic and almighty (pantodynamos) – that is, if He has might, energy, and power – we thereby do not create any complexity in Him. As such, Palamas spoke in the language of theological confession, and not of philosophy. Faith gives meaning to words! |
| In baptism, we receive into the innermost chamber of our heart Christ and the Holy Spirit. What greater gift could there be than that? To be Christ-bearers, Spirit Bearers? So fathers like Saint Symeon the New Theologian would say we cannot possibly add to the grace of baptism. In baptism, the fullness of Divine life is given to us. But, what we have to do is to discover that grace. It is hidden within us when we are baptized in infancy, hidden within us in an unconscious way through the fulfillment of the commandments, through living the Christian life, through receiving the Eucharist with faith, we are gradually to discover the meaning of the grace of baptism and to experience this indwelling presence of Christ and the Spirit in a conscious and perceptible way. So the Christian life is a journey if you like from baptismal grace, present within us unconsciously – secretly, mystikos – mystically – is the word that the fathers use. A journey from unconscious grace to the experience of grace consciously, actively, with full perception and assurance. So, all of us are called actively to experience the presence of the Holy Spirit within us that was given to us in baptism. The Christian life can be summed up in the phrase, “Become what you are.” Fr. Steve Tsichlis: Your Eminence, there are many Pentecostals around the world who would say that speaking in tongues is an extremely important phenomenon and of course Saint Paul speaks of this phenomenon in his letters to the Corinthians, but how do we see speaking in tongues? How do we see that gift of the Holy Spirit? Once when I was doing a church tour in Seattle a gentleman stood up and said to me that unless you speak in tongues you are not saved and cannot be saved. How would we respond to that? Metropolitan Kallistos Ware: I would respond by saying clearly to that gentleman you are wrong, and you have no sound foundation for that assertion in Holy Scripture. Saint Paul speaks of the gift of tongues but he never says that it is essential. |
| Thus, we see that the Holy Apostles and the Holy Fathers did not understand that prayer was only a formal external action. On the contrary, they considered that all Christians are called to turn their whole life into prayer, that is, a permanent state of the soul’s communion with God. Saint Basil the Great explains, in a homily, what this means: “ Prayer is a petition for good addressed by the pious to God. But we do not rigidly confine our petition to words. Nor yet do we imagine that God requires to be reminded by speech. He knows our needs even though we ask Him not. What do I say then? I say that we must not think to make our prayer complete by syllables. The strength of prayer lies rather in the purpose of our soul and in deeds of virtue, reaching every part and moment of our life. (…) Thus you will pray without ceasing; if you pray not only in words, but unite yourself to God through all the course of life, and so your life be made one ceaseless and uninterrupted prayer. ” (Saint Basil the Great, Homily on Martyr Julitta). In other words, a Christian’s mind and heart will be permanently directed towards God, towards Christ the Lord. Saint Symeon the New Theologian, deepening his patristic theology before him, wrote : “So, too, someone who prays continuously (I Thess. 5:17) has in this act included everything and is no longer obliged to praise the Lord seven times a day (Ps. 119:164), or in the evening, in the morning, and at noonday (Ps. 55:17): he has already done all that we do by way of prayer and psalmody according to the regulations and at specific times and hours.” (The Theological and Practical Treatises) In connection with the unceasing or monologic prayer, as it has been called before, St. Gregory Palamas says: “All who are called after Christ (all Christians), in whatever group they may be, must work prayer unceasingly, according to the apostolic exhortation “Pray without ceasing!” […]. Not only the monks outside the world, but also men, women, and infants, sages, and the uneducated, and all together should learn prayer in the same way, and to this end to put all their efforts.” (Philotheus Kokkinos, Encomium in honour of Saint Gregory Palamas, PG 151, 573 CD) |
| And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him (Gen. 4:2-7). The content of the seventh verse is amazing; it reminds us of the words of St. Symeon the New Theologian: “The good done in a not good way is not good.” What evil did Cain do? And why did God have respect for Abel’s offering (that is, He saw and accepted it) but not Cain’s? Abel brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof . In modern language, he brought everything he cherished most in life. The sacrifice of a modern man in the modern world is not necessarily some kind of gifts to God or something for the Church. Certainly not! God needs nothing as He possesses everything: He is the Master of the whole universe; everything belongs to Him and there is nothing we could give Him that He doesn’t already have. So why does God need sacrifices then? As King David said: The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise ” (Ps. 50:19). This is the kind of sacrifice that God needs! It also speaks there of sacrificial love, and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ Himself showed us this love. This is what the apostle Paul writes in his first epistle to the Corinthians: Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing (1 Cor. 13:1-2). And further: Charity suffereth long; envieth not; vaunteth not itself, seeketh not her own, rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things… (see 1 Cor. |
| Without this no Christianity will take place. Without this there is no Church of God, because the Church of God is the continual service of love for God and one another. And there can be no other Christian Church without this happening. If this love is not in us, then we can observe the fasts, read the Gospel, pray a great deal, and give everything we own to the poor. The Apostle Paul writes that even if I give my body to be burned, but do not have this love in me, that it has no value or meaning [cf. 1 Corinthians 13:3]. Therefore it is natural that the Lord would expect this love from us. Divine love is born only through humility. If we understand that this love is not in us, that we would like to love but cannot, this means that we lack the most elementary thing: humility. In order to gain this love, we need to act as the Lord teaches us: to see your master in your neighbor. St. Symeon the New Theologian said: whoever has seen his brother has seen his God. This will be the most important foundation of our faith, of our journey to Christ. When we receive His Holy Body and Blood today, let us ask that, as we leave church, we may see the world through different eyes, the eyes through which the saints saw our world: whoever has seen his brother has seen his God. Amen. Delivered in the Church of the Life-Giving Trinity in Khokhly (Moscow), 2005 Translated from the Russian Code for blog Since you are here… …we do have a small request. More and more people visit Orthodoxy and the World website. However, resources for editorial are scarce. In comparison to some mass media, we do not make paid subscription. It is our deepest belief that preaching Christ for money is wrong. Having said that, Pravmir provides daily articles from an autonomous news service, weekly wall newspaper for churches, lectorium, photos, videos, hosting and servers. Editors and translators work together towards one goal: to make our four websites possible - Pravmir.ru, Neinvalid.ru, Matrony.ru and Pravmir.com. Therefore our request for help is understandable. |
| What is of general use, and God given, is the actual praying, the repetition of the words, without any physical endeavour – not even movements of the tongue – and which can be used systematically to achieve an inner transformation. More than any other prayer, the Jesus Prayer aims at bringing us to stand in God’s presence with no other thought but the miracle of our standing there and God with us, because in the use of the Jesus Prayer there is nothing and no one except God and us. The use of the prayer is dual, it is an act of worship as is every prayer, and on the ascetical level, it is a focus that allows us to keep our attention still in the presence of God. It is a very companionable prayer, a friendly one, always at hand and very individual in spite of its monotonous repetitions. Whether in joy or in sorrow, it is, when it has become habitual, a quickening of the soul, a response to any call of God. The words of St Symeon, the New Theologian, apply to all its possible effects on us: ‘Do not worry about what will come next, you will discover it when it comes’. From Living Prayer Templegate Publishers Springfield, IL, 1966, p. 84 – 88 Code for blog Since you are here… …we do have a small request. More and more people visit Orthodoxy and the World website. However, resources for editorial are scarce. In comparison to some mass media, we do not make paid subscription. It is our deepest belief that preaching Christ for money is wrong. Having said that, Pravmir provides daily articles from an autonomous news service, weekly wall newspaper for churches, lectorium, photos, videos, hosting and servers. Editors and translators work together towards one goal: to make our four websites possible - Pravmir.ru, Neinvalid.ru, Matrony.ru and Pravmir.com. Therefore our request for help is understandable. For example, 5 euros a month is it a lot or little? A cup of coffee? It is not that much for a family budget, but it is a significant amount for Pravmir. If everyone reading Pravmir could donate 5 euros a month, they would contribute greatly to our ability to spread the word of Christ, Orthodoxy, life " s purpose, family and society. |
| Symeon regarded the casus belli as his claim that the present generation had the same charismatic right to live in the freedom of the ancient saints. In exile he bought the oratory of St. Marina at Chrysopolis and wrote some of his most famous works, including the Hymns of Divine Love, a classic of mysticism. He died aged 73 in 1022. His relics were not admitted back into the capital until 1054, when Niketas Stethatos composed a Vita for the occasion. Symeon was revered as a great master of the inner life by the Hagiorites. In recent decades he has attracted much scholarly attention. His teaching is important both for the light it throws on a dark period of Byzantine affairs, but more so for the spiritual themes it treats with such vigor. He is a major advocate of the power of repentance: a force that is not simply for “beginners” in the ascetical life, but which makes the human soul into the “friend of Christ.” His descriptions of visions of the divine light inspired generations after him, as did his devotion to the Eucharist. The practice of the Jesus Prayer, however, does not make much of an appearance. Symeon is also important for the doctrine of Spiritual Fatherhood which had a marked impact on Orthodox spiritual praxis in the time of the 18th- century Philokalic revival. SEE ALSO: Hesychasm; Jesus Prayer; Philokalia; Stethatos, Niketas (ca. 1005–1085) REFERENCES AND SUGGESTED READINGS de Catanzaro, C. J. (trans.) (1980) Symeon the New Theologian: The Discourses [Catecheses]. New York: Paulist Press. Golitzin, A. (1995–7) St. Symeon the New Theologian [trans. of “The Ethical Discourses’’], 3 vols. New York: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press. Hausherr, I. (1928) “Un grand mystique byzantin: Vie de S. Symeon le Nouveau Theologien [par Nicetas Stethatos],” Orientalia Christiana 12, 45. Holl, K. (1898) Enthusiasmus und Bussgewalt beim greichischen Monchtum, eine Studie zu Symeon dem Neuen Theologen. Leipzig. Krivocheine, B. (1987) In the Light of Christ. New York: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press. |
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