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The One Who Wrongs Us Is Our Benefactor
- Geronda, how should we consider someone who treats us in an unfair way?
- How should we consider him? We must treat him like a great benefactor who makes deposits on our behalf in God's Savings Bank. He is making us eternally wealthy. This is not a matter of minor importance. Are we not supposed to love our benefactors? Shouldn't we express our gratitude to them? In the same way, we must love and feel grateful to the person who has treated us unjustly, because he benefits us eternally. The unjust receive eternal injury, whereas those who accept injustice with joy will be justified eternally.
A pious family man had suffered many injustices in his work. But he was full of kindness and endured it all without complaining. He came to the Kalyvi once and told me all about it and then asked me, "What do you advise me to do?"
"What you should do," I said, "is to expect the divine justice and the divine return and to be patient. Nothing is lost. In this way, you are putting 'money' in God's 'Savings Bank'. You will surely receive dividends in the next life, for all the trials you are going through now. You should know that the Good Lord rewards the unfairly treated person even in this life. And if He does not always reward him, He will surely do so with his children. God knows. He has providence for His creature. Where there is patience, things fall into place. God provides. We need patience, not logic. Since God is watching, He is observing us, we must surrender unconditionally to Him. You see, the Righteous Joseph did not say a thing when his brothers sold him into slavery. He could have said, 'I am their brother'. But he said nothing, until God spoke and made him king (3). But when one has no patience, he suffers. From that point on he wants things to come his way, as it suits him, and as is comfortable for him. But, of course, he does not find comfort that way, and things don't come out the way he wants them to come."
When someone is wronged in this life either by men or by demons, God does not worry, because the soul benefits as a result. Many times, however, we say that we are wronged, while in reality we are the ones causing the harm. We must be careful to distinguish the two.
From the book: Eler Paisios of Mount Athos, Spiritual Counsels, With Pain and Love for Contemporary Man
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Alice: Glory be to Jesus Christ!! Glory be to Him forever and ever!! This thread reminded me of a prayer I copied form this forum for my collection a few years back. Thought I'd share it again because it's in the same vein. Bob PRAYER FOR MY ENEMIES
The following is a prayer composed by +Bishop Nikolai Velimirovic, who was imprisoned in Dachau by the Nazis:
Bless my enemies, O Lord.
Even I bless them and do not curse them.
Enemies have driven me into Your embrace more than friends have.
Friends have bound me to earth, enemies have loosed me from earth and have demolished all my aspirations in the world.
Enemies have made me a stranger in worldly realms and an extraneous inhabitant of the world.
Just as a hunted animal finds safer shelter than an unhunted animal does, so have I, persecuted by enemies, found the safest sanctuary, having enclosed myself beneath Your tabernacle, where neither friends nor enemies can slay my soul.
Bless my enemies, O Lord.
Even I bless them and do not curse them.
They, rather than I, have confessed my sins before the world.
They have punished me, whenever I have hesitated to punish myself.
They have tormented me, whenever I have tried to flee torments.
They have scolded me, whenever I have flattered myself.
They have spat upon me, whenever I have filled myself with arrogance.
Bless my enemies, O Lord.
Even I bless them and do not curse them.
Whenever I have made myself wise, they have called me foolish.
Whenever I have made myself mighty, they have mocked me as though I were a dwarf.
Whenever I have wanted to lead people, they have shoved me into the background.
Whenever I have rushed to enrich myself, they have prevented me with an iron hand.
Whenever I thought that I would sleep peacefully, they wakened me from sleep.
Whenver I have tried to build a home for a long and tranquil life, they have demolished it and driven me out.
Truly, enemies have cut me loose from the world and have stretched out my hands to the hem of Your garment.
Bless my enemies, O Lord.
Even I bless them and do not curse them.
Bless them and multiply them; multiply them and make them even more bitterly against me:
so that my fleeing to You may have no return;
so that all hope in men may be scattered like cobwebs;
so that absolute serenity may begin to reign in my soul;
so that my heart may become the grave of my two evil twins: arrogance and anger;
so that I might amass all my treasure in heaven;
ah, so that I may for once be freed from self-deception, which has entangled me in the dreadful web of illusory life.
Enemies have taught me to know what hardly anyone knows, that a person has no enemies in the world except himself.
One hates his enemies only when he fails to realize that they are not enemies, but cruel friends.
It is truly difficult for me to say who has done me more good and who has done me more evil in the world: friends or enemies.
Therefore, bless, O Lord, both my friends and my enemies.
A slave curses enemies, for he does not understand.
But a son blesses them, for he understands.
For a son knows that his enemies cannot touch his life.
Therefore he freely steps among them and prays to God for them.
Bless my enemies, O Lord.
Even I bless them and do not curse them.
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More from the modern day Staretz, Elder Paisios (+1996)
One’s Descendants Are Also Tormented by Injustice
- Geronda, when I left to join the Monastery, my family was unjust to me. Should I ask for what legally belongs to me?
- No, that's not the proper thing to do.
- I fear that something bad may happen to them as a result of this injustice.
- Now, this is what I call pure *philotimo. If I were you, I would tell them, "I want nothing for myself. But I would like you to give the share that is rightfully mine to the poor, with your own hands, starting with our poor relatives. I am asking for this because I don't want the wrath of God to fall on your children". You see, sometimes a father may give away his fortune for the good of his soul, to create a charitable institution for example, and leave nothing to his own child.
The grandparents in a family may have done something wrong and still live a good life, without consequences. But their children or grandchildren may suffer. They become sick and are forced to give the money their ancestors made unjustly, to doctors, to pay back the injustices of their grandparents.
A family I once knew was going through many difficulties. The head of the family got very sick first, went through a lot, was bed-ridden for a few years, and then passed away. Then his wife died and later his children, one after the other. His fifth and last child passed away recently. Even though they were a very rich family, they lost everything and ended up poor, because they had to sell their property to pay the doctors and the various expenses. I used to wonder why all these horrible things, sickness and accidents, were happening to them. I happened to know some of the members of the family and it did not seem to me to be the good kind of trial, the kind that God sends to those He favours. Rather, it seemed to me that God's spiritual laws were put into effect. I wanted to be certain, so I tried to find out more about the family from reliable sources, namely, some old folks who lived in the same town.
I learned that the man had inherited a certain fortune from his father which he increased by doing all sorts of wrong things. So, if a widow, say, were to ask him for a loan to pay for her daughter's wedding, and promised to return the money once she had harvested the crops, he would ask for a piece of land she owned. And, as she was in great need, she would have to sell him the land at any price he offered. Another man would ask him for a loan to pay the bank and promise to repay him after having harvested the cotton. He would demand the poor fellow's land and would get it for nothing, as the farmer was afraid the bank would come after him. When someone else asked him for a small loan to pay the doctors, he would seek to take his cow from him, for pennies. This is how he made his fortune. The pain he caused to all these poor people was returned not only to him and his wife but also to his children. So, the spiritual laws came into effect and caused them to suffer the very same things that their actions had caused to others. In order to pay all their medical expenses, and so on, they sold their land for nothing and after becoming poor, they left this life for good one after the other. God, of course, with His love and sense of justice will judge them accordingly. The others who were harmed, all the poor folk who were forced to sell out their belongings to pay off the doctors, all these people will be rewarded for the injustices they endured. And, of course, the unjust will also pay their due.
*Philotimo means 'love of honour...
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The Just Person Has God on His Side
Not all people fit well in the world today, especially those who want to lead spiritual and honest lives; they seem to have such a hard time.
- Geronda, why don't they fit?
- When someone is sensitive and finds himself in a harsh environment and people make his life hell, how can he put up with it? Either he has to begin cursing, or he must leave. But that's difficult because one needs to make a living. His boss tells him, "I trust you because you don't steal, but put some rotten produce among the fresh. Take these fresh clover bales and stick some fermented ones in the package." He even makes him manager in order to keep him on the job and the poor man has to do as told to stay employed. And of course, he cannot sleep at night and starts taking sleeping pills. Do you know how hard life is for honest people? They run into all kinds of difficulties and have to take all kinds of abuse from their employers. Life becomes hell for them. And they cannot quit because they have a family to feed. If they stay on, it's trouble everyday. They are between a rock and a hard place. Wherever they turn their eyes, they see a dead end. It makes one go crazy. So, they carry on and try to manage as best they can.
In another case, one employee did all the work while another colleague would only show up to collect his pay check. I know of someone who was department head somewhere. When the new government came to power, they removed him from the post and replaced him with a party member who had not even graduated from High School. They made him department head but he knew nothing about the work and so they could not really send the previous manager away to some other position. What did they do? They just added a second desk in the office. The old boss did the work and the new one was just sitting there smoking, chatting and drinking coffee ... and being completely shameless. And in addition to this, he would say whatever came to his mind while all responsibility fell on the other employee who was doing all the work, until he finally couldn't put up with the situation anymore and left the job, the poor soul. "Maybe I should go somewhere else, there's not enough space for two desks," he said one day and got up and left, because the new head was making his life hell. We are not talking about one or two days. It is unbearable to have someone like that over your head every day.
The just person is usually given the worst position, or may even lose his position to others. They abuse him and step all over him. Don't we have the saying, "They walk over corpses; they stop at nothing?" But the more people push the just and righteous person down, the more the Good God lifts him up, like a cork. It's not easy though and it takes a lot of patience. Patience clears up so many things. The person who wants to live a virtuous life and be honest in his work, be it a labourer, a merchant, or whatever else, must accept the fact that, once he begins work, he may have to reach the point of not being able to even pay the rent, for example, if he has a store, for the blessing of God to come to him. But he should not have this as his goal: "If I should reach that point, then I will surely have plenty of customers." One must not think that way or aim at that, because then, God will not bless him. But when he decides to live as God wills and resolves not to cheat or overprice things, God will not abandon him.
Another person may gain much profit by overpricing. At first, he makes a lot of money and becomes rich, but then people find out that he is dishonest, and his business goes stony broke. On the other hand, the honest merchant gains customers and hires more employees. So he is tested in the beginning, but wins in the end. The good person is tried and tested by evil and cunning people; he has to pass through the card (7).
When someone follows the devil's path, and comes up with tricks and all kinds of deceptive schemes, God will not bless his work. Schemes of deception don't work; they appear to flourish, but they collapse in the end. It's important that we start with God's blessing in everything we do. A just man has God on his side. And if he has some boldness before God, then miracles happen. When someone lives according to the Gospel, he is entitled to divine help. He walks with Jesus Christ. What can we say? The man has earned His blessing. This is the foundation of it all. Once that is given, there is nothing to fear. The important thing is that Christ, Panagia and the Saints should find rest in everything we do, and when that happens, we will have their blessing and the Holy Spirit will overshadow us. Honesty is the most precious Holy Cross. If someone is dishonest even if he has a piece of the Honorable Cross on him, it's like he has nothing. But if one is honest, he has God's help even though he doesn't have a piece of the Honorable Cross. Now, if he has both, well, then he's got everything!
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From the book: Eler Paisios of Mount Athos, Spiritual Counsels, With Pain and Love for Contemporary Man
Where does one obtain a copy?
Bob
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Wondrous events with Elder Paisios, modern day Starets--Elder Paisios
Wondrous eventsFather Paisios always wished for the grace of God to function in his life, and for this reason, he humbled every single one of his wills. As a result, divine grace, which abided in the Elder’s soul since the day he was baptized, was activated and worked miracles.
The Elder always tried to hide from people the energy of divine grace hidden inside him. When divine grace was functioning within him and was perceived by some people, Father Paisios humbly admitted that he himself did nothing; for he had very well understood –since he was very young- that it was impossible for any authentic spiritual energy to come out of him.
Most of the times, he covered up the energy of divine grace, so people could not detect it. There were times, however, when people needed a “divine push” instead of human assistance in order to believe in God and thus correct themselves; then, he was forced to disclose the energy of the divine grace.
A series of volumes is required in order to present, even to the slightest degree, whatever was overflowing from the spiritual activity of the Elder. The following are only a few indications of wondrous events witnessed by priestmonk Christodoulos, who is the author of the book “Elder Paisios of the Holy Mountain” (1998).
One afternoon, I went to see Father Paisios. During these days, I was possessed by a certain haughtiness which was derived from the lack of warmth in my poor prayer life. When I began to control my unrestrained mind, I started seeing things more lucidly. However, as I did not have a humble attitude, I thought I had reached a certain spiritual state and I was bragging about it.
I went to see the Elder to confide in him my thoughts, which were imbued by the sense of haughtiness I just described. Father Paisios listened to me and without saying anything in specific, started telling me the following story:
-Yesterday, a monk visited me and told me something which made me recall the incident I am about to tell you.
One night, I was in my cell at Katounakia saying the Jesus prayer and gradually I was possessed by a heavenly joy. Simultaneously, my cell, whose darkness was interrupted only by the trembling flame of a candle, was filled with a beautiful white-blue light. At the beginning, the light was very strong. I felt that my eyes were also “getting stronger” in order to withstand the glow. It was the Uncreated Light! I stayed in my cell for many hours, losing sense of all earthy things and living in a spiritual world, very different from this one.
While being in this state of the Uncreated Light and heavenly experiences, I lost all sense of time.
At one point the Uncreated Light started fading away and I was back to my old state of being. I began to feel hungry, so I took a piece of bread to eat. Then, I was thirsty and had some water to drink. I was getting tired and I needed to sit down and get some rest. I felt like an animal and I deplored myself for it. The change from one situation back to the other gave birth to a natural humbleness. Having experienced the difference between the spiritual state I was found in and my earthly needs, there was nothing left for me but to despise and blame myself for it.
Further down from my cell, another monk was residing. I looked outside and had the impression it was still night with a full moon. I went out and asked him:
-What time is it? It seems that dawn hasn’t broken yet this morning.
The monk looked astonished and asked me:
- What did you say, Father Paisios? I didn’t understand.
Only then, I realized what had happened. It was ten in the morning and the “full moon” I thought I had seen was the sun. The Uncreated Light was so strong that it made daylight and the sun look like a night with a full moon. The difference between the light of the sun and the Uncreated Light was like the one between night and day.
When the Elder finished his story, he told me to go, as there were other people waiting to see him. I made my way back to my cell only slightly realized my beastly state of being.
After the Turkish invasion in Cyprus, a Cypriot deacon monk went to visit the Elder, as he was feeling very sad about the terrible destruction and great loss of lives. (He had also lost some of his relatives).
Father Paisios was fond of him because he was a very pious and kind man and asked him to spend the night at his cell.
- In the morning, the priest will come to serve the Divine Liturgy. I will wake you up early, so we can chant the Matins service and read the prayers of the Holy Communion service.
The deacon went to his cell and the Elder to his own, where he prayed all night. A couple of times, he went to knock on the deacon’s door and jokingly said:
- Father, did you, by any chance, have a vision? Did you see an angel?
Around two o’clock in the morning, Father Paisios woke him up to start the Matins service. At one point, the Elder began to read the service of the Holy Communion. The deacon was watching the way Father Paisios was reading, and how his face was full of compunction and piety.
When he reached the hymn of the fifth ode which says: “O Mary, Mother of God, the sacred tent of fragrance, through your prayers, make me a chosen instrument that I may partake of the holiness of your offspring”, something extraordinary happened:
The little chapel was filled with a white-blue light and the oil lamps, whose red flames became light-blue as well, began to move in a slow rhythm. At the same time, the whole chapel was permeated by a heavenly fragrance beyond description.
The deacon was astonished and could not understand what was going on. He interrupted the Elder, whispering to him:
- Father, what is happening?
He made a signal for him to keep silent and told him:
- Say the Jesus prayer and do not talk, because the Virgin Mary is visiting us.
For quite some time, the Elder and the deacon remained with their heads on the ground, until the white-blue light faded away taking along with it the sorrow and grief from the deacon’s heart. In their place, there was joy, hope, faith and love for God, but also gratefulness towards the Elder who was the recipient of the grace of God. Later on, the priest came to serve the Divine Liturgy. In the morning, the deacon left with a feeling of admiration for the spiritual boldness Father Paisios had before God.
Father Paisios was going through a very difficult phase. A problem was created in the Church at that time and many bishops had gone to him to ask for his help. However, it was a very complicated problem and even if he wanted to, he was unable to assist; as he said, no matter from which side you look at the problem, you come face to face with a spiritual impasse. So, he decided to turn his efforts to solve the problem into prayer. During that time, Father Paisios constantly prayed for God to give solution to the Church’s problem; especially, he prayed to St. Ephemia:
- St. Ephemia, you who miraculously solved the serious problem the Church was facing then, take the Church out of the present impasse!
One morning, at nine o’ clock, when Father Paisios was reading the service of the third hour, he suddenly heard someone discreetly knocking on his door. The Elder asked from inside:
-Who is it?
Then, he heard a woman’s voice answering:
- It is me, Ephemia, Father.
-Which Ephemia? He asked again.
There was no answer. There was another knock on the door and he asked again.
-Who is it?
The same voice was heard saying:
-It is Ephemia, Father.
There was a third knock and the Elder felt someone coming inside his cell and walking through the corridor. He went to the door and there he saw St. Ephemia, who had miraculously entered his cell through the locked door and was venerating the icon of the Holy Trinity, which the Elder had placed on the wall of his corridor, on the right hand side of the church’s door.
Then the Elder told the saint:
-Say: Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
St. Ephemia clearly repeated those words and immediately Father Paisios knelt and venerated the saint.
Afterwards, they sat and talked for quite a while; he could not specify for how long, as he had lost all sense of time while being with St. Ephemia. She gave the solution for all three matters he had been praying for and in the end he said to her:
- I would like you to tell me how you endured your martyrdom.
The saint replied:
-Father, if I knew back then how eternal life would be and the heavenly beauty the souls enjoy by being next to God, I honestly would have asked for my martyrdom to last for ever, as it was absolutely nothing compared to the gifts of grace of God!
When the Elder was still residing at the cell of the Holy Cross, one night, as he was saying the Jesus prayer, suddenly the roof of his cell was removed and in its place he clearly saw the Lord. His face was so bright that he could not look straight at Him and wondered how it was possible for some people to once split on it.
After this incident, the Elder gave instructions to the nuns of the Convent of St. John the Theologian, who were painting icons, to paint the Lord just the way he had seen Him that night. During the whole time they were painting the icon, he was by their side guiding them.
Father Paisios said that the face of the Lord and the Virgin Mary had the color of ripe wheat.
Father Paisios had already dug his grave next to his cell, Panagouda, and his mind was always set on the day he would depart from this transient world. Due to his deep sense of humility, he constantly felt unprepared for his last journey. However, a vision he saw filled him with joy.
While he was praying, he saw that he was in a place, which looked like an airport, where people departed for their journey to heaven. There were many people, some of whom were assigned to check if the travelers had passports and tickets with them, so they could travel; if either one was missing, they stayed behind. When it was the Elder’s turn, he realized he did not have the necessary documents. Suddenly, the Virgin Mary appeared dressed in gold like a queen. Her appearance was exactly the same as on the icon of the Virgin Mary of Jerusalem. She said to the inspectors:
- He is my own servant. Let him pass for I have all his documents ready.
She took them out of her pallium and after showing them to him, she put them back in their place. So, they let Father Paisios go through.
Father Paisios once told us:
- The Virgin Mary looks a lot like the one on the icon of the Virgin Mary of Jerusalem. She is exactly the same. I have seen her many times and I don’t know of any other icon resembling her so much.
Once, while Father Paisios was praying with his Komvoschinion (prayer rope), he experienced a divine visitation. Suddenly, he heard footsteps coming from the corridor of his cell. He went to the door and looked at the corridor facing the door of the chapel. He saw the Virgin Mary, walking like a queen. When she reached the door of the chapel, she went in. St. John the Theologian followed behind her. After they both entered the chapel, they disappeared leaving behind them a white-blue light, the Uncreated Light, which after a while faded away. Father Paisios’ soul was overflowing with gratitude and humbleness. He was crying because the Virgin Mary had visited him, even if he himself felt that he was the most sinful person in the world.
Father Paisios had a funny way of informing us of the weather report. Father David was the gate keeper at Koutloumousiou Monastery. When one of the monks or novices were returning to the monastery, after having visited Father Paisios, he used to tell them:
-Tell Father David to get off the almond tree, because it will snow.
(He said that because righteous David of Thessaloniki did his spiritual exercise by living on an almond tree and this way he was sanctified.)
Whenever he gave that message to Father David, it always snowed a few days later. So, we knew when to expect snow and were able to prepare ourselves for it.
In December 1992, Father Paisios sent a message to Father David “to get off the almond tree” and “climb on it” again after Christmas. The holidays went by and he sent another message telling him “not to climb on the almond tree” yet, but to wait until he notified him. On St. Anthony’s day (17 January), the weather was very bad and it snowed. A few days later, he told him that he could now “climb on the tree”.
Thus, we always knew when it would snow through Father David, for the Elder “informed” him accordingly.
Six fathers and I were sitting on the grass outside the Elder’s cell listening to him talking. All of a sudden a young man, who looked like an anarchist with long hair and a scarf around his neck, arrived. He asked somewhat impolitely:
-Where is this Paisios?
The Elder stood up, went close to him and told him:
-What do you want him for, young man?
-I want him, he replied.
The young man had a pack of cigarettes in the left pocket of his shirt. Father Paisios pointed at it and asked him:
- What do you have in here, the Gospel?
- No, cigarettes, he replied, and offered him one.
-Do you want one?
-No.
Since we were all looking at the Elder laughing, the young man understood that he was Father Paisios. After confirming it with us, he turned to him and asked:
- I want you to tell me what is my name.
The Elder, scratching his head pretending to be bewildered, said:
- What is your name…, let’s see. How do you call the traffic lights, the red and the green ones that regulate the traffic? (Greeks have named the green and the red light after men’s names, Grigoris and Stamatis respectively).
-You mean Grigoris and Stamatis, the others replied.
- Well, yes. This is how you are called.
His name was indeed Grigoris and when he heard it, he was astonished and immediately asked to see the Elder in private. He took the young man aside so the two of them could talk.
After six months, he went again to Mount Athos and I met him outside Koutloumousiou Monastery. He no longer looked like an anarchist. His change was so dramatic that I was not sure if it was the same person, so I asked him:
- Excuse me, you remind me of someone. Are you the young man who visited Father Paisios about six months ago?
-Was the person I remind you of rude to the Elder?
- Yes, in a way.
- It was me the idiot, Father. Pray for me so I can correct myself.
The Elder was sitting outside his cell talking to a group of pilgrims. Father E. was watching him talk, and was wondering with admiration:
-How is his soul related to divine grace and how pure it must be in order to allow the grace of God to function?
While he was having these thoughts, Father Paisios interrupted the discussion he was having with the others, and said to him:
- Are you wondering how it looks like inside? It is full of dirt and stench.
And he then continued his discussion. The pilgrims did not understand what the Elder meant by these words, but Father E. was astounded.
http://www.pigizois.net/agglika/paisios/11.htm
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Bob,
Above are some amazing stories of visits with the Elder when he lived in his hut on Mt. Athos.
Now, *after* his death, stories from Cyprus, Greece, and Russia are coming out constantly of his actual visits and apparitions to those who pray to him..amazing stories!
One man, after five years of not knowing if he should say anything, came out on a talk show in Cyprus telling his story of how he was kidnapped and jailed by gangsters, in a former Soviet country (he would not mention which one) while he was on a business trip, and how while he was crying in a prison cell where no one knew English or Greek, and he had no idea what was going on, the Elder appeared to him and told him that he would stay with him until he would return to Cyprus!
After a while, he was no longer visible, but spoke to the heart and mind of this man, and taught him all about the faith, which he knew little about! He never left him for five months until he was finally released.
Maybe it is just me (and you) on this forum, but so many people dream of going to Mt. Athos to find a starets who will speak words of enlightenment to them, and by reading the words in these books, those of us who will never meet a starets, can obtain their spiritual manna through this very contemporary saint/starets.
Regards,
Alice
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