Sts. Perpetua & Felicity Icon

Saint Perpetua (d. 203, Carthage, Tunisia) (Relics: Carthage, Tunisia; Vierzon, France) Saint Felicity (d. 203, Carthage, Tunisia) (Relics: Carthage, Tunisia).

Saints Perpetua and Felicity (believed to have died 7 March 203) are Christian martyrs of the 3rd century. Perpetua (born around 181) was a 22-year old married noblewoman and a nursing mother.
Her co-martyr Felicity, an expectant mother, was her slave. They suffered together at Carthage in the Roman province of Africa, during the reign of Septimius Severus.

[Source]

Byzantine Catholics [A Crash Course on One of the Many Eastern Catholic Churches]

(Borrowed without permission from The All Saints Byzantine Catholic Church in Ft. Myers, Florida....)

In the mountainous region of Carpatho-Rus, known also as Carpatho-Ruthenia, situated between present day Slovakia and Ukraine, there is a group of Eastern Christians. Evangelized in the ninth century by those equals-to-the-apostles, Saints Cyril and Methodius, this group received the Holy Gospel and Sacred Mysteries (Sacraments) from the Byzantine Church of Constantinople. Although Cyril and his brother, Methodius, were Greek (from Thessalonika), they promoted the use of the ancient Slavonic language in worship. This language, later known as Old Church Slavonic, would become the liturgical language of the Carpatho-Rusyns and all Slavonic Christians, both Orthodox and Catholic. In time, Cyril and Methodius brought their liturgical books to Rome to receive the blessings of Pope Hadrian, and he in turn blessed their mission of establishing the Greek (Byzantine) Catholic religion in the Carpathian mountains of Central Europe.

Over time, a rift grew between East and West; and, in 1054, estrangement was realized with the Great Schism of Constantinople and Rome. Being an Eastern Church, the Carpatho-Rusyns were eventually drawn into by this unfortunate break and became members of the Orthodox Church. This ecclesia sui iuris (self-governing church) of Mukachevo-Uzhorod in time sought reunion with the Church of Rome, re-establishing its Catholic faith while maintaining the spirituality, ceremonies, and discipline of the Eastern Church. On April 24, 1646, in Saint George Castle Garden in Uzhorod, a number of priests and faithful proclaimed vocally their reunion with the Catholic Church, re-establishing the unity that Christ so ardently prayed for. From this nucleus would grow a reborn church which the Empress Maria Theresa of Austro-Hungary would later call "The Greek Catholic Church" -- "Greek" in its ritual, theology and art; "Catholic" in union with the Bishop of Rome. In time, the reunion would spread to other areas of Europe, and new eparchies (dioceses) would be created in such places as Presov (Slovakia), Krizevci (Croatia), Hajdudorog and Miskolc (Hungary).

 

In the 1870’s, the first wave of Carpatho-Rusyn immigration brought significant numbers of Greek Catholics to the United States of America. The first parish they founded on these shores was Saint Michael's in Shanandoah, PA followed by an establishment in Freeland, PA. Others were established in places like Wilkes-barre and Kingston, PA, and in Jersey City and Passaic, NJ. 

The Greek Catholic Church in America continued to grow, and there was seen a growing need for hierarchial leadership. In 1905, Father Andrew Hodobay was sent by Rome as Apostolic Visitor to care for the immigrant church; but, being a Hungarian, he was not the proper leader for a predominantly Slavic church. Rome, then, in turn, sent two men to care for what would become two separate administrations for the American Greek Catholics: Father Peter Poniatishyn for the Ukrainians, and Father Gabriel Martyak for the Carpatho-Rusyns (Ruthenians). By this time parishes were springing up all over Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Ohio and the Northeast. In 1924 Rome raised the status of the American Greek Catholic Ruthenian community to that of an Exarchate (Apostolic Vicariate) with Bishop Basil Takach as its first Exarch, establishing Saint John the Baptist Cathedral in Pittsburgh’s Homestead/Munhall neighborhood as its seat. Meanwhile, Greek Catholic immigration continued from Carpathia as well as Hungary and Croatia. Not only were parishes and priests being established and assigned, but the Sisters of Saint Basil the Great received a call from Bishop Takach to minister to the immigrant church, and they eventually settled in Uniontown, PA, after a number of temporary locations.

 

As the decades of the twentieth century progressed, missionary efforts led to the establishment of parishes in California, Florida and even in Alaska. The term "Greek Catholic" would change to "Byzantine Catholic," stressing that the church was not Hellenic (Greek) in nationality, and that the spirituality and liturgical services were of the Byzantine Rite; also, English, now the vernacular, became the dominant liturgical language. The church was then honored in its growth and permanence by the elevation of Pittsburgh as an Eparchy (diocese) in 1963, with Bishop Nicholas T. Elko as first Eparch, after serving as Exarch since 1955. In addition, the East Coast was given their own Eparchy, Passaic, NJ, with Bishop Stephen J. Kocisko as first Eparch, and with the church of Saint Michael the Archangel designated as the Cathedral. The Eparchy of Passaic would encompass the entire eastern sea coast of the United States, from Maine to Florida. In 1968, Bishop Stephen Kocisko was transferred to the Eparchy of Pittsburgh, and subsequently Bishop Michael Dudick was consecrated and enthroned as the second Eparch of Passaic. The crowning achievement of this near century of ecclesiastical growth would be the creation, in 1969 by Pope Paul VI, of a Metropolian Church ecclesia sui uris based in Pittsburgh. This Metropolia would have as its suffragan sees the Eparchy of Passaic (covering the East) and the newly-created Eparchy of Parma, OH, (in the Midwest) governed by Bishop Emil Mihalik as its first eparch. The church of Saint John the Baptist in Parma, OH, would serve as Cathedral for the new eparchy. Bishop Mihalik endeavored to establish more churches in the outer-most parts of his eparchy in places such as Las Vegas, NV, Albuquerque, NM, and Denver, CO. The growth of these Western missions and churches was acknowledged by Pope John Paul II through the erection of a fourth jurisdiction for Byzantine Catholics: the Eparchy of Van Nuys, CA; and, through the selection of Bishop Thomas V. Dolinay (then Auxiliary Eparch of Passaic) as its first Eparch. He shepherded the Eparchy from his seat at Holy Protection of the Mother of God Cathedral in Van Nuys until he was chosen, in 1991, to be Metropolitan of Pittsburgh, succeeding the ailing former shepherd, Archbishop Stephen J. Kocisko. Consequently, the auxiliary Eparch of Passaic, Bishop George Kuzma, was enthroned as the second Eparch of Van Nuys, and, in 1997, moved his seat of administration to Saint Stephen Protomartyr Pro-Cathedral in Phoenix, AZ. In 1996, Bishop Michael J. Dudick retired after a long and pastorally beneficial ministry in the Eparchy of Passaic. Upon his retirement, the Holy Father appointed Bishop Andrew Pataki (formerly Eparch of Parma), as the third Eparch of Passaic.

The spiritual life of the Byzantine Catholic Church was and continues to grow with assistance not only from the Basilians of Uniontown, but also from Monasteries for men and women, such as The Basilian Fathers of Mariapoch, Matawan, NJ, as well as from Holy Dormition Franciscan Monastery, Sybertsville, PA.

The Byzantine Catholic Church is an Eastern Church in union with Rome; Carpatho-Rusyn in background and flavor, but indeed an American Eastern Church celebrating the Gospel in words, symbols, and action. We are unique in our mystical theology, blending the colors of our many ikons with the congregational acapella chants; raising up our hands and our fragrant incense in prayer and inviting you to come and see who we are and what we are all about as part of the Eastern half of the Universal Church.

http://www.allsaintsbyzantinechurch.com/Site/Byzantine_Catholics.html

"Byzantine Catholics"

Lifted from the All Saints Byzantine Church website, without permission. Sorry.

                   Byzantine Catholics

In the mountainous region of Carpatho-Rus, known also as Carpatho-Ruthenia, situated between present day Slovakia and Ukraine, there is a group of Eastern Christians. Evangelized in the ninth century by those equals-to-the-apostles, Saints Cyril and Methodius, this group received the Holy Gospel and Sacred Mysteries (Sacraments) from the Byzantine Church of Constantinople. Although Cyril and his brother, Methodius, were Greek (from Thessalonika), they promoted the use of the ancient Slavonic language in worship. This language, later known as Old Church Slavonic, would become the liturgical language of the Carpatho-Rusyns and all Slavonic Christians, both Orthodox and Catholic. In time, Cyril and Methodius brought their liturgical books to Rome to receive the blessings of Pope Hadrian, and he in turn blessed their mission of establishing the Greek (Byzantine) Catholic religion in the Carpathian mountains of Central Europe.

Over time, a rift grew between East and West; and, in 1054, estrangement was realized with the Great Schism of Constantinople and Rome. Being an Eastern Church, the Carpatho-Rusyns were eventually drawn into by this unfortunate break and became members of the Orthodox Church. This ecclesia sui iuris (self-governing church) of Mukachevo-Uzhorod in time sought reunion with the Church of Rome, re-establishing its Catholic faith while maintaining the spirituality, ceremonies, and discipline of the Eastern Church. On April 24, 1646, in Saint George Castle Garden in Uzhorod, a number of priests and faithful proclaimed vocally their reunion with the Catholic Church, re-establishing the unity that Christ so ardently prayed for. From this nucleus would grow a reborn church which the Empress Maria Theresa of Austro-Hungary would later call "The Greek Catholic Church" -- "Greek" in its ritual, theology and art; "Catholic" in union with the Bishop of Rome. In time, the reunion would spread to other areas of Europe, and new eparchies (dioceses) would be created in such places as Presov (Slovakia), Krizevci (Croatia), Hajdudorog and Miskolc (Hungary).

 

In the 1870’s, the first wave of Carpatho-Rusyn immigration brought significant numbers of Greek Catholics to the United States of America. The first parish they founded on these shores was Saint Michael's in Shanandoah, PA followed by an establishment in Freeland, PA. Others were established in places like Wilkes-barre and Kingston, PA, and in Jersey City and Passaic, NJ. 

The Greek Catholic Church in America continued to grow, and there was seen a growing need for hierarchial leadership. In 1905, Father Andrew Hodobay was sent by Rome as Apostolic Visitor to care for the immigrant church; but, being a Hungarian, he was not the proper leader for a predominantly Slavic church. Rome, then, in turn, sent two men to care for what would become two separate administrations for the American Greek Catholics: Father Peter Poniatishyn for the Ukrainians, and Father Gabriel Martyak for the Carpatho-Rusyns (Ruthenians). By this time parishes were springing up all over Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Ohio and the Northeast. In 1924 Rome raised the status of the American Greek Catholic Ruthenian community to that of an Exarchate (Apostolic Vicariate) with Bishop Basil Takach as its first Exarch, establishing Saint John the Baptist Cathedral in Pittsburgh’s Homestead/Munhall neighborhood as its seat. Meanwhile, Greek Catholic immigration continued from Carpathia as well as Hungary and Croatia. Not only were parishes and priests being established and assigned, but the Sisters of Saint Basil the Great received a call from Bishop Takach to minister to the immigrant church, and they eventually settled in Uniontown, PA, after a number of temporary locations.

 

As the decades of the twentieth century progressed, missionary efforts led to the establishment of parishes in California, Florida and even in Alaska. The term "Greek Catholic" would change to "Byzantine Catholic," stressing that the church was not Hellenic (Greek) in nationality, and that the spirituality and liturgical services were of the Byzantine Rite; also, English, now the vernacular, became the dominant liturgical language. The church was then honored in its growth and permanence by the elevation of Pittsburgh as an Eparchy (diocese) in 1963, with Bishop Nicholas T. Elko as first Eparch, after serving as Exarch since 1955. In addition, the East Coast was given their own Eparchy, Passaic, NJ, with Bishop Stephen J. Kocisko as first Eparch, and with the church of Saint Michael the Archangel designated as the Cathedral. The Eparchy of Passaic would encompass the entire eastern sea coast of the United States, from Maine to Florida. In 1968, Bishop Stephen Kocisko was transferred to the Eparchy of Pittsburgh, and subsequently Bishop Michael Dudick was consecrated and enthroned as the second Eparch of Passaic. The crowning achievement of this near century of ecclesiastical growth would be the creation, in 1969 by Pope Paul VI, of a Metropolian Church ecclesia sui uris based in Pittsburgh. This Metropolia would have as its suffragan sees the Eparchy of Passaic (covering the East) and the newly-created Eparchy of Parma, OH, (in the Midwest) governed by Bishop Emil Mihalik as its first eparch. The church of Saint John the Baptist in Parma, OH, would serve as Cathedral for the new eparchy. Bishop Mihalik endeavored to establish more churches in the outer-most parts of his eparchy in places such as Las Vegas, NV, Albuquerque, NM, and Denver, CO. The growth of these Western missions and churches was acknowledged by Pope John Paul II through the erection of a fourth jurisdiction for Byzantine Catholics: the Eparchy of Van Nuys, CA; and, through the selection of Bishop Thomas V. Dolinay (then Auxiliary Eparch of Passaic) as its first Eparch. He shepherded the Eparchy from his seat at Holy Protection of the Mother of God Cathedral in Van Nuys until he was chosen, in 1991, to be Metropolitan of Pittsburgh, succeeding the ailing former shepherd, Archbishop Stephen J. Kocisko. Consequently, the auxiliary Eparch of Passaic, Bishop George Kuzma, was enthroned as the second Eparch of Van Nuys, and, in 1997, moved his seat of administration to Saint Stephen Protomartyr Pro-Cathedral in Phoenix, AZ. In 1996, Bishop Michael J. Dudick retired after a long and pastorally beneficial ministry in the Eparchy of Passaic. Upon his retirement, the Holy Father appointed Bishop Andrew Pataki (formerly Eparch of Parma), as the third Eparch of Passaic.

The spiritual life of the Byzantine Catholic Church was and continues to grow with assistance not only from the Basilians of Uniontown, but also from Monasteries for men and women, such as The Basilian Fathers of Mariapoch, Matawan, NJ, as well as from Holy Dormition Franciscan Monastery, Sybertsville, PA.

The Byzantine Catholic Church is an Eastern Church in union with Rome; Carpatho-Rusyn in background and flavor, but indeed an American Eastern Church celebrating the Gospel in words, symbols, and action. We are unique in our mystical theology, blending the colors of our many ikons with the congregational acapella chants; raising up our hands and our fragrant incense in prayer and inviting you to come and see who we are and what we are all about as part of the Eastern half of the Universal Church.

'Georgian Orthodox Monks: Monastery of Archangels'

Beautiful & angelic.  Bringing peace to my mind, heart, and soul.  

"Oh Jesus Christ, Son of God, I invite You into my heart.  A poor sinner I am.  A rascal & a scoundrel at times.  Depressed, lonely & addicted, I come to you with full supplication asking only for Your embrace & Your warm touch.  I was a seeker but now I have found what I was looking for."  Amen. Amen.

A Plethora of New Buddhist Books--

Hot damn on fire!  Yesterday saw the arrival of seven awesome Buddhist books from the monks of the Thai Forest tradition monastery in Redwood, California!!  
I also picked up a few great titles from a used bookstore.  These are mostly of the contemplative & mystical Christian tradition.  My spiritual collection is coming along nicely.  I'm am surely blessed to have a veritable library of knowledge at my fingertips!!  That to a lifetimes' worth of reading material.  I shall not be bored again.  This is love m//r

Orthodox Prayer Blog

This is a cool site called Orthodoxprayer.org.   It is related to Saint George Greek Orthodox
 Cathedral in Greenville, South Carolina.

Orthodox Prayer blog (link)

St. Pachomius~

A worthwhile read, lifted from an Eastern Orthodox monastic blog (not sure of the blog's name or whereabouts).






ST. PACHOMIUS  "Place" as a Factor in Salvation 

People love reading & learning about the teachings of the ancient Desert Fathers and Mothers, those holy men and women who forsook earthly life for a life of hardship and struggle so they could focus their entire beings on God and seek to become one with God.  Although many of these men and women lived in monasteries, many of them did not.  From the beginning of their spiritual struggles, they were truly alone in the world with no spiritual guides; if they were lucky, they had their Bible and perhaps a couple of writings from earlier saints.  Usually they did not have even this.

In many ways, we are like those holy men and women of the Early Church.  In today’s world, people who seek the spiritual life are often alone in their quest with no spiritual guides except books or other writings they may have been blessed to collect.  We often wonder how we can find salvation where we are.  St. Pachomius addressed this issue and assures us that, indeed, one’s “place” does not determine one’s salvation.

St. Pachomius lived from 292 to 346, but his relatively brief life had a profound impact on the development of monasticism.  Although Pachomius was a contemporary of St. Anthony the Great, the two apparently never met.  A pagan boy born in the present-day Egyptian city of Esneh, he was drafted into the army to fight in a war at the age of twenty.  In a camp for conscripts near Luxor, Pachomius was visited one night by local Christians who came to the camp to give food and water to the conscripts since life in the camps was very miserable.  After a fruitful conversation with one of the visitors, Pachomius prayed to God that He would deliver him from his plight, he would dedicate his life to serving Him.  Within a few months, the war was over and Pachomius returned to Luxor where he was baptised.  It was in this region of Upper Egypt that Pachomius was to establish the idea of cenobitic monasticism, a sort of “half way point” between living in the world and being a recluse.  Over the ensuing years, thousands of men and women would embrace the monastic life in communities scattered up and down the Nile Valley.

Let us look then at the letters of Pachomius to his disciples and ponder on his teachings of the importance of “place” in the spiritual life.

BEGIN:  Become guileless and be like the guileless sheep whose wool is sheared off without their saying a word.  Do not go from one place to another saying, “I will find God here or there.”  God has said, “I fill the earth, I fill the heavens” (Jeremiah 23:24).  And again, “If you cross over water, I am with you” (Isaiah 43:2); and again, “The waves will not swallow you up” (Isaiah 43:2).  My son, be aware that God is within you, so that you may dwell in his law and commandments.  Behold, the thief was on the cross, and he entered Paradise; but behold Judas was among the Apostles and he betrayed his Lord.  Behold, Rahab was in prostitution, and she was numbered among the saints; but behold, Eve was in Paradise, and she was deceived.  Behold, Job was on the dung heap, and he was compared with his Lord; but behold, Adam was in Paradise, and he fell away from the commandment.

Behold, the angels were in heaven, and they were hurled into the abyss; but behold Elijah and Enoch who were raised into the kingdom of heaven.  “In every place, then, seek out God; at every moment seek out his strength” (Psalms 105:4). Seek Him out like Abraham, who obeyed God, who called Him “my friend.”  Seek Him out like Joseph, who did battle against impurity, so that he was made ruler over his enemies.  Seek him out like Moses, who followed his Lord, and He made him lawgiver and let him come to know His likeness.  Daniel sought Him out, and He taught him great mysteries; He saved him from the lion’s gullet.  The three saints sought Him out, and found Him in the fiery furnace.  Job took refuge with Him and He cured him of his sores.  Susanna sought Him out, and He saved her from the hands of the wicked.  Judith sought Him out, and found Him in the tent of Holofernes.  All these sought Him out and he delivered them; and he delivered others also.  END

Spiritual Elders

 

 When reading the biographies and writings of certain modern day Holy Elders, one will inevitably come across various "prophecies" they made concerning end-time events. These "prophecies" have especially arisen in modern times during periods of high anxiety for Orthodox Christians - in Slavic countries with the rise of communism and in Greece especially since the 1970's and on as we neared the beginning of the second millenium. Much of the latter stems from the rise of eschatological propaganda infiltrating Greece from the West in translation (in 1970 Hal Lindsey's The Late, Great Planet Earth was published following the Six-Day War in the Middle East that sparked a plethora of eschatological writings in the West), and the translation into Greek of the antisemitic forgery The Protocols of the Elders of Zion by a Greek politician in the 1980's. Fascinated by these writings, Orthodox Christian thinkers began to look into their own tradition to apply these seemingly convincing portrayals of the soon-to-be second coming of Christ to make them their own. Unfortunately many of our beloved Holy Elders and modern day Saints were influenced by these writings and traditions, to the confusion of many. I personally believe this was mainly due to the simplicity of their hearts, since these neoeschatological and conspiratorial writings do seem to conform to aspects of Orthodox eschatology if one is pushed to reconcile them. This should by no means determine the authenticity or sanctity of a Holy Elder, since no one is infallible and God may have His reasons for allowing such things.

But not all of our Holy Elders were of a similar mind on these eschatological issues. In fact, when these Holy Elders were asked about these issues, they flatly disagreed with what other Holy Elders were saying about these things. In doing so, they would never try to discredit the Holy Elder they disagreed with, but still considered them men of God with special gifts of the Holy Spirit. They recognized that these things were spoken not by revelation, but through their own opinion or because it was a tradition that they were convinced of by their own logic. Unfortunately most people cannot tell the difference between a real prophecy and an opinion, and this has caused much confusion among impressionable contemporary Orthodox.

One of the most popular and beloved Holy Elders today is Elder Paisios the Athonite (+ 1993). He is one most especially known for his end-time prophecies circulating throughout the Orthodox world. Elder Porphyrios of Kavsokalyvia (+ 1991) was another Holy Elder of our times very much beloved by Orthodox Christians. These two Holy Elders are considered the two strongest pillars of sanctity in 20th century Greek Orthodoxy. But on the critical issue of eschatology they strongly disagreed, much like the Apostles Peter and Paul disagreed in the Acts of the Apostles on the issue of Jews and Gentiles in early Christianity. In fact, Elder Porphyrios censured Elder Paisios for circulating his eschatological material. From this incident, many important lessons can be learned by contemporary Orthodox Christians. For this reason the details of this incident are written below.

The Epistle of Elder Porphyrios to Elder Paisios

In an interview for Cypriot television, Metropolitan Neophytos of Morphou spoke of his personal relationship with Elders Porphyrios, Iakovos, Evmenios and Paisios. He says in the interview that he was instructed by Elder Porphyrios to have Elder Iakovos of Evia as his spiritual father. The Metropolitan was in law school at the time, before he entered ecclesiastical life. His impression of Elder Porphyrios was that he was able to be attuned to another persons soul in a more intimate way, like an x-ray machine, than the other Elder's he met, such as Elders Iakovos, Evmenios and Paisios. This is because each Holy Elder has a particular gift manifested in a more powerful way than other Holy Elders.

The special gift of Elder Porphyrios above all the other Greek Elders, according to Metropolitan Neophytos, was that of clairvoyance and the foreseeing of the future. He had the unique gift of being able to see not only future events, but those of the past as well. He could tell you about the various mineral deposits below the earth better than any geologist, he could determine the accurate movements of the stars better than astronomers, and if there was anything below the sea or in your home you needed to know about, he would reveal to you that as well. The charisma he had was very rare which few in the history of the Church ever possessed. What is striking however is that despite his clear visions of things in the past, present and future, he never spoke about the signs of the end-times.

This, said the Metropolitan, is a very strong message for the people of our day who are inundated with many supposed prophecies and predictions concerning the end of the world, the reign of Antichrist and the second coming of Christ. These in fact are mere speculations and baseless interpretations of the writings from people of the past that have been imposed upon our time to deal with the various changes our world has gone through over the past few hundred years and especially now that we have entered the second millennium after the birth of Christ. The Church works synodically; it is a synaxis. Since a synod of the Church has not expressed itself on these matters, then no individual can interpret them any way they please. For these reasons, understanding the times we live in, Elder Porphyrios did not reveal anything about end-time events that was revealed to him, according to God's will. Thus, while richly endowed with gifts of clairvoyance and prophecy, Elder Porphyrios systematically avoided speaking about apocalyptic events.

When Metropolitan Neophytos was a deacon in Cyprus he went to visit his elder Iakovos in Evia. At the time the people were in a fever about end-time events, the meaning of 666, the identity of the Antichrist, etc. Also, an Archimandrite had published a best-selling book about apocalyptic events. He went to Elder Iakovos and asked him his opinion on all these matters. Elder Iakovos then spoke in a very authoritative tone, which was something very rare for him to do, since he spoke much more humbly than all the other Greek Elders he had met. He said: "Listen to me, my Neophyte. Elder Porphyrios and dumb Iakovos do not speak about anything. Not the things of the present, nor of the things to come, unless the Holy Spirit expressly reveals to them. And up to this point the Holy Spirit has not revealed any such thing to me, not about the Antichrist, nor about wars to come, nor about the future." These are the exact words of Elder Iakovos and the Metropolitan says that he neither added nor subtracted from his words.

I will now translate the words of Metropolitan Neophytos:

"I must mention that there is an epistle held by a monastery on the Holy Mountain, and it would be good for the keepers of this epistle to publish it at some point. This happens to be an epistle by Elder Porphyrios addressed to Elder Paisios. Now I understand that the content of this epistle might challenge some of our spiritual brothers, but it is good to be challenged this way. It is better to be challenged than to fall into exaggerations. This epistle was from a man who honored and revered Elder Paisios very much. Fr. Porphyrios told me that Fr. Paisios is a man of God. And he wrote to him:

My beloved Father Paisios, what happened to you? If Constantinople will be freed or not, this is the concern of the politicians and of the military rulers, and not of the monks nor even the archpriests. If the Antichrist will come, this must be the concern of the archpriests and it is their duty to inform the people. And when that time comes, God will provide us with illumined archpriests who will in turn illumine the people. We the monks, if we are members of the priesthood, we need to liturgize for the salvation of the entire universe. And if we happen to be simple monks, we need to weep over our sins. Now because of my love for you, and knowing how much you love Christ, I am giving you a rule not to talk about these things again out of your great love for Asia Minor and Hellenism.

And Fr. Paisios, this great man of God, did obedience to this great Elder of Elders, Fr. Porphyrios. And since then he kept silent about these matters, because he realized that the smallest comment he would make would often be exaggerated by his highly impressionable visitors. Not to mention, some of these prophetic sayings were not his, but he was quoted by different people, or misquoted, and with other things he was often quoting from a notebook of his spiritual father, St. Arsenios of Cappadocia, who happened to be his godfather. St. Arsenios had received the gift of prophecy [or had heard things from others] and recorded a number of things. Elder Paisios would make some comments based on this notebook he had in his possession.

Now what can we say about all this, but to marvel at the great spirit of discretion of Elder Porphyrios. A spirit of watchfulness, vigilance and patient endurance. But in order to have this patient endurance regarding end-time events, whether social or political or personal, the exercise of patience is extremely necessary....

The work of the Church is to liberate people, to redeem people. When people lean towards interpreting the signs of the times and the future, this mania about the things to come is often alienating people from the essence of spirituality - from their personal struggle, the purification of the heart, our personal trauma, and our need to become well, to cure our passions. This is the heart of the problem.

One time I asked Elder Evmenios about these things, and he responded very simply. He was the most simple of all the Elders, a man of very few words who did not like endless spiritual talk. He needed to be inspired by someone or by something in order to speak. And when I asked him about all the prophetic talks circulating, he said: 'You know, I personally don't believe that Christ would only give 2000 years of grace to the world. It just doesn't seem very long to me.'"