Elder Paisios The Athonite
Elder Paisios was asked the following regarding demons (called "tagalakia" by some Greeks) and the power of the Cross:
- Elder, my thoughts tell me that the devil, especially nowadays, has a lot of power.
- The devil has evil and hatred,
not power. The love of God is all-powerful. Satan tries to appear
all-powerful, but he does not succeed. He seems strong, but he is
completely weak. Many of his destructive plans are spoiled before they
even begin to be manifested. Would a very good father allow some punks
to hit his children?
- Elder, I'm afraid of tagalakia(Demons).
- What is there to fear?
Tagalakia have no power. Christ is all-powerful. Temptation is rotten to
the core. Don't you wear a Cross? The devil's weapons are weak. Christ
has armed us with His Cross. Only when we discard our spiritual weapons,
then the enemy has power. An Orthodox priest showed a small Cross to a
magician, which made the demon he invoked through his magic tremble.
- Why is he so afraid of the Cross?
- Because when Christ accepted
the beatings, the slaps and the blows, the kingdom and power of the
devil was crushed. By which way did Christ conquer? "With the rod the
rule of the devil was crushed," says a Saint. That is, with the last
blow of the rod to His head, then the power of the devil was crushed.
Patience is the spiritual defense and humility is the greatest weapon
against the devil. The greatest balm of Christ's sacrifice on the Cross
is that the devil was crushed. After the Crucifixion of Christ he is
like a snake with its poison removed or a dog with its teeth removed.
The poison of the devil has been removed, the teeth of the dogs, the
demons, have been removed, and now that they are disarmed we are armed
with the Cross. The demons can do nothing, nothing, to those who have
been formed by God when we do not give them the right. They only cause a
commotion because they have no power.
One time I was in the Cell of
the Honorable Cross, and I had a very beautiful vigil. During the night
many demons had collected on the ceiling. At first they were beating
heavy and making noise, as if they were dragging large tree trunks. I
made the sign of the Cross towards the ceiling and chanted: "We venerate
Your Cross Master...." When I finished, the dragging of the logs
continued. "Now," I said, "we will form two choirs. In one you will do
the dragging above and I will do the other below." When I began, they
stopped. First I chanted "We venerate Your Cross...", then "Lord, Your
Cross you gave to us as a weapon against the devil...." I had the most
pleasant night chanting and, when I stopped for a bit, they continued
the entertainment! Every time they present a different work.
- When you chanted the first time, they didn't leave?
- No. Once I was done, they
began. Yes, both choirs had to complete the vigil! It was a beautiful
vigil! I chanted with longing! I had good days!
- Elder, what does the devil look like?
- You know how "beautiful" he
is? Something else! If only you could see him! And how the love of God
does not allow people to see the devil! O, the majority would die from
their fear! Imagine if they saw him act, if they saw the "sweetness" of
his form! Again, some would be greatly entertained. You know what kind
of entertainment? How do they call it? Cinema? For anyone to see such
work, they would have to pay a lot of money, but even then they would
not be able to see him.
- Does he have a horn, a tail?
- Yes, all the accessories.
- Elder, did the demons become so ugly when they fell and the angels became demons?
- Well, of course! Even now it's
as if lightning struck them. If lightning strikes a tree, will not the
tree immediately become a black stump? They are the same way, as if
they've been struck by lighting. At one time I told the tagalakia: "Come
so I can see you, that I may not fall into your hands. Now that I am
looking at you, your appearance shows how evil you are. If I fall into
your hands, what evil I will suffer!"
Source-proskynitis.blogspot.gr
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