St. Theophan the Recluse on Why Orthodox Christianity should not change with the times

Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Savior (source)

 
St. Theophan the Recluse on Why Orthodox Christianity should not change with the times

It reached my ears that, as it seems, you consider my sermons very strict and believe that today no one should think this way, no one should be living this way and therefore, no one should be teaching this way. “Times have changed!”

   

How glad I was to hear this. This means that you listen carefully to what I say, and not only do you listen, but you are also willing to abide by it. What more could we hope for, we who preach as we were ordered and as much we were ordered?

   

Despite all this, in no way can I agree with your opinion. I even consider it my duty to comment on it and to correct it, since – even though it perhaps goes against your desire and conviction – it comes from something sinful, as though Christianity could alter its doctrines, its canons, its sanctifying ceremonies to answer to the spirit of each age and adjust itself to the changing tastes of the sons of this century, as though it could add or subtract something.

   

Yet, it is not so. Christianity must remain eternally unchanging, in no way being dependent on or guided by the spirit of each age. Instead, Christianity is meant to govern and direct the spirit of the age for anyone who obeys its teachings. To convince you of this, I will put forward some thoughts for you to consider.

   

Some said that my teaching is strict. First of all, my teaching is not my own, nor it should be. In this sacred office nobody should, nor even can, preach his own teaching. If I or someone else ever dare to do so, you can put us outside the Church.

We preach the teachings of our Lord, God and Saviour Jesus Christ, of the holy Apostles, and the Holy Church, which is guided by the Holy Spirit. At the same time, we make sure to do everything possible to keep these teachings whole and inviolate in your minds and hearts. Every thought we present and every word we use, we do so very carefully, so as not to overshadow this brilliant and divine teaching in any way. Nobody can act differently.

   

...a single raising of your mind to God, and a single humble genuflexion to His glory and in His honor has infinitely more value than all the treasures of the world... --St Nicodemos and Theophan the Recluse (Unseen Warfare: Chapter 20)

   

Such a law that calls for each man’s preaching in the Church to be "God-sent," was established at the creation of the world, and should thus remain valid until the end of the world. The Prophet Moses, after the delivery of the commandments from God Himself to the people of Israel, concluded: “You shall not add to the word which I am commanding you, nor take away from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you.” (Deut. 4:2)

   

This law of constancy is so unalterable that the Lord and Savior Himself, when He was teaching the people on the mountain, said: “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished.” (Math. 5:17-18)

   

Then He gave the same validity to his teaching, before interpreting the commandments in the spirit of the gospel, by adding: “Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven.” (Math. 5:19)

   

This means that anyone who wrongly interprets the commandments of God and lessens their validity, will be an outcast in the future life. This is what He said at the beginning of His preaching. He assured the same thing to Saint John the Theologian, the beholder of ineffable revelations, to whom He described the final judgement of the world and the Church, indicating in the Apocalypse (Book of Revelations): “I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues which are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his part from the tree of life and from the holy city, which are written in this book.” (Apoc. 22:18-19)

   

From the time of His first appearance in the world until the Second Coming, Christ has given the Holy Apostles and their successors the following law: “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations…teaching them to observe all that I commanded you.” (Math. 28:19-20)

   

That means “for you to teach, not what anyone else could possibly imagine, but what I ordered, and this to the end of the world.” And He adds: “And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Amen.” (Math. 28:20)

   

The Apostles received this law and sacrificed their lives in order to keep it. And to those who wanted to keep them from preaching what it was they preached under the threat of punishment and death, they replied: “Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge; for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.” (Acts 4:19-20)

   

This clear law was delivered by the apostles to their successors, was accepted by them, and has timeless effect in the Church of God. Because of this law, the Church is the pillar and the ground of truth. Can you see then what an inviolable steadfastness it has? After that, who would be so bold as to stubbornly disturb or move anything in Christian doctrine and law?

   

Next listen to what is said of the Prophet Ezekiel who for seven days was in the ecstasy of prayer and after seven days heard the word of the Lord: “Son of man, I have made you a watchman to the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth” (Ezek. 3:17), and he declared to the people: Here is the law for you! If you see a wicked person committing iniquity and you do not tell him: leave your iniquity and change your way, “that wicked person shall die for his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand.” (Ezek. 3:18) Conversely, “if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn from his wickedness, or from his wicked way, he shall die for his iniquity, but you will have delivered your soul. Again, if a righteous person turns from his righteousness and commits injustice, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die. Because you have not warned him, he shall die for his sin, and his righteous deeds that he has done shall not be remembered, but his blood I will require at your hand. But if you warn the righteous person not to sin, and he does not sin, he shall surely live, because he took warning, and you will have delivered your soul.” (Ezek. 3:19-21)

   

What a strict law! And though it sounds in the consciences of all pastors during their election and consecration, when a heavy yoke is put on them, namely the instruction of the flock of Christ that He entrusted to them, big or small, not only to guide it but also to preserve it. How could anyone be so bold, to pervert everything in the law of Christ, when this involves the destruction of both pastors and flock?

   

If the saving power of this teaching depended on our opinion of it and our consent to it, it would make sense for someone to imagine rebuilding Christianity according to human weaknesses or the claims of the age and adapt it according to the sinful desires of his heart. But the saving power of Christian law does not at all depend on us, but on the will of God, by the fact that God Himself established precisely the exact path of salvation. Beyond this there is no other way, nor could it exist. Therefore, anyone who teaches in any other way, is deviating from the true path and is destroying himself and you. What logic is there in that?

   

Notice how strict judgment was mentioned when something similar happened to the nation of Israel during the difficult years of their captivity. Some prophets out of pity for the suffering and sick talked to the people, not as the Lord had ordered, but as their heart dictated. Concerning them the Lord gave the following commands to Ezekiel: “And you, son of man, set your face against the daughters of your people, who prophesy out of their own minds. Prophesy against them and say, Thus says the Lord God: Woe to the women who sew magic bands upon all wrists, and make veils for the heads of persons of every stature, in the hunt for souls.” (Ezek. 13:17-18)This means: Woe to those who order any kind of special treatment and suggest such leniency, so no one feels the slightest displeasure, either from those on top or those at the bottom, not caring whether this is for their salvation or destruction, whether it is pleasing to God, or repulsive. Woe to them, because “thus says the Lord God...your pillows and veils,” namely your candied and comforting teaching, “upon which there you are perverting souls, I will tear from your arms and I will let their souls that you are perverting, go away...” (Ezek. 13:20-21) from this teaching of yours and I will destroy you corrupters.

   

This is the benefit of this special treatment and leniency, such as you want to hear from preachers! When you put all this deep in your heart, it is not right for you to want us to make any concessions in Christian doctrine, having the wrong desire to be pleased by us. On the contrary, you are obliged to persistently demand from us to remain true to doctrine, as strictly and firmly as possible.

   

Have you ever heard of the indulgences of the Pope of Rome? Here is what they are: special treatment and leniency, which he gives defying the law of Christ. And what is the result? From all of this, the West is corrupt in faith and in their way of life, and is now getting lost in its disbelief and in the unrestrained life with its indulgences.

   

The Pope changed many doctrines, spoiled all the sacraments, nullified the canons concerning the regulation of the Church and the correction of morals. Everything has begun going contrary to the will of the Lord, and has become worse and worse.

   

Then came along Luther, a smart man, but stubborn. He said, “The Pope changed everything as he wanted, why shouldn't I do the same?” He started to modify and re-modify everything in his own way, and in this way established the new Lutheran faith, which only slightly resembles what the Lord had commanded and the Holy Apostles delivered to us.After Luther came the philosophers. And they in turn said, “Luther has established himself a new faith, supposedly based on the Gospel, though in reality based on his own way of thinking. Why, then, don't we also compose doctrines based on our own way of thinking, completely ignoring the Gospel?” They then started rationalizing, and speculating about God, the world, and man, each in his own way. And they mixed up so many doctrines, that one gets dizzy just counting them.

   

Now the Westerners have the following views: Believe what you think best, live as you like, satisfy whatever captivates your soul. This is why they do not recognize any law or restriction and they do not abide by God's word. Their road is wide, all obstacles displaced. Their way is broad, all the obstacles taken out. But the broad road leads to perdition, according to what the Lord says. This is where leniency in teaching has led!Lord, save us from this broad way! But it is better to love each difficulty that the Lord has appointed for our salvation. Let us love Christian doctrines and let us compel our mind with them, pushing it not to think otherwise. Let us love Christian morals and let us compel our will in them, forcing it to lift the light yoke of the Lord humbly and patiently. Let us love all Christian rituals and services which guide us, correct us, and sanctify us. Let us compel our heart with them, encouraging it to convey its desires from the earthly and perishable, to the heavenly and imperishable.

    

Let us confine ourselves as though in a cage. Or better, let us drag ourselves, as if we were passing through a narrow passage. Let it be narrow, so no one can deviate neither to the right left, nor the left. Yet undoubtedly, through this narrow way we will obtain the kingdom of the heavens in return. For as you know, this kingdom is the kingdom of the Lord. The Lord laid this narrow way and said, “Follow exactly this route and you will obtain the kingdom of heaven.”Could anyone then doubt whether the traveler will get to his destination? And what mind would one have who starts wanting all kinds of annulment of the commandments, when by doing this he would immediately lose his way and be lost?

   

Once you have fully understood this assertion, do not worry if something in our teaching seems to be strict. The only thing you should strive for is to carefully make sure if it is from the Lord. And after you have made sure it is from the Lord, accept it with all your heart, no matter how strict or obliging it may be. And not only avoid wanting special treatment and leniency with doctrine and the ethics, but even flee from all these, as though fleeing from the fire of Gehenna. Those who cannot escape from this are those who think up such things and with them lure those who are spiritually weak to follow them. Amen.

St. Theophan the Recluse.

December 29, 1863 - Sunday after Christ's Birth

(source)

   

St. Theophan the Recluse (source)

   

Through the prayers of our Holy Fathers, Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us and save us! Amen!

St. Paisios on the incorrupt Relics of the Ionian

Sts. Spyridon of Corfu, Gerasimos of Cephalonia and Dionysios of Zakynthos, three great wonderworker of Christ  whose incorrupt Holy Bodies bless and protect the peoples of the Ionian (source)

   

Elder, could St. Spyridon have asked from God that his Relic remain incorrupt?

-No, how could that have happened? The Saints don't ask for such things. God willed that his Relic remain incorrupt in order to help people. And behold how God arranges things! Because Kerkyra (Corfu), Cephalonia and Zakynthos are near Italy, and that it would be easy for people to be seduced by Catholicism, He placed a great barrier there: St. Spyridon, St. Gerasimos and St. Dionysios.
 

Amateur translation from Source: Elder Paisios of the Holy Mountain, Words VI, On Prayer. The Holy Hesychasterion "St. John the Theologian", Souroti, Thessaloniki (http://vatopaidi.wordpress.com/2012/12/12/ο-γέροντας-παΐσιος-για-τον-άγιο-σπυρίδ/)

   

Sts. Spyridon, Gerasimos and Dionysios the Wonderworker (source)

      

Through the prayers of our Holy Fathers, Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us and save us! Amen!

The Miraculous Return of the Relics of St. Savvas the Sanctified

The Miraculous Return of the Relics of St. Savvas the Sanctified - Commemorated on October 25 (http://pravicon.com/images/sv/s1812/s1812006.jpg)

St. Savvas the Sanctified during his lifetime told his disciples that his incorrupt body would be removed from his monastery and later would rest in the Lavra, which he founded. He said this return of his relics would come before the end of the world. This prophecy was fulfilled when the holy relics of St. Savvas were stolen by the crusaders of the First Crusade (1096 - 1099) together with many other relics and brought to Venice, Italy where he was enshrined in a church dedicated to St. Anthony. Nearly nine centuries later his relics were returned to Israel.

On 10 October 1965 the relics of St. Savvas were returned by Pope Paul VI to the Patriarchate of Jerusalem. The reception was made, at the direction of Patriarch Benediktos of Jerusalem, by Bishop Vasilios of Jerusalem, Fr. Theodosios the Abbot of Bethany, Fr. Seraphim the Abbot of St. Savvas Lavra, and the Hierodeacon (and future Metropolitan of Nazareth) Kyriakos.

Though it is commonly recorded that this gesture on behalf of the Pope was made merely as an ecumenical gesture, such as that of the skull of St. Andrew in Patras, with regards to the return of the relics of St. Savvas there is more to the story. In fact, it was St. Savvas himself who was urging Pope Paul VI to have his relics returned, appearing first to his predecessor Pope John XXIII in his dreams and causing a scene in his reliquary.

Fr. Seraphim, the Abbot of St. Savvas Lavra, explains everything as follows:

"The Pope did not give us the holy relic because he loved us, but because he [St. Savvas] would constantly appear to him [Pope John XXIII] and would bother him to have his relics returned to his monastery. When the Pope died he did not take the wishes of the Saint into account, so he appeared again to his successor [Pope Paul VI]. Even in the church where his holy relics were treasured in a glass coffin, he would hit the glass and cause trouble, frightening the guards and the Latin monks."

Patriarch Benediktos had insisted that Fr. Seraphim attend the reception of the relics. He even told the Abbot: "In your days, Fr. Seraphim, Saint Savvas has returned!" Fr. Seraphim responded: "No, in your days, Your Holiness."

When the Orthodox representatives arrived at the Church of Saint Anthony in Venice they wondered if indeed these were the relics of Saint Savvas. Fr. Seraphim observed every inch of the incorrupt relic to see if he could see a sign of authenticity. He noticed that one of the eyes of St. Savvas was missing. This proved it for him, since in his biography it is said that the Monophysites removed one of his eyes. Moved by this Fr. Seraphim would not leave the side of the relics till they arrived at his monastery. Even when the holy relics arrived in Athens where they were to be venerated by the faithful prior to the return, Fr. Seraphim stood all night guarding the holy relics while everyone else was sleeping. Metropolitan Kyriakos of Nazareth describes the scene as if Fr. Seraphim and St. Savvas were having a conversation that night.

A problem arose when it came time to dress the holy relics in Orthodox vestments, since the Latins had dressed him in Latin vestments. After nine centuries it would be impossible to manoeuvre the body so as to put on the rason, the monastic schema and epitrachelion among other things. To further complicate matters, the hands of St. Savvas were crossed over his chest. Metropolitan Kyriakos of Nazareth describes what then happened as follows: "We then saw Abbot Seraphim kneel before the holy relics and pray for a good amount of time. At one point he arose and did prostrations and lifted the arms of Saint Savvas as one would a living man before the amazed eyes of us all." They were able to change the vestments without a problem in Venice before the return to Jerusalem.

When the glass coffin arrived at the Piazza San Marco on the pier, there was a gondola that transported it by escort to an area near the airport. In a strange coincidence it was the same pier the sacred relic had disembarked centuries ago. Countless pigeons were gathered there, as if they were there to honor the event. Even many years later, when Fr. Seraphim and Metropolitan Kyriakos would reminisce about those days, they would always talk about the pigeons.

When the holy relics finally arrived in Jerusalem it was first brought to the Church of the Resurrection for many days. Here the women could venerate the holy relics prior to being brought permanently to the all-male monastic Lavra of St. Savvas. Fr. Seraphim tells of a certain miracle at this time in Jerusalem. An Orthodox nun who was waiting to venerate the holy relics had doubts over whether or not the Latin's had indeed given the authentic relics to the Orthodox. It was then that she saw the head of St. Savvas lift and turn to her, then it returned again in its place. Her joy removed all doubts.
(http://www.johnsanidopoulos.com/2010/12/miraculous-return-of-relics-of-st.html, see the following for Greek accounts: http://www.impantokratoros.gr/1D95BED0.el.aspx, http://romfea.gr/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=9665:-46-&catid=25:2009-12-18-08-37-46)

The holy, incorrupt and wonderworking Relic of St. Sabbas the Sanctified, treasured in his Holy Lavra. Photograph from the feast of the return of St. Savvas to his monastery, in 2013 (source)

A brief account of a recent celebration of the feast of the Return of St. Sabbas' Relics

"On Wednesday October 25th 2011, in the Holy Lavra of St. Sabbas the Sanctified, in the desert of Judea, there was a great and radiant celebration of the 46th anniversary of the transferral of the holy and incorrupt body of St. Sabbas, from Venice. The feast and festival was presided over by the Blessed Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos.

The vigil began on Tuesday evening at 9PM and ended Wednesday morning at 7AM. With the Patriarch also served the Archbishop of Konstantines Aristarchos and the Archbishop of Jordan Theophylaktos.

The church was packed with a multitude of pilgrim priests, monks and laity from Greece (from Mount Athos, Fr. Antipas from Karyes chanted for the feast), from Cyprus, and from as far as Switzerland and France, along with many Arab Orthodox from the flock of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem from all around the Holy Land.

The preparation and the hospitality was great of the tireless and chosen Fr. Evdokimos, the spiritual father of the Lavra, and that of all of the Sabbaite fathers.

The church, the katholikon of the Monastery reminded one of heaven, amid the multitude of vigil lamps, in which the holy and fragrant incorrupt relic of the Saint, amid a multitude of flowers, brought to mind paradise, and the glory of the good things and rewards of the heavens...

St. Sabbas the Sanctified was a great defender and proponent of our holy Orthodoxy. He worked a multitude of struggles, together with his friend, St. Theodosios the Cenobiarch, against heretics. St. Sabbas is a prototype for us today, and may we have his prayers and intercessions. He is seen also as the protector and helper of those who suffer from cancer, and of childless couples. A multitude of miracles and healings are recorded daily by the Sabbaite monks of the Jordanian desert, and by the Elder Evdokimos in the Holy Land."
Archimandrite Ignatios is the Proistamenos of the Holy Monastery of the Shepherds in Bet Sachur, a dependency of the Holy Lavra of St. Sabbas the Sanctified.
(http://romfea.gr/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=9665:-46-&catid=25:2009-12-18-08-37-46)

For the life of St. Sabbas and information about his Lavra, see: http://full-of-grace-and-truth.blogspot.com/2009/12/st-sabbas-sanctified-and-his-holy-lavra.html.
  

St. Sabbas the Sanctified (http://gerontes.files.wordpress.com/2010/12/osiossavvasigiasmenos02.jpg?w=600&h=881)

Through the prayers of our Holy Fathers, Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us and save us! Amen!

Quotes from St. Justin Popovich on the Papacy and the Apostolicity of the Church

Christ is risen! Truly He is risen!

Fresco from Decani Monastery of Christ appearing to the Apostles after the Resurrection (taken from: http://www.srpskoblago.org/Archives/Decani/exhibits/Collections/AfterResurrection/CX4K3061_l.html)

I've been wanting to include various quotes from our Righteous Father Justin Popovich for a while, but for one reason or another, I haven't gotten to. However, the announcement that I saw today (see: http://www.johnsanidopoulos.com/2010/04/fr-justin-popovich-fr-simeon-of-dajbabe.html), that on May 2nd he will officially be proclaimed a Saint by the Serbian Orthodox Church, gives me an extra incentive to do so. May we all have his blessing!
  
Quotes from St. Justin Popovich on the Papacy
"In the history of the human race there have been three principal falls: that of Adam, that of Judas, and that of the pope.

The principal characteristic of falling into sin is always the same: wanting to be good for one's own sake; wanting to be perfect for one's own sake; wanting to be God for one's own sake. In this manner, however, man unconsciously equates himself to the devil, because the devil also wanted to become God for his own sake, to put himself in the place of God. And in this self-elevation he instantly became devil, completely separated from God, and always in opposition to Him.

Therefore, the essence of sin, of every sin (svegreha), consists of this arrogant self-aggrandizement. This is the very essence of the devil himself, of Satan. It is nothing other than one's wanting to remain within one's own being, wanting nothing within one's self other than oneself. The entire devil is found here: in the desire to exclude God, in the desire to always be by himself, to always belong only to himself, to be entirely within himself and always for himself, to be forever hermetically sealed in opposition to God and everything that belongs to God.

And what is this? It is egotism and self-love embraced in all eternity, that is to say: it is hell. For that is essentially what the humanist is - entirely within himself, by himself, for himself, always spitefully closed in opposition to God. Here lies every humanism, every hominism. The culmination of such satanically oriented humanism is the desire to become good for the sake of evil, to become God for the sake of the devil. It proceeds from the promise of the devil to our forefathers in Paradise—that with his help, "they would become as gods" (Gen. 3: 5). Man was created with theanthropic potential by God who loves mankind, so that he might voluntarily direct himself, through God, toward becoming God-man, based on the divinity of his nature. Man, however, with his free will sought sinlessness through sin, sought God through the devil. And assuredly, following this road he would have become identical with the devil had not God interceded in His immeasurable love of mankind and in His great mercy.

By becoming man, that is to say God-man, he redirected man toward the God-man. He introduced him to the Church which is his body, to the reward (podvig) of theosis through the holy mysteries and the blessed virtues. And in this manner he gave man the strength to become "a perfect man, in the measure of the fullness of Christ" (Eph. 4:13), to achieve, that is, the Divine destiny, to voluntarily become God-man by grace.

The fall of the pope is a consequence of the desire to substitute man for the God-man...In the kingdom of humanism the place of the God-man had been usurped by the Vicarius Christi, and the God-man has thus been exiled to Heaven. This surely results in a peculiar deincarnation of Christ the God-man, does it not?

Through the dogma of infallibility the pope usurped for himself, that is for man, the entire jurisdiction and all the prerogatives which belong only to the Lord God-man. He effectively proclaimed himself as the Church, the papal church, and he has become in her the be-all and end-all, the self-proclaimed ruler of everything. In this way the dogma of the infallibility of the pope has been elevated to the central dogma (svedogma) of the papacy. And the pope cannot deny this in any way as long as he remains pope of a humanistic papacy."
(From "Reflections on the Infallibiity of European Man" in Orthodox Faith and Life in Christ, Belmont, MA: Institute for Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies, 1994, Asterios Gerostergios, ed.; from: http://www.monachos.net/forum/showthread.php?t=5003&highlight=infallibility)
  

"In Western Europe, Christianity has been gradually metamorphosed, to humanism. Over a long period of time and with perseverance, the Divine-Human [God-man] has steadily been diminishing. He has been changed, He has been narrowed down and finally reduced to a mere man: to the “infallible” man in Rome and the equally "infallible" men in London and Berlin.

This is how Papism came into being, by stripping Christ of everything, just as Protestantism similarly did, by asking little of Christ, and quite often, nothing at all.

Both in Papism and in Protestantism, man has replaced the Divine-Human Christ, both as the highest value and the highest criterion.

Painstaking and deplorable changes to the Divine-Human's work and teachings have been accomplished. Papism has steadily and persistently been striving to substitute the Divine Man with a mortal man, until finally, in its dogma defining the infallibility of (a mere mortal) the pope, the Divine-Human Christ was once and for all substituted by an ephemeral, "infallible" man; because thanks to this dogma, the pope was decisively and clearly pronounced as being something superior – not only to all men, but even to the holy Apostles, the holy Fathers, and the holy Ecumenical Councils. With this kind of deviation from the Divine-Human Christ, from the ecumenical Church which is the Divine-Human’s organism, Papism outdid even Luther, the founder of Protestantism.

Therefore, the first radical protest that was voiced in the name of humanism but against the Divine-Human Christ and his Divine-Human organism—the Church—should be sought in Papism, not in Lutheranism. Papism is in fact the first and the oldest form of Protestantism."
(http://www.oodegr.com/english/papismos/papismos.htm)
  

Icon depicting the Seven Ecumenical Councils (taken from: http://www.thehtm.org/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=27_50_95&products_id=433&osCsid=4e7feb3e0e25cb711091fa6171479cdd)

The Apostolicity of the Church
"The holy apostles were the first god-men by grace. Like the Apostle Paul each of them, by his integral life, could have said of himself: "I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me" (Gal. 2:20). Each of them is a Christ repeated; or, to be more exact, a continuation of Christ. Everything in them is theanthropic because everything was recieved from the God-man. Apostolicity is nothing other than the God-manhood of the Lord Christ, freely assimilated through the holy struggles of the holy virtues: faith, love, hope, prayer, fasting, etc. This means that everything that is of man lives in them freely through the God-man, thinks through the God-man, feels through the God-man, acts through the God-man and wills through the God-man. For them, the historical God-man, the Lord Jesus Christ, is the supreme value and the supreme criterion. Everything in them is of the God-man, for the sake of the God-man, and in the God-man. And it is always and everywhere thus. That for them is immortality in the time and space of this world. Thereby are they even on this earth partakers of the theanthropic eternity of Christ.

This theanthropic apostolicity is integrally continued in the earthly successors of the Christ-bearing apostles: in the holy fathers. Among them, in essence, there is no difference: the same God-man Christ lives, acts, enlivens and makes them all eternal in equal measure, He Who is the same yesterday, and today, and forever (Heb. 13:8). Through the holy fathers, the holy apostles live on with all their theanthropic riches, theanthropic worlds, theanthropic holy things, theanthropic mysteries, and theanthropic virtues. The holy fathers in fact are continuously apostolizing, whether as distinct godlike personalities, or as bishops of the local churches, or as members of the holy ecumenical and holy local councils. For all of them there is but one Truth, one Transcendent Truth: the God-man, the Lord Jesus Christ. Behold, the holy ecumenical councils, from the first to the last, confess, defend, believe, announce, and vigilantly preserve but a single supreme value: the God-man, the Lord Jesus Christ.

The principal Tradition, the transcendent Tradition, of the Orthodox Church is the living God-man Christ, entire in the theanthropic Body of the Church of which He is the immortal, eternal Head. This is not merely the message, but the transcendent message of the holy apostles and the holy fathers. They know Christ crucified, Christ resurrected, Christ ascended. They all, by their integral lives and teachings, with a single soul and a single voice, confess that Christ the God-man is wholly in His Church, as in His Body. Each of the holy fathers could rightly repeat with St. Maximus the Confessor: "In no wise am I expounding my own opinion, but that which I have been taught by the fathers, without changing aught in their teaching."

And from the immortal proclamation of St. John of Damascus there resounds the universal confession of all the holy fathers who were glorified by God: "Whatever has been transmitted to us through the Law, and the prophets, and the apostles, and the evangelists, we receive and know and esteem highly, and beyond that we ask nothing more… Let us be fully satisfied with it, and rest therein, removing not the ancient landmarks (Prov. 22:28), nor violating the divine Tradition." And then, the touching, fatherly admonition of the holy Damascene, directed to all Orthodox Christians: "Wherefore, brethren, let us plant ourselves upon the rock of faith and the Tradition of the Church, removing not the landmarks set by our holy fathers, nor giving room to those who are anxious to introduce novelties and to undermine the structure of God's holy ecumenical and apostolic Church. For if everyone were allowed a free hand, little by little the entire Body of the Church would be destroyed."

The holy Tradition is wholly of the God-man, wholly of the holy apostles, wholly of the holy fathers, wholly of the Church, in the Church, and by the Church. The holy fathers are nothing other than the "guardians of the apostolic tradition. " All of them, like the holy apostles themselves, are but "witnesses" of a single and unique Truth: the transcendent Truth of Christ, the God-man. They preach and confess it without rest, they, the "golden mouths of the Word." The God-man, the Lord Christ is one, unique, and indivisible. So also is the Church unique and indivisible, for she is the incarnation of the Theanthropos Christ, continuing through the ages and through all eternity. Being such by her nature and in her earthly history, the Church may not be divided. It is only possible to fall away from her. That unity and uniqueness of the Church is theanthropic from the very beginning and through all the ages and all eternity.

Apostolic succession, the apostolic heritage, is theanthropic from first to last. What is it that the holy apostles are transmitting to their successors as their heritage? The Lord Christ, the God-man Himself, with all the imperishable riches of His wondrous theanthropic Personality, Christ—the Head of the Church, her sole Head. If it does not transmit that, apostolic succession ceases to be apostolic, and the apostolic Tradition is lost, for there is no longer an apostolic hierarchy and an apostolic Church.

The holy Tradition is the Gospel of the Lord Christ, and the Lord Christ Himself, Whom the Holy Spirit instills in each and every believing soul, in the entire Church. Whatever is Christ's, by the power of the Holy Spirit becomes ours, human; but only within the body of the Church. The Holy Spirit—the soul of the Church, incorporates each believer, as a tiny cell, into the body of the Church and makes him a "co-heir" of the God-man (Eph. 3:6). In reality the Holy Spirit makes every believer into a God-man by grace. For what is life in the Church? Nothing other than the transfiguration of each believer into a God-man by grace through his personal, evangelical virtues; it is his growth in Christ, the putting on of Christ by growing in the Church and being a member of the Church. A Christian's life is a ceaseless, Christ-centered theophany: the Holy Spirit, through the holy mysteries and the holy virtues, transmits Christ the Savior to each believer, renders him a living tradition, a living life: "Christ who is our life" (Col. 3:4). Everything Christ's thereby becomes ours, ours for all eternity: His truth, His righteousness, His love, His life, and His entire divine Hypostasis.

Holy Tradition? It is the Lord Jesus Christ, the God-man Himself, with all the riches of his divine Hypostasis and, through Him and for His sake, those of the Holy Trinity. That is most fully given and articulated in the Holy Eucharist, wherein, for our sake and for our salvation, the Savior's entire theanthropic economy of salvation is performed and repeated. Therein wholly resides the God-man with all His wondrous and miraculous gifts; He is there, and in the Church's life of prayer and liturgy. Through all this, the Savior's philanthropic proclamation ceaselessly resounds: "And, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world" (Mt. 28 20): He is with the apostles and, through the apostles, with all the faithful, world without end. This is the whole of the holy Tradition of the Orthodox Church of the apostles: life in Christ = life in the Holy Trinity; growth in Christ = growth in the Trinity (cf. Mt. 28: 19-20).

Of extraordinary importance is the following: in Christ's Orthodox Church, the Holy Tradition, ever living and life-giving, comprises: the holy liturgy, all the divine services, all the holy mysteries, all the holy virtues, the totality of eternal truth and eternal righteousness, all love, all eternal life, the whole of the God-man, the Lord Christ, the entire Holy Trinity, and the entire theanthropic life of the Church in its theanthropic fullness, with the All-holy Theotokos and all the saints.

The personality of the Lord Christ the God-man, transfigured within the Church, immersed in the prayerful, liturgical, and boundless sea of grace, wholly contained in the Eucharist, and wholly in the Church—this is holy Tradition. This authentic good news is confessed by the holy fathers and the holy ecumenical councils. By prayer and piety holy Tradition is preserved from all human demonism and devilish humanism, and in it is preserved the entire Lord Christ, He Who is the eternal Tradition of the Church. "Great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh" (I Tim. 3 16): He was manifest as a man, as a God-man, as the Church, and by His philanthropic act of salvation and deification of humanity He magnified and exalted man above the holy cherubim and the most holy seraphim."
(Originally published in Orthodox Life, vol. 31, no. 1 (Jan.-Feb., 1981), pp. 28-33. Translated by Stephen Karganovic from: The Orthodox Church & Ecumenism (in Serbian), by Archimandrite Justin (Popovich) (Thessalonica: Chilandar Monastery, 1974), pp. 64-74; http://archangelsbooks.com/articles/church/AttributesofChurch.asp)
  

Picture of our Righteous Father Justin Popovich (to be canonized on May 2nd and to be celebrated on June 1/14; for more on his life see: http://www.serfes.org/lives/stjustin.htm) (taken from: http://www.orthodoxphotos.com/Holy_Fathers/St._Justin_Popovich/1.shtml)

  

Apolytikion of the Holy Fathers in the Plagal of the Fourth Tone
(chanted on the Feasts of the Fathers of the Ecumenical Councils)

You are greatly glorified, O Christ our God, who established our Fathers as luminaries upon the earth, and through them led us all to the true Faith. O most compassionate, glory to You.

(http://www.assumptionseattle.org/7th_Ecumenical_Council.pdf)

Christ is risen from the dead, by death, trampling down upon death, and to those in the tombs, bestowing life!
Truly the Lord is risen!

St. Mark Eugenikos, Bishop of Ephesus

St. Mark Eugenikos, Archbishop of Ephesus - Commemorated on January 19th, and on the first Sunday in November (Icon courtesy of www.eikonografos.com used with permission)

"St. Mark was born ca. 1391-1392 in Constantinople. His parents belonged to a prominent family of considerable means. His father was a deacon at the Church of the Holy Sophia, the Wisdom of God. His mother was the daughter of a physician. In Holy Baptism, the future Holy Hierarch received the name Manuil (Emmanuel, meaning “God is With Us”); one can see in that fact a prophetic description of his future significance to the Church.

Manuil’s first instructor in academic subjects and in piety was his father. The boy was so successful in his studies that while he was still a young boy, his father schooled him in rhetoric and mathematics. When he was 13, Manuil lost his father, but did not succumb to laziness; he continued his studies in Constantinople with renowned professors John Cartasmeno and George Gemistus Plethon. Thanks to his great dedication, remarkable intellect and unquestionably high morals, soon the future confessor of the Church himself became an instructor, attracting the most talented youth. His great spiritual gifts would not remain unnoticed. Manuil became the favorite spiritual child of Patriarch Euphemius of Constantinople (1410-1416); the future Holy Hierarch’s closeness to and love for the Patriarch were later reflected in the canon and sticherae he composed following the archpastor’s death. Emperor Manuil II brought him into his circle as a confidant and advisor. At the direction of Manuil II’s successor, Emperor John VIII, St. Mark authored a great number of compositions addressing difficult theological questions. These works, and the extremely high position St. Mark held among the delegates to the Council in Italy indicated that he was held in great respect by Emperor John VIII.

Thus, closeness to the Emperors opened up to him a path to wealth and to finding all manner of benefits. A brilliant career stretched forth before him. However, the soul of the true lover of wisdom was seeking something else.

In 1418, at the age of 26, Manuil left the capital and went to Antigone, one of the islands then governed by Byzantium , and located at the mouth of the gulf of Nicomedia. Abbot Simeon became the Saint’s spiritual father, and tonsured him into monasticism, with the name Mark. That great spiritual director, about whom unfortunately more detailed information is unknown, led St. Mark along the narrow path toward salvation.

Life on the island of Antigone was one of constant stress and worry over expected attacks by the Turks. Under such circumstances, it was difficult for the spiritual strugglers to maintain calm, focus, and silence. Thus, Mark and his spiritual father departed for a new home at the famous Monastery [of St. George] of Mangana in Constantinople . There the spiritual Elder reposed, and there Holy Hierarch Mark later valiantly completed his own life’s course. At the Monastery of Mangana, the Saint gave himself over to the greatest spiritual struggles.

At the Emperor’s direction, St. Mark was appointed Metropolitan of Ephesus after the aged Metropolitan Joasaph reposed in 1437. The Holy Hierarch was not to remain long with that flock. On November 24, 1437, he left for Italy as part of an enormous delegation to the Council of Ferrara-Florence.

The bulk of the Greeks who left for Italy went with a sense of spiritual enthusiasm. Before their departure, patriarch Joasaph had said that they were going to the Council to contract a Union, but that they would not compromise any of the traditions of the Holy Church that had passed on to them, and that if need be, they were ready to die for those traditions, for what could be more glorious than a martyr’s crown?! Alas, everything turned out otherwise. As we know, the Patriarch never returned to Constantinople, but died in Florence. Orthodoxy was betrayed and sold out, and the Greeks returned to their Homeland not as conquerors bearing spiritual trophies, but in shame and sorrow.

The Council, held to consider the question of unification of the Eastern and Western Churches, was solemnly convened in the Cathedral Church of Ferrara on April 9, 1438. Emperor John VIII Palaeologus, head of the delegation, looked upon the Unia as a political act allowing Byzantium to count on Western support in its battle with the Turks. The Emperor, in whose court Italian influence was great as the result of his marriage to Sophia of Monferrato, thought that reaching an agreement with the West was not merely possible, but essential. Accordingly, he summoned to his ranks such accomplished enthusiastic supporters of Orthodoxy as Holy Hierarch Mark, and demanded that at the Council, sharp polemics with the Latins on theological questions be avoided. He hoped that a compromise acceptable to all might be accomplished through vague wording. Pope Eugene IV of Rome pursued other goals. First of all, he wanted to use the Unia to raise his prestige in the Catholic world, something that had been shaken at the Council of Basle; second, he wanted to assert his control over the Orthodox Church. Therefore, he insisted that as soon as possible, the two Churches form a bilateral commission to identify and analyze the points of contention between the two sides, and to chart the paths to contracting a Unia. After some delay, the Greeks authorized only Holy Hierarch Mark of Ephesus and Metropolitan Bessarion of Nicaea to take part in discussions with the Latins. Of those two, St. Mark took the lead, and was also authorized to represent the Patriarchates of Alexandria and Antioch.

At the request of Cardinal Julian Cesarini, before the commission began its work, St. Mark laid out for Pope Eugene IV the position of the Greek delegation. The Holy Hierarch yearned for Church unity, believed that a Unia was possible, and sought unity with the Latins, but a true unity, based on unity of faith and ancient liturgical practice. Holy Hierarch Mark emphasized that the purity of Orthodoxy must be preserved, and that the talks might end without success unless Rome made certain concessions, renouncing innovations introduced into the dogmas and liturgical practice of the Western Church which were alien to the ancient Church and which were reasons for the schism. The Cardinal immediately delivered that appeal not only to the Pope, but to Emperor John as well. The Emperor, who had naively hoped that in concluding the Unia, painful theological questions could be avoided, was extremely displeased, and even wanted to have the Holy Hierarch brought to trial before the Synod. However, at the urging of Bessarion of Nicaea and others, he did not act on that proposed decision. At the same time, the Pope demanded ever more insistently that the Greeks explain themselves, and finally, at the third session of the commission the Catholics themselves proposed issues for consideration: 1) the issue of the Procession of the Holy Spirit; 2) the issue of the use of azymes, unleavened bread, for the Eucharist in the Roman Catholic Church; 3) the teachings with respect to Purgatory; and 4) the primacy of the Pope of Rome.

The Greeks considered the question of Purgatory to be the simplest one, and that coming closer together on that issue would more likely allow them to come closer to agreement on the other issues. However, the subsequent debate on that question, during which Holy Hierarch St. Mark of Ephesus spoke out several times, ended without result on July 17, 1438. The Greek delegation did not agree to accept as dogma the Latin teaching with respect to a purgatory fire through which sinners could avoid eternal torment by undergoing a temporary punishment and purging. Such a view would cast doubt on the Church teaching with respect to an after-death recompense, and would tempt people of weak faith to take a “broad path” to salvation.

After the Orthodox and Latins failed to reach agreement with respect to Purgatory, the first question under discussion, and after the first attempt to find rapprochement on Orthodox and Catholic dogmatic positions failed, followed several months of inaction. It was only on October 8, 1438 that new discussions were begun, on the most important point of disagreement between the two sides – the question of the “Filioque” (i.e. “and [from] the Son,” the Roman Catholic teaching that the Holy Spirit proceeds not only from God the Father but also from God the Son.) The Latins insisted that the actual teaching with respect to the “Filioque” be reviewed, but the majority of Greeks, together with St. Mark of Ephesus, demanded that they review the question of whether it was legal to make any alteration in the Creed, the Symbol of Faith. In the course of discussions, St. Mark cited the decision of the Third Ecumenical Council which directly forbade such alterations, and called upon the Latins to acknowledge their error. However, Roman Catholic orators, aware of how vulnerable was their position, strove to justify themselves through a variety of subterfuges. After many sessions in which a number of orators spoke, many of the Greeks came to the conclusion that discussions with the Latins were going nowhere, and that it would be better for them to return to Constantinople.

St. Mark Bishop of Ephesus (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQwYbQUW00QmzBUQDpV2Urps7A5hVgAagMHHqGQEsKBNl3_hOze_QQOpfDtfeb4IU4dBtFXY4ygfeYVshz7rDQRPO-r-aZFesRzril-ZmUT2lZAhyphenhypheng3NKw4MaFogPblVEhqKdtTbhmmHfV/s800/ag-Markos-Eygenikos.png)

  

In early January 1439, at the last meeting of the Council in Ferrara, a papal bull was read, announcing that the Council was being moved to Florence. Florence became the place at which, in St. Mark’s words, the Latins threw off their masks, not just with respect to their attitude toward the Orthodox delegates, but with respect to their treatment of them. The Orthodox Greeks found themselves in a difficult position: exhausted, suffering from privations, submitted to a variety of restrictions, lacking the resources to return to their homeland, and recognizing Byzantium’s truly sorry state. In effect, they were invited to “sell out” the Orthodox Church in return for generous assistance both to the state and to the Greek delegates to the Council; they were even promised that a Crusade would be launched against the Turks. All of these factors led to a fracturing of the unity that had made the Greek delegation so strong in Ferrara. While in Ferrara, Holy Hierarch St. Mark of Ephesus had had the support of Metropolitan Bessarion of Nicaea and Isidore of Kiev, and the Emperor himself was on the side of the enthusiastic supporters of Orthodoxy, but in Florence the picture changed. The Greek hierarchs’ original objectives – to preserve Orthodoxy in all of its purity and to sway the Latins toward Unia by convincing them that they had an erroneous understanding of the dogmas on which they disagreed with the Orthodox – were replaced by a search for compromising, ambiguous decisions and unstable, shaky, dogmatic definitions. The fundamental theological search pursued by the Greek delegates became “To find some middle ground.” In essence, Holy Hierarch St. Mark of Ephesus found himself alone, in isolation. The Catholics, in their turn, no longer sought an agreement on unification, but rather sought unconditional dogmatic and administrative capitulation by the Eastern Church. Having accepted the Latin “Filioque” teaching, the Orthodox delegates to the Council of Florence were forced to compromise on other issues as well. On July 5, 1439, they signed the Florence Unia. St. Mark was the only Council participant who did not sign the Act of Union. In fact, he turned out to be the only one to have defended Orthodoxy. That is evidenced by the fact that on hearing of St. Mark of Ephesus’ categorical refusal to sign the Acts of the Council, the Roman Pope stated that the Unia was a complete failure.

St. Mark, along with the Emperor and others who represented the Orthodox Church at the Council in Italy, returned to Constantinople on February 1, 1440. An active opponent of the Unia, St. Mark left the capital on May 15 without notifying the Emperor. He departed for Ephesus, which was under the control of the Turks. There St. Mark devoted all of his efforts to putting his ravaged diocese in order: converting those who had gone astray, ordaining priests, and interceding with the authorities on behalf of the needy. At the same time, he considered the battle against the Unia to be the most pressing issue. Thus, in his encyclicals, he continued to denounce the Greek-Catholics and the decisions of the Council of Florence. An encyclical he addressed to all Orthodox Christians of the East in July 1440 was of particular significance. It elicited both extreme dissatisfaction on the part of the uniates, and wrath on the part of the Emperor. As a result, during a journey to Mt. Athos, the Saint was arrested on the island of Limnos, and was incarcerated for two years, during which he suffered from sickness, a severe climate, and deprivation of many of the essentials of life.

In 1442, at the order of the Emperor, Holy Hierarch St. Mark was released, on the day of commemoration of the Holy Seven Youths of Ephesus (4 August or 22 October). In a poem written on that occasion, the Archpastor thanked the Holy Youths of Ephesus for their intercession and assistance. St. Mark returned to Constantinople , where he lived until his blessed repose in 1457. It was God’s Providence that he remain a warrior for Orthodoxy until his final hour."

(taken from: http://www.stjohndc.org/Russian/saints/e_0902_mark.htm)

Icon of the three new hierarchs Sts. Photios the Great, Gregory Palamas, and Mark of Ephesus. These three great defenders and pillars of Orthodoxy are jointly commemorated on the first Sunday in November. (For the service in English, see: http://www.synodinresistance.org/pdfs/2008/11/15/20081115aThreeNewHierarchsService%20Folder/20081115aThreeNewHierarchsService.pdf, for the services, paraklesis, akathist, etc. in Greek, see: http://voutsinasilias.blogspot.com/2009/11/1.html, http://voutsinasilias.blogspot.com/2009/11/1_07.html)

St. Mark's final meeting with the Pope

"The Pope asked of the Emperor that St. Mark appear before him. The Emperor, having summoned him beforehand, persuaded him, saying: 'When the Pope asks you to appear before him already two and three times, you must go to him; but have no fear, for I have spoken and requested and arranged with the Pope so that you will be given no offense or injury. And so, go and listen to everything he says, and reply openly in whatever manner will seem to you the most suitable.' And so Mark went to appear before the Pope, and finding him sitting informally in his own quarters with his cardinals and his bishops, he was uncertain in what fashion he should express respect to the Pope. Seeing that all who surrounded the Pope were sitting, he said: 'I have been suffering from a kidney ailment and severe gout and have not the strength to stand,' and proceeded to sit in his place. The Pope spoke long with Mark; his aim was to persuade him also to follow the decision of the Council and affirm the Union, and if he refused to do this, then he should know that he would be subject to the same interdictions which previous Ecumenical Councils laid upon the obstinate, who, deprived of every gift of the Church, were case out as heretics. To the Pope's words Mark gave an extensive, commanding reply. Concerning the interdictions with which the Pope threatened him, he said: 'The Councils of the Church have condemned as rebels those who have transgressed against some dogma and have preached thus and fought for this, for which reason also they are called ''heretics''; and from the beginning the Church has condemned the heresy itself, and only then has it condemned the leaders of the heresy and its defenders. But I have by no means preached my own teaching, nor have I introduced anything new in the Church, nor defended any foreign and false doctrine; but I have held only that teaching which the Church received in perfect form from our Saviour, and in which it has steadfastly remained to this day: the teaching which the Holy Church of Rome, before the schism that occurred between us, possessed no less than our Eastern Church; the teaching which, as holy, you formerly were wont to praise, and often at this very Council you mentioned with respect and honor, and which no one could reproach or dispute. And if I hold it and do not allow myself to depart from it, what Council will subject me to the interdiction to which heretics are subject? What sound and pious mind will act thus with me? For first of all one must condemn the teaching which I hold; but if you acknowledge it as pious and Orthodox, then why am I deserving of punishment?' Having said this and more of the like, and listened to the Pope, he returned to his quarters."

(taken from: http://www.orthodoxinfo.com/ecumenism/stmark.aspx)

St. Mark Archbishop of Ephesus (Icon courtesy of www.eikonografos.com used with permission)

Troparion - Tone 4
By your profession of faith, O all-praised Mark, the Church has found you to be a zealot for truth. You fought for the teaching of the Fathers; you cast down the darkness of boastful pride. Intercede with Christ God to grant forgiveness to those who honor you!

Kontakion - Tone 3
Clothed with invincible armor, O blessed one, You cast down rebellious pride, you served as the instrument of the Comforter, and shone forth as the champion of Orthodoxy. Therefore we cry to you: "Rejoice, Mark, the boast of the Orthodox!"

(taken from: http://www.oca.org/FStropars.asp?SID=13&ID=100228)

St. Mark Bishop of Ephesus, depicted as shaming the Pope through his steadfast adherence to Orthodoxy (http://acvila30.files.wordpress.com/2011/01/sf-marcu-evghenicul-la-sinodul-de-la-ferrara-florenta4.jpg)

      

Through the prayers of our Holy Fathers, Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us and save us! Amen!

St. Maximos Kavsokalyvites ("The Hut-burner")

St. Maximos Kavsokalyvites ("The Hut-burner") - Commemorated on January 13th (icon taken from: http://christopherklitou.com/icon_13_jan_maximus_causokalyvites.htm)

"Saint Maximus Kavsokalyvites was educated at the church of the Most Holy Theotokos at Lampsakos. At seventeen years of age he left his parental home, became a monk, and passed his obedience under Elder Mark, the finest spiritual instructor in Macedonia. After the death of his teacher, the saint pursued asceticism under the guidance of several desert Fathers of extremely strict life. Arriving in Constantinople, St Maximus was constantly at the Blachernae church of the Most Holy Theotokos, as though he had taken up his abode at the entrance.


From his youth, St Maximus had a great love for the Mother of God. He persistently entreated Her to grant him the gift of unceasing mental prayer. One day, as he was venerating her icon, he felt a warmth and a flame enter his heart from the icon. It did not burn him, but he felt a certain sweetness and contrition within. From that time, his heart began to repeat the Jesus Prayer of itself. In this way, the Virgin Theotokos fulfilled his request.

The Most-Holy Theotokos and Christ appearing to St. Maximos (http://agioritikesmnimes.pblogs.gr/files/f/197213-03.JPG)

  

St Maximus fulfilled his obedience in the Lavra of St Athanasius on Mt. Athos. In order to conceal his ascetic deeds of fasting and prayer, and to avoid celebrity, he behaved like a fool. One day, he had a vision of the Mother of God, who told him to ascend the mountain. On the summit of the Holy Mountain, he prayed for three days and nights. Again, the Most Holy Theotokos appeared to him surrounded by angels, and holding Her divine Son in Her arms.

Prostrating himself, the saint heard the All-Holy Virgin speak to him, "Receive the gift against demons... and settle at the foot of Athos, for this is the will of My Son." She told him that he would ascend the heights of virtue, and become a teacher and guide for many. Then, since he had not eaten for several days, a heavenly bread was given to him. As soon as he put it in his mouth, he was surrounded by divine light, and he saw the Mother of God ascending into Heaven.

 St. Maximos the Righteous burning his hut (taken from: http://misha.pblogs.gr/2010/01/o-latinofronas-kakokindynos-kai-o-osios-maximos.html)

St Maximus told his vision to a certain Elder living by the church of the holy Prophet Elias at Carmel. He was skeptical, but the saint turned his disbelief to good. He pretended to be slightly crazy in order to conceal his prodigious ascetic deeds, privations, his hardship and solitude. St Maximus did not live in a permanent abode, but wandered from place to place like a lunatic. Whenever he moved, he would burn his hut down. Therefore, he was called "Kavsokalyvites," or "Hut Burner."

St. Maximos building and burning his hut, from the Kyriakon of the Skete of the Holy Trinity, Kavsokalyvia (http://www.athosmemory.com/index.php?option=com_fotothiki&Itemid=75&func=detail&id=18820)

  

Those on the Holy Mountain, knowing of the extreme deprivations and sorrows of St Maximus, for a long time regarded him with contempt, even though he had attained the height and perfection of spiritual life. When St Gregory of Sinai (August 8) arrived on Athos, he encountered the holy fool. After speaking to him, he began to call him an earthly angel. St Gregory persuaded St Maximus to stop behaving like a fool and to live in one place so that others might benefit from his spiritual experience. Heeding the words of St Gregory and the advice of other Elders, St Maximus selected a permanent dwelling in a cave near the renowned Elder Isaiah.

[For an excerpt from the conversation between St. Gregory and St. Maximos, see: http://www.johnsanidopoulos.com/2010/01/saint-maximus-kavsokalyvites-on-noetic.html.]

Knowing of his gift of clairvoyance, the Byzantine Emperors John Paleologos (1341-1376) and John Kantakouzenos (1341-1355) visited him and were surprised by the fulfillment of his predictions. Theophanes, the igumen of Vatopedi monastery, wrote about St Maximus: "I invoke God as my witness, that I myself saw several of his miracles. Once, for instance, I saw him travel through the air from one place to another. I listened as he made a prediction concerning me, that first I would be an igumen, and then Metropolitan of Ochrid. He even revealed to me how I would suffer for the Church."

More icons of St. Maximos from Kavsokalyvia: (left to right) St. Maximos flying through the air, St. Maximos' prophesies to the Emperors, and St. Maximos meeting with St. Gregory of Sinai (http://www.athosmemory.com/index.php?option=com_fotothiki&Itemid=75&func=detail&id=18809)

   

St Maximus abandoned his solitude only just before his death, and settled near the Lavra of St Athanasius, where he surrendered his soul to the Lord at 95 years of age (+ 1354). After his death, as in life, St Maximus was glorified by many miracles."

(taken from: http://ocafs.oca.org/FeastSaintsViewer.asp?SID=4&ID=1&FSID=100171)

Icon of Saints from the Holy Mountain (St. Maximos is depicted in the center of the front row, next to Sts. Peter and Athanasios of the Holy Mountain) (taken from: http://vatopaidi.files.wordpress.com/2010/01/agioreites-agioi.jpg)

St. Maximos and Akyndinos (amateur translation)
One day some monks from the Lavra went to the Righteous one, for reasons of interest, and with them went a lay person.


As soon as the Righteous one saw him from afar, he sent him away from afar calling him Most-harmless [Ακινδυνάτος¹] and faithless, despite the fact that he didn’t know him before, but only from that time [he saw him].


For the Saint offered much against Akyndinos², and named him dangerously-evil [κακοκίνδυνον], demonic, a communicant with every heresy and servant of the Antichrist. Therefore, heretics as this, he would drive away and anathematized them with boldness.


(from the book of the Righteous St. Maximos the Hut-Burner, written by the Righteous Theophanes Bishop of Peritheoriou and later published? [μεταγραφέντα] by the Righteous St. Nikodemos of the Holy Mountain; amateur translation from the Greek text: http://misha.pblogs.gr/2010/01/o-latinofronas-kakokindynos-kai-o-osios-maximos.html)

¹ St. Maximos calling him "Ακινδυνάτος" is using a superlative version of his name (which he knew miraculously through the Holy Spirit) most likely in a negative connotation, but I can't find a translation that accurately reflects this.
² Gregory Akyndinos (ca. 1300-1348) “was involved in the theological dispute surrounding the doctrine of Uncreated Light between [St.] Gregory Palamas and Barlaam of Calabria in the 1340s. A student of Palamas', he mediated between the two from 1337, warning Barlaam in 1340 that his attempts against his doctrine would be futile, but from 1341 he became critical of Palamism, denouncing it as Messalianism, and came to be Palamas' most dangerous adversary after Barlaam's return to Calabria. He was excommunicated at the council of Constantinople of 1347 and died in exile…” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gregory_Acindynus)


[Note: From this we can glean both the great grace given to St. Maximos, as he knew a person he had never seen before and recognized his false beliefs, and the great zeal the Saint had for true Orthodox dogma. Let it be clear that St. Maximos is not showing any hatred towards Akyndinos as a person, but dispassionate, righteous anger against the heresy that he would espouse. St. Paul gives St. Titus the same admonitions: "Reject a divisive man after the first and second admonition, knowing that such a person is warped and sinning, being self-condemned" (Titus 3:10-11).]

Icon of Panagia of the Holy Mountain, Mount Athos (Icon courtesy of www.eikonografos.com used with permission)

Divine Vision of St. Akakios of Kavsokalyvia (amateur translation)
St. Akakios [April 12th], as is mentioned by his successor Fr. Ionas, saw St. Maximos Kavsokalyvites during the time of the Holy Service in the Kyriakon, censing holding a priestly stole, censing around the Church and the Fathers, and following him were another forty venerable-looking and righteous ones with their epanokalymmavchos [monastic head covering].


When St. Akakios saw this, he asked St. Maximos: “Who are these, who are following you censing?” And he came and responded that they are those saved through St. Maximos the Righteous from the area of Kavsokalyvia.
   

St. Akakios beholding a vision of St. Maximos Kavsokalyvites (source)

   
The history-writer of the Kyriakon of this Skete, in the Narthex of the church has depicted, in confirmation of the revelation of St. Akakios, the following Saints in turn: Sts. Athanasios the founder of Megiste Lavra, Peter the Athonite, Neilos the Righteous, on the lower part, Maximos, Nephon the Righteous and others kneeling, along with the Righteous Akakios the New, before the throne of the All-Holy Trinity and interceding for all of the Fathers and brothers who will complete their lives in a God-pleasing manner at that holy and blessed place, the “Garden of the Panagia”.
(amateur translation of Greek text from: http://www.agiasma.info/forum/viewtopic.php?f=39&t=336)

St. Maximos Kavsokalyvites (http://pravicon.com/images/sv/s1341/s1341002.jpg)

For more on St. Akakios of Kavsokalyvia, see: http://full-of-grace-and-truth.blogspot.com/2010/04/st-akakios-righteous-younger-of.html.

For the service of St. Maximos of Kavsokalyvia (in Greek), see: http://analogion.com/forum/showthread.php?t=13740.
  

St. Maximos the Hut-burner (http://days.pravoslavie.ru/jpg/im3955.jpg)

  

Apolytikion in the Plagal of the First Tone (amateur translations below)

From your mother’s womb, O Righteous Maximos, you were chosen as a treasury by God. You were made worthy of the divine darkness as Moses, and to see things far off, as Samuel, the divine wonder of Athos, the mystic of the Theotokos, and the one who interecedes for us, O Father.

Kontakion in the Plagal of the Fourth Tone
As one who loves to behold exalted theorias, and a disciple working noetic prayer, your servants praise you, O Godly-wise one. But as a mystic of godly ascent, lead us towards the coming life, those who cry out to you: hail O Righteous Maximos.

Megalynarion
You were surrounded by unapproachable light through the revealing of the Virgin and Pure Theotokos, for surpassing the flesh, mind and word, you were shown a citizen of the heavens, O Righteous Maximos.
(http://www.synaxarion.gr/gr/sid/1736/sxsaintinfo.aspx)

  

Scenes from the life of St. Maximos of Kavsokalyvia: him praying before the Theotokos, the appearance of the Theotokos, burning his hut, talking with St. Gregory the Sinaite, and seen flying through the air, all through the Holy Spirit (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimI9YXDaNaPgidykhITBWeiOapMChPIKg_wfBVo68ybwCLJGwyEv9b34J7eGMSAYMTlAjLBxhTzqsVGwL_oNV-74cBnTlEplXI9jmcft-JySG0WkAGMXLU8URUf6CO3H9cLhdQn4MkqCWQ/s1600/maximus+life.jpg)  

  

Icon depicting the Synaxis of All Saints of Kavsokalyvia, Mount Athos (source)

  

Through the prayers of our Holy Fathers, Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us and save us! Amen!