| Holiness and Martyrdom in Our Times: An Interview with Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos Source: ORTHOGNOSIA Holiness, asceticism, discernment and martyrdom are great riches of our Church that move us, attract us, transform us and save us from the distractions and lies of this world in every era. In an interview with His Eminence Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos and Agiou Vlasiou, he gives answers to the questions of a journalist (George Theoharis from/Agioritikovima.gr/) on these issues, and speaks of other aspects of ecclesiastical life. – Your Eminence, many people are unsure if saints exist today.What do you say? – Of course there are saints. The purpose of the Church is to sanctify people, otherwise it should not exist. The Church, with the Mysteries and the ascetic life, aims to heal mankind from the passions and give them spiritual health, which is holiness. God says: “Be holy,for I am holy” (1 Pet. 1:16). And it is written in the Apocalypse: “Let the one who is holy continue to be holy” (Rev. 22:11). Unfortunately,most Christians today perceive the Church as a religious, ethical or social organization with secular or worldly purposes. And they struggle together in the Church to produce social or ethical projects. Of course,the Church does such projects, but these are the result, a fruit of the union of a person with Christ. Thus, there are saints also today who lived and live within the Church,such as Bishops, Priests, monks and laypeople of all categories. Yet,the biggest problem is that we don’t have the Orthodox criteria to understand them, because they have an inner world that is hidden from the many, and many of us are not in the right condition to recognize them. What is particularly important is not whether saints exist today, but how we can become saints. All sciences have a particular method, and for one to be a saint they must follow this specific method, which is the purification of the heart, the illumination of the nous and theosis, in conjunction with the Mysteries of the Church. We encounter this in the/Philokalia/and in the teachings of the contemporary Fathers. Holiness is expressed through repentance, humility, and love for God and man. |
| A.V. Nesteruk Bibliography A. Classical and Patristic Writers (with the source for the English translation) Athanasius of Alexandria Contra Gentes NPNF, series 2, vol.4. De Incarnatione Verbi Dei On the Incarnation. Crestwood, N.Y.: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 1998. De decretis (P.G. 25.411c) Quoted in Torrance, “The relation of the Incarnation to Space in Nicene Theology.” Contra Arianos Quoted in Torrance, “The relation of the Incarnation to Space in Nicene Theology.” Augustine of Hippo Confessions NPNF, series 1, vol. 1; or The Library of Christian Classics. Vol. 7. London: SCM Press, 1955; or Saint Augustine Confessions. Trans. H. Chadwick. New York: Oxford University Press, 1991. City of God Augustine. Concerning the City of God against Pagaus. Trans. H. Bettenson New York: Penguin Books, 1980. Lettes to Consentius A fragment in Lindberg, “Science and the Early Church”. On Christian Doctrine NPNF, series 1, vol. 2. Enchiridion The Library of Christian Classics. Vol. 7. London: SCM Press, 1955. Epistolae Goldbacher, A., ed., Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorum, vol. 34. Vienna: Tempsky, 1895. On the Trinity NPNF, series 1, vol. 3: or Bourke V. J., ed. The Essential Augustine. Indianopolis: Hackett, 1975. The Literal Meaning of Genesis Tailor, J.H. St. Augustine: The Literal Meaning of Genesis. New York: Newman, 1982. Basil the Great (of Caesarea) The Hexaemeron NPNF, series 2, vol. 8. Letters NPNF, series 2, vol. 8. Clement of Alexandria The Stromata, or Miscellanies ANF, vol.2. Diadochos of Photiki On Spiritual Knowledge Palmer et al., eds., The Philokalia, vol. 1. Dionysius the Areopagite The Divine Names C.E. Rolt. “Dionysius the Areopagite, The Divine Names and The Mystical Theology.” Trans. C.E. Rolt. London: SPCK, 1979. Some quotations are from V. Lossky, The Mystical Theology of the Eastern Church. The Celestial Hierarchies The Mystical Theology and the Celestial Hierarchies of Dionysius the Areopagite. Godalming: The Shrine of Wisdom, 1965. |
| This volume is intended to provide an introduction to the theological thinking of Saint Maximus the Confessor. I stress ‘thinking’, rather than just ‘thought’, as there is already a host of introductions to his thought. Maximus himself provided such introductions – notably his Centuries on Love and his Centuries on Theology and the Incarnate Dispensation of the Son of God. In these works Maximus presents his thoughts in pithy form as a series of propositions, or at best brief paragraphs. They have been very popular, and both of them are available in two different English translations. More recently others have provided introductions to Maximus’ thought, or aspects of it: most famously and influentially, the great Swiss Catholic theologian, Hans Urs von Balthasar (Balthasar 1961, originally published in 1941). There is even an introduction to other people’s thinking about Maximus (Nichols 1993). But what has been lacking so far has been an introduction to Maximus’ thinking: and it is my hope that this book will help fill that gap. If it does, it will do that by providing, for the first time in English (or in many cases for any Western language save Latin and Romanian), translations of some of Maximus’ major theological treatises, drawn especially from his two collections of Ambigua, or Difficulties, in which Maximus does not simply present his conclusions, but displays a theological mind, drawing on Scripture and all that is meant in Orthodox Christianity by Tradition–the Fathers, the Councils, spiritual experience–and bringing this to bear on our understanding of God’s engagement with humankind, an engagement summed up in his assuming humanity itself in the Incarnation and overcoming the brokenness of fallen humankind in his death and resurrection. But the contrast between Maximus in his major treatises and in his condensed summaries is not at all that between ‘theology’ and ‘spirituality’ (despite the fact that the condensed summaries found a place in that great compendium of Orthodox spirituality, the Philokalia of St Nikodimos of the Holy Mountain and St Makarios of Corinth), for, as we shall see, even in the densest of his theological treatises, Maximus’ concern for the life of prayer and engagement with God is still uppermost. The purpose of theology is to safeguard against misunderstandings that frustrate a Christian life of prayer. |
| Some years ago a close family friend passed away in a nursing home. She spent the last months of her life in what appeared to be a state of semi-consciousness, rocking back and forth in her chair and muttering to herself, “Waiting, waiting…”. We never did learn just what she was waiting for, other than death. She was, though, a fervent and faithful Christian, and her “waiting” seemed very much akin to “watching.” Her Protestant background gave her little in the way of initiation into “spiritual warfare.” Yet instinctively—by grace—she understood what that struggle was about. She had seldom read writings of the Church Fathers, so she had little in the way of a vocabulary to express the inner meaning of “waiting.” Nevertheless, she seemed fully aware that the word does not imply what we usually think it does: an inactive state of expectation for something to come, something that is not yet present or available. It describes, rather, a pathway that leads toward fulfillment of that expectation. Insofar as it is grounded in “watchfulness,” the act of “waiting” is an inner dynamic of the heart or soul, which offers us immediate experience of the object of our most fervent longing. This our friend understood. And it seemed to transform her days and months of waiting into a true pilgrimage. As it is used in patristic tradition, “watchfulness” implies an inner attentiveness or vigilance. It requires wariness in the face of attacks from both within and without, from our worst inner impulses and from the onslaught of demonic temptations. Accordingly, watchfulness is a key element in spiritual warfare. The eighth century ascetic writer Hesychios of Sinai composed a remarkable treatise on “watchfulness and holiness,” included in the Philokalia . He begins with this description: “Watchfulness is a spiritual method which, if sedulously practiced over a long period, completely frees us with God’s help from impassioned thoughts, impassioned words and evil actions. It leads, in so far as this is possible, to a sure knowledge of the inapprehensible God, and helps us to penetrate the divine and hidden mysteries. It enables us to fulfill every divine commandment in the Old and New Testaments and bestows upon us every blessing of the age to come. It is, in the true sense, purity of heart…”. |
| I received an e-mail from someone asking advice on how to find a spiritual father. I had to tell him that finding a spiritual father, in one sense, is very difficult and may take a lifetime. In fact, if by finding a spiritual father he means that he is looking for a relationship with a spiritual mentor that is like what one reads about in the Philokalia or the Sayings of the Desert Fathers, or in the Ladder of Divine Ascent, then I would have to say that it is almost impossible to find a spiritual father. On the other hand, and in another sense, it is very easy to find a spiritual father or mother. Finding a spiritual mentor in this sense has mostly to do with the seeker’s humility and willingness to be taught, and much less to do with the qualifications of the potential mentor. Let me explain: In the writings of the Holy Fathers, especially the ancient Fathers, we are given as examples to be emulated the many stories of absolute and unquestioning obedience of novices to their spiritual fathers. We are told stories of holy men who submitted unquestioningly and with profound humility to spiritual fathers and who themselves became saints because of that humble submission. We are told of clairvoyant elders, full of love for their spiritual children, who unerringly guided their spiritual children on the path to godlikeness, and we are told of spiritual children suffering harsh consequences as a result of disobeying their spiritual mentors. This tradition of discipleship under a wise and experienced spiritual guide (father or mother as the case may be) is an essential part of our Orthodox Christian tradition and a necessary aspect of our growth and transformation into godliness. However, this way of spiritual fatherhood is much misunderstood these days and consequently–even if unintentionally–sometimes results in unhealthy relationships and even spiritual abuse. In such cases, instead of helping one grow in Christ, a inappropriate or misunderstood relationship with someone whom you consider to be a spiritual father or mother (or with someone who presents themselves as a spiritual father or mother) can result in prolonged spiritual infancy, years of confusion or anger, and even in one turning away from Christ completely. |
| Алексей Нестерук Библиография А. Классическая литература и патристика Августин Блаженный Исповедь. М.: Renaissance, 1991. О Граде Божием. В двадцати двух книгах. T. II, кн. 8–13. М.: Изд-во Спасо-Преображенского монастыря, 1994. Enchiridion. Английский перевод (далее – ET [English Translation]): The Library of Christian Classics, vol. 7. L.: SCM Press, 1955. Epistolae 120, ed. A. Goldbacher, в Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorum, vol. 34. Vienna: Tempsky, 1895. Letter to Consentius. ET: цит. в D. Lindberg, Science and the Early Church. The Literal Meaning of Genesis. ET: J. H. Taylor, St. Augustine: The Literal Meaning of Genesis. N. Y.: Newman, 1982. On Christian Doctrine. ET: Library of the Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers [NPNF]. Translated into English with prolegomena and explanatory notes. Second series. Edinburgh: T & T Clark; Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1996, series 1, vol. 2. On the Trinity. ET: NPNF, series 1, vol. 3; или The Essential Augustine, ed. V. J. Bourke. Indianapolis: Hacket, 1975. Афанасий Александрийский I Великий На ариан слово третье, в Творения в четырех томах, т. II. М.: Спасо-Преображенский Валаамский монастырь, 1994. Слово на язычников, в ibid., т. I. Слово о воплощении Бога-Слова и о пришествии его к нам во плоти, в ibid., т. I. De Decretis, в Patrologiae cursus completes [PG], ed. J. P. Migne. Series Graeca. 161 vols. P.: Migne, 1857–1866, 25.411c. ET: цит. в T. F. Torrance, The Relation of the Incarnation to Space in Nicene Theology. Василий Великий , св. Беседы на Шестоднев. М.: Изд-во Московского подворья Свято-Троицкой Сергиевой Лавры, 1999. Letters. ET: NPNF, series 2, vol. 8. Григорий Богослов (Назианзин), св. Слова. Собрание творений в двух томах. Свято-Троицкая Сергиева Лавра, 1994. Letters. ET: NPNF, series 2, vol. 7. Григорий Нисский , св. Об устроении человека. СПб.: AXIOMA, 1995. De anima ressurectione. ET: C. P. Roth, The Soul and the Resurrection. N. Y.: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 1993. Григорий Палама , св . The Declaration of the Holy Mountain in Defence of Those Who Devoutly Practise a Life of Stillness. ET: The Philokalia, eds. G. E. H. Palmer et al., vol. 4. |
| Anger blinds and deafens. Anger keeps us from thinking clearly and from paying attention to and loving the human beings in our presence right now. CHLOE EFFRON//WIKIMEDIA COMMONS (PLUTARCH), ISTOCK (SMOKE) If I were to venture a guess as to the most commonly confessed passion that I hear in confessions, I would say that it is anger. Just about everyone is angry. According to many of the saints, anger and misdirected desire are the two main passions from which all vices and passions come. The sources of anger can be varied, but I think there are two sources of anger that are most common in the people here in western Canada whom I confess and with whom I often have ‘confessional chats.’ The first source is, it seems to me, cultural expectation. There is a cultural expectation in Canada, and in North America generally—especially among the privileged class (usually of European descent, working class or better off financially, and that is most pronounced among the better educated)—an expectation that life would, could, and should be fair. We in North America generally have egalitarian suppositions and expectations. We expect the courts, institutions, businesses and other people in general to treat us fairly and equally. And when this is not the case, when either I or someone with whom I identify is treated unfairly, I become angry. Anger coming from this source, if the source is not a particular injustice I am experiencing, often comes from politics, from identifying with a particular political position, party or issue. That is, although I myself am not immediately or directly effected by a real and immediate injustice, I identify with those who are or seem to be or even might possibly be effected. Some Christians, particularly those especially interested in political action, argue that such vicariously acquired anger is a good thing because it motivates one to work politically for change in unjust systems. The Church Fathers of the desert and philokalic tradition, however, see things differently. |
| Tweet Нравится Philokalia published in Portuguese Moscow, April 14, 2017 Photo: Pravoslavie.ru Portuguese publishing house “Paulinas” has released the book Pequena Filocalia (“Small Philokalia”). The 800-page tome includes works of the great monastic teachers translated into Portuguese: St. Anthony the Great, Evagrius Ponticus, St. Macarius the Egyptian, St. John Cassian, St. Hesychios of Sinai, St. Mark the Ascetic, St. Maximus the Confessor, St. Symeon the New Theologian, St. Gregory of Sinai, St. Gregory Palamas, and other fathers of the Church. The Patristic works were translated from ancient Greek by Portuguese translator António de Almeida and compiled and edited for publication by Igumen Arseny (Sokolov), representative of the Moscow Patriarchate to the Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East. Editor for the “Paulinas” publishing house Rui Oliveira expressed confidence that the book will not only be read with interest by Portuguese-speaking readers, but for many of them will be the opening of the Orthodox ascetic tradition. The Philokalia of St. Macarios of Corinth (1731–1805) and St. Nicodemos of the Holy Mountain 1749–1809) was first published in Venice in 1782. Since the eighteenth century, this collection has been the foundational work for all Orthodox spirituality, both Greek and Slavic. Since the time of publication of this book containing 1206 pages in the Greek original and representing over thirty authors, it has been printed in abridged forms and translated into various languages—most notably Slavonic, Russian, modern Greek, Romanian, English, French, and Italian. 14 апреля 2017 г. Рейтинг: 7 Голосов: 3 Оценка: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Квитанция Реквизиты для юридических лиц Реквизиты для переводов из-за границы Оплата с банковской карты Visa, MasterCard и Maestro Оплата наличными через кассы и терминалы Пожертвование через Сбербанк Онл@йн Яндекс.Деньги Альфа-клик MasterPass Интернет-банк Промсвязьбанка скрыть способы оплаты Квитанция Реквизиты для юридических лиц Реквизиты для переводов из-за границы Оплата с банковской карты Visa, MasterCard и Maestro Оплата наличными через кассы и терминалы Пожертвование через Сбербанк Онл@йн Яндекс.Деньги Альфа-клик MasterPass Интернет-банк Промсвязьбанка скрыть способы оплаты |
| Born in Ibora on the Black Sea, Evagrios enjoyed a close connection with the Cappadocian fathers: a pupil of Gregory of Nazianzus, he was ordained reader by Basil. Later (380–1), he accompanied Gregory of Nazianzus to Constantinople as Gregory’s theological assistant in the time he composed the Five Theological Orations. There he enjoyed acclaim for his success in disputes against Eunomians. Around 383, when Nektarios was patriarch, he fled Constantinople on account of its spiritual perils and in search of a life of stillness (hesychia). At the monastery on the Mount of Olives (near Jerusalem) he was tonsured a monk by Rufinus and Melania, then traveled via Alexandria to settle in the Nitrian desert as a solitary. Having spent several years under the spiritual direction of St. Macarius of Egypt and standing within the tradition of the desert fathers, Evagrios himself became a spiritual guide of great renown. His Praktikos, Gnostikos, Chapters On Prayer, Antirrhetikos, On Evil Thoughts, and Commentary on the Psalms were celebrated throughout late Antiquity and the Middle Ages. Styled as collections of mellifluous pithy maxims (apophthegmata), these expound the mind’s journey of purification from obstreperous thoughts, the acquisition of virtues, and ascent to divine knowledge: the praxis-contemplation-theology trilogy. Via Cassian, Evagrios’s ideas spread in the West at an early stage, while remaining ascetical classics in the Greekspeaking East. The late 5th century saw his writings translated into Syriac. He likewise authored other, more esoteric treatises (Gnostic Chapters, Letter to Melania) containing speculations about creation, Christ, and salvation, some of which were developed directly from Origen’s works. There he argued that bodies and matter were fashioned subsequently to the creation of souls, as remedy for the souls’ disobedience; Christ is not the divine Logos but is created; in the End of Things, all shall be saved (the Devil included, while bodies and material beings shall be destroyed). For these latter views, which first aroused the suspicions of Theophilus of Alexandria and Jerome (early 5th century), Evagrios was condemned as heterodox at the Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Ecumenical Councils. Many of his Greek originals were destroyed, to remain only in Syriac translations. Other works survive under the names of persons of untainted reputation: notably, St. Nilus (Chapters on Prayer, in the Philokalia). Evagrios also appears in the Philokalia as Abba Evagrios the Monk (On Eight Thoughts). In later times Sts. John Climacus, Maximus the Confessor, and Symeon the New Theologian were deeply influenced by Evagrios’s spiritual teachings; and in the later part of the 20th century he once again emerged as a spiritual master as his works found English translations. |
| John Anthony McGuckin St. Paisy Velichovsky (1722–1794) JOHN A. MCGUCKIN Also known as St. Paisy of Neamt, from the Romanian monastery where he did most of his publishing work. He was a very important disseminator of the spiritual tradition of the Philokalia to the Slavic Orthodox lands. Along with the original Greek editors of the Philokalia – St. Nikodemos the Hagiorite and St. Macarius of Corinth – he is one of the major early modern Philokalic fathers. His intense labors for the rediscovery of the classical hesychastic tradition bore fruit in many revivals across the Orthodox world, lasting to the present. He was a native of the Ukraine, son of the dean of Poltava Cathedral. Orphaned at an early age and brought up by his elder brother, the priest John, the child learned to read from the holy books (scripture and the Menaion) and developed a great love for the works of the Fathers. He entered the Kiev Mohyla Academy (1735–9) but was attracted to the ascetic life, and in 1740 entered the monastery of Lubetch, moving soon after to St. Nicholas’ monastery where he was tonsured in 1741. It was a time when many Orthodox monasteries were being forcibly closed. He himself took refuge with Hieromonk Michael in 1743, who brought him to the Romanian Skete of St. Nicholas at Traisteni. After two years there, following Athonite observance, he left to study under the hermit Onuphrios in Wallachia, and in 1746 finally made his way to Mount Athos, where he entered the Great Lavra before moving to settle at St. Panteleimon’s. In 1750 he was admitted to the Lesser Schema and began accepting disciples. His first followers were Romanians, and shortly after he accepted Russian monks, making his foundation a dual-language community. In 1758 he was ordained priest and became a highly regarded spiritual father on Athos. His community grew rapidly and he first realized the need to provide serious spiritual seekers with a library of patristic advice. He commissioned several monks to translate patristic mystical texts into Slavonic. |
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