ELDER PAISIOS ON DIVINE RIGHTEOUSNESS AND HUMAN RIGHTEOUSNESS

 Elder Paisios The Athonite

Geronda(Elder),what is divine righteousness?
-Divine righteousness is doing what brings rest to others.
If, for example,you have something to share with another,
you should offer not half of what you have,but as much as
the other needs.Tell him,"How much do you need?
Two and a half? Three? Take it."
Give the good and keep the spoiled.Give more and keep
less.Look,let's say that a sister brings us now ten plums,
If i eat eight of them out of gluttony and leave two for
you,I will be unjust and will have wronged you.If i say
"Since there's two of us,I'll eat five and leave you the
other five,"then i demonstrate human justice.But if i
see that you like plums and eat only one and tell you,
"For the sake of Love,you eat the rest because i don't
like them that much and they upset my stomach,"then i
have divine righteousness.
-Then what is human Righteousness?
-Human  righteousness is when,for example,you have
 to share something with another person and you give
away half and keep the other half for yourself.
Geronda(Elder),what place does human righteousness
have in the spiritual life?
-Human righteousness is not for spiritual people;it
merely serves to restrain worldly people.A spiritual
person is a fool if he relies on human righteousness,
which is nothing compared to divine righteousness.
But even a worldly person, though he may achieve
something in this life by applying human righteousness,
will not have real peace and  joy.

Γιὰ νὰ διαλύσει τὰ νέφη τῶν θλίψεων..

Γέροντας Πορφύριος

 Ἡ κυρία Ἀ.Σ., πνευματικὸ παιδὶ τοῦ ὁσίου Γέροντος Πορφυρίου, ἀφηγεῖται ἕνα θαυμαστὸ γεγονός, ποὺ μᾶς ἀποκαλύπτει τὴν δυνατὴ πίστη ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν εὐαισθησία τοῦ ὁσίου Γέροντος καὶ μᾶς ταξιδεύει σὲ ὀνειρικοὺς κόσμους τοῦ ἐπέκεινα, ὅπου αἴρεται ἡ νομοτελειακὴ τάξη τοῦ φυσικοῦ κόσμου καὶ ἡ παραδοξότητα τῶν φαινομένων προκαλεῖ τὸν ὀρθὸ λόγο:
«Τὸ φθινόπωρο τοῦ 1986 εἶχα ξεκινήσει μὲ τὴν εὐλογία καὶ καθοδήγηση τοῦ πατρὸς Πορφυρίου ἔργο προνοίας. 


Ἐπισκεπτόμουν ἄπορες οἰκογένειες, κυρίως πολυτέκνων, μὲ οἰκονομικὰ προβλήματα, ἄλλες οἰκογένειες μὲ χρόνια προβλήματα ὑγείας καὶ ἰδιαιτέρως μὲ προβλήματα συναισθηματικῆς καὶ ψυχολογικῆς φύσεως. Τὸ βασικὸ ἔργο μου ἦταν ἡ λειτουργία ἀντιμετώπισης τῶν προαναφερθέντων προβλημάτων, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἡ συμβουλευτικὴ καὶ ψυχολογικὴ ὑποστήριξη τῶν πασχόντων. Τὸ προνοιακὸ αὐτὸ ἔργο συνέχισα καὶ μετὰ τὴν κοίμηση τοῦ Ἁγίου Γέροντος μέχρι σήμερα.

Ἕνα χειμωνιάτικο ἀπόγευμα τοῦ 1986 βρισκόμουν στὸ κελλὶ τοῦ πατρὸς Πορφυρίου στὸ Μήλεσι. Ὁ οὐρανὸς ἦταν συννεφιασμένος. Βαριὰ καταχνιὰ παντοῦ καὶ ψιλόβροχο. Καθόμουν μπροστὰ στὸ κρεβάτι τοῦ Γέροντα καὶ μιλούσαμε γιὰ τὸ ἔργο ποὺ εἶχα ἀναλάβει, ἀκούγοντας τὶς συμβουλές του. Φαίνεται πὼς ὁ Παππούλης μᾶς προετοίμαζε γιὰ δυσκολότερες μέρες.
Ἐνῶ μιλούσαμε, ξαφνικὰ μὲ διακόπτει:
- Νά, μοῦ λέει, αὐτὴ τὴ στιγμὴ μᾶς παίρνει ἀπὸ τὴ Λάρισα τηλέφωνο μιὰ κυρία.
Πράγματι, ἐκείνη τὴν ὥρα χτύπησε τὸ τηλέφωνο. Σηκώνω τὸ ἀκουστικὸ καὶ τὸ δίνω στὸν Γέροντα.
- Γέροντα, τὴν εὐχή σου.
- Εὔχομαι, παιδί μου, ἀπαντᾶ ἐκεῖνος.
- Γέροντα, ἔχω τὴν κόρη μου στὸ Λονδίνο. Σπουδάζει στὸ Πανεπιστήμιο. Ζεῖ μόνη της. Μὲ παίρνει συνεχῶς τηλέφωνο καὶ μοῦ λέει ὅτι νιώθει μοναξιὰ κι ἀπογοήτευση. Εἶναι κουρασμένη συνεχῶς καὶ θλιμμένη. Ἀλλὰ κι ὁ οὐρανὸς τῆς πλακώνει τὴν ψυχή. Ὁ λονδρέζικος οὐρανὸς εἶναι πάντοτε μουντός, συννεφιασμένος καὶ βρέχει. Φοβᾶμαι, Γέροντα, ὅτι ἡ κόρη μου ὁδηγεῖται στὴν κατάθλιψη.
- Εὔχομαι, εὔχομαι, εὔχομαι, παιδί μου… ἀπήντησε ὁ Γέροντας καὶ ἔκλεισε τὸ τηλέφωνο.
Σὲ λίγο, πολὺ συγκινημένος ὁ Παππούλης λέει:
- Νά! Τῆς ἔστειλε παρέα ὁ Θεός, τῆς ἔστειλε παρέα στὸ Λονδίνο. Ὁ καλὸς Θεὸς μᾶς ἄκουσε κι ἔστειλε στὴν κοπέλα συντροφιὰ ἕνα πουλάκι. Δόξα τῷ Θεῷ, τῆς ἔστειλε ἕνα ὡραῖο πουλάκι, πάρα πολὺ ὄμορφο. Δὲν εἶναι συνηθισμένο πουλί, εἶναι ἕνα ξεχωριστὸ πουλί. Δὲν εἶναι αὐτὸ τυχαῖο γεγονός.Τὸ πουλάκι αὐτὸ θὰ εἶναι ὁ φίλος της. Θὰ κάνουν παρέα, θὰ τὴν βοηθήσει νὰ τελειώσει τὶς σπουδές της.
Σὲ λίγο, τὴν ὥρα ποὺ μιλάει ἀκόμη ὁ Γέροντας, χτυπάει τὸ τηλέφωνο. Τὸ σηκώνω ἐγὼ καὶ τοῦ τὸ δίνω. Εἶναι ἡ κυρία πάλι ἀπὸ τὴ Λάρισα.
- Γέροντα, μὲ πῆρε πρὸ ὀλίγου πάλι στὸ τηλέφωνο ἡ κόρη μου ἀπὸ τὸ Λονδίνο καὶ μοῦ εἶπε χαρούμενη πὼς στὸ παράθυρό της εἶναι ἕνα πουλάκι καὶ τῆς χτυπάει τὸ τζάμι!
- Νὰ τῆς πεῖς νὰ τοῦ ἀνοίξει τὸ παράθυρο καὶ νὰ τὸ βάλει μέσα. Αὐτὸ τὸ πουλάκι θὰ εἶναι στὸ ἑξῆς ἡ ἀχώριστη συντροφιά της. Εἶναι ἕνα ξεχωριστὸ πουλάκι, πολὺ ὄμορφο καὶ φωτεινό… Τῆς τὸ ἔστειλε ὁ Θεὸς νὰ διαλύσει τὰ νέφη τῶν θλίψεων καὶ νὰ φωτίσει τὰ σκοτάδια τῆς μοναξιᾶς. Θὰ ζήσουν εἰς τὸ ἑξῆς μαζί… Νὰ προσεύχεσθε μὲ θέρμη στὸ Θεό. Σᾶς ἀγαπάει πολύ!
Καὶ ὁ ὅσιος Γέροντας συνέχισε μὲ πρακτικές συμβουλές:
- Τὶς πρωινὲς ὥρες, νὰ πεῖς στὴν κορούλα σου, νὰ ἀερίζει τὸ δωμάτιο. Νὰ ἀνοίγει τὰ παράθυρα νὰ βγαίνει λίγο ἔξω τὸ πουλάκι, νὰ πετᾶ στὸν οὐρανό. Ἔπειτα ἐκεῖνο θὰ ἐπιστρέφει μόνο του στὴν ὥρα του. Νὰ προσέχει τί θὰ τὸ ταΐζει. Νὰ μάθει νὰ τοῦ μιλάει, νὰ ἀκούει τὸ κελάηδημά του, νὰ τὸ χαϊδεύει. Ὅταν θὰ φεύγει γιὰ τὰ μαθήματά της στὸ Πανεπιστήμιο, αὐτὸ θὰ τῆς «προσέχει» τὸ σπίτι. Ὅταν θὰ γυρίζει, θὰ εἶναι ἡ καλύτερή της συντροφιά. Ἔτσι θὰ ζήσουν μαζὶ μὲχρι νὰ πάρει τὸ πτυχίο της.
Ὅλη τὴν ὥρα ποὺ μιλοῦσε, ὁ ὅσιος Γέροντας ἔλαμπε. Βρισκόταν σὲ ἕναν ἄλλο κόσμο, μέσα σὲ ἕνα ἄπλετο φῶς. Ἔβλεπε καὶ ζοῦσε καταστάσεις ποὺ μόνο αὐτὸς ἦταν δυνατὸ νὰ περιγράψει. Μετεῖχε σὲ μιὰ ὑπερκόσμια πνευματικὴ πανδαισία.
Ὁ Ἅγιος εὐχήθηκε καὶ ὁ Θεὸς ἔδωσε τὴ λύση: πρόληψη καὶ θεραπεία διὰ τῆς ἐπενέργειας τοῦ Ἁγίου Πνεύματος. Τὸ θαυμαστὸ αὐτὸ συμβάν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὁ συμβολισμός του, ὅπως ἐπίσης καὶ ὁ συμβουλευτικὸς λόγος τοῦ Γέροντος, ποὺ ἀκολούθησε, αἰσθάνθηκα ἐκείνη τὴν ὥρα πὼς λειτούργησαν καὶ γιὰ μένα προσωπικὰ ὡς ὑποστηρικτικὸ καὶ παιδευτικὸ μήνυμα. Μὲ βοήθησαν νὰ συλλάβω στὶς πραγματικές του διαστάσεις τὸ «θαῦμα» τῆς συμβουλευτικῆς λειτουργίας. Φωτίστηκε ὁ νοῦς καὶ ἡ ψυχή μου καὶ δόθηκε ἀπάντηση σὲ καίρια ἐρωτήματα ποὺ μὲ ἀπασχολοῦσαν ἐκεῖνο τὸν καιρὸ σχετκὰ μὲ τὸ συμβουλευτικὸ ἔργο ποὺ πρόσφατα μοῦ εἶχε ἀνατεθεῖ:
Κατάλαβα κυρίως πὼς μοναχικοὺς ἀνθρώπους καὶ πρόσωπα βυθισμένα στὸ τέλμα τῆς θλίψης καὶ τῆς ὀδύνης δὲν μπορεῖς νὰ συναντήσεις, παρὰ μόνο ἀκολουθώντας τὸ δρόμο τὸ λιγότερο ταξιδεμένο, τῆς πίστης στὸν Θεὸ καὶ τῆς ἀγάπης.

Γεωργίου Κρουσταλάκη
“Γέρων Πορφύριος. Ὁ πνευματικὸς πατέρας καὶ παιδαγωγός”, σελ. 264-268

FAITH IS THE DOOR TO MYSTERIES

 Saint Isaac the Syrian -Homily 46

FAITH IS THE DOOR TO MYSTERIES.What the bodily eyes are to sensory objects,the same is faith to the eyes of the under-standing that gaze at hidden treasures.Even as we have two bodily eyes,we possess two eyes of the soul,as the Fathers say;yet both have not the same operation with respect to divine vision.With one we see the hidden Glory of God which is concealed in the natures of things;that is to say,we behold His power,His wisdom, and His eternal providence for us,which we understand from the magnitude of His governance on our

behalf.With this same eye we also behold the heavenly orders of our fellow servants.With the other,we behold the glory of His Holy nature.When God is pleased to admit us to spiritual mysteries,He opens wide the sea of faith in our minds.

Repentance is given to the sons of men as grace after grace,for repentance is a second regeneration by God.That of which we have received an earnest by baptism, we receive as a gift by means of repentance.Repentance is the door of mercy, opened to those who seek it.By this door we enter into the mercy of God, and apart from this entrance we shall not find mercy.'For all have sinned',according to divine Scripture,'being justified freely by His grace.'Repentance is the second grace and is begotten in the heart by faith and fear.
 

Fear is the paternal rod that guides our way until we reach the spiritual paradise of good things;and when we have attained thereto,it leaves us and turns back.
Paradise is the love of God,wherein is the enjoyment of all blessedness,and there the blessed Paul partook of supernatural nourishment.When he tasted there of the tree of life,he cried out,saying,'eye that hath not seen,nor ear heard,neither have entered into the heart of man,the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him'.Adam was barred from this tree through the devil's counsel.

The tree of life is the love of God from which Adam fell away,and thereafter he saw joy no longer,and he toiled and labored in the land of thorns.Even though they make their way in righteousness,those who are bereft of the love of God eat in their work the bread of sweat,which the first-created man was commanded to eat after his fall.Until we find love,our labor is in the land of thorns,and in the midst of thorns we both sow and reap,even if our seed is the seed of righteousness,and in every hour we are pricked by the thorns,and however much we render ourselves righteous,we live by the sweat of our brow.
But when we find love,we partake of heavenly bread and are made strong without labor and toil.The heavenly bread is Christ,
Who came down from Heaven and gave life to the world.

This is the nourishment of the angels.
The man who has found love eats and drinks Christ every day and hour and hereby is made immortal.;He that eateth of this bread,;He says,;which i will give him,shall not see death unto eternity.'Blessed is he who eats the bread of love,which is Jesus!He who eats of love eats Christ,the God over all,as John bears witness,saying,'God is love.'


Wherefore,the man who lives in love reaps life from God,and while yet in this world,he even now breathes the air of the resurrection;in this air the righteous will delight in the resurrection.Love is the kingdom,whereof the Lord mystically promised His disciples to eat in his Kingdom.For when we hear Him say,'Ye shall eat and drink at the table of My Kingdom,;what do we suppose we shall eat,if not love?Love is sufficient to nourish a man instead of food and drink.
This is the wine that 'maketh glad the heart of man.'Blessed is he who drinks of this wine!Profligates have drunk this wine and felt shame;sinners have drunk it and have forgotten the pathways of stumbling;drunkards have drunk this wine and become fasters,the rich have drunk it and desired poverty;the poor have drunk it and been made rich with hope;the sick have drunk it and become strong;the unlearned have taken it and been made wise.


As it is not possible to cross over the great ocean without a ship,so no one can attain to love without fear.

This fetid sea,which lies between us and the noetic paradise,we can cross with the boat of repentance, whose oarsmen are those of fear.But if the oarsmen of fear do not pilot this barque of repentance wherewith we cross over the sea of this world to God,we shall be drowned in the fetid sea.

Repentance is the ship,and fear is the pilot;love is the divine haven.
Thus fear sets us in the ship of repentance,transports us over the foul sea of this life(that is,of the world),and guides us to the divine port,which is love.Hither proceed all that labor and are afflicted and heavy laden in repentance.When we attain love,we attain to God.
Our way is ended and we have passed unto the isle that lies beyond the world,where is the Father,and the Son,and the Holy Spirit,to Whom be glory and dominion,and may He make us worthy of His glory and His love through the fear of Him.Amen.

ΤΙ ΣΗΜΑΙΝΕΙ Ο ΣΤΑΥΡΟΣ

Με τήν έπαρσιν της δεξιάς χειρός στο μέτωπο πρώτον σημειώνομεν, ότι ο Θεός ήτο εις τούς ουρανούς, ως προάναρχος Λόγος του Πατρός μετά του Ζωοποιού Πνεύματος συνδοξαζόμενος• καί με τήν κατάβασιν της χειρός στην κοιλίαν σημειώνομεν, ότι δια τήν σωτηρίαν ημών κατήλθεν εκ των ουρανών, καί εσαρκώθη στην κοιλίαν της Παρθένου καί έγινε άνθρωπος.

Μετά δε τήν ανάβασιν της χειρός στον δεξιό ώμο, καί μετάβασιν στον αριστερό, σημαδεύομεν, ότι εσταυρώθη καί πέθανε δια τάς αμαρτίας ημών είτα καταβιβάζοντες τήν χείρα στην γην κάτω, σημαίνομεν, ότι ετάφη καί καταβάς στον Άδη ελύτρωσε τούς απ` αιώνος δικαίους• καί αύθις με τήν ανάβασιν της χειρός σημαίνομεν τήν ανάστασιν καί τήν εις ουρανούς ανάληψιν.

Με τήν κατάβασιν πάλι της χειρός στην κοιλίαν δηλούμεν, ότι μέλλει πάλιν άρχεσθαι στην γην κρίνοι ζώντας καί νεκρούς• καί με τήν ανάβασιν στον δεξιό ώμο, καί αριστερό, δηλούμεν, ότι έχει να στήση τούς μεν δικαίους εκ δεξιών αυτού, τούς δε αμαρτωλούς εξ αριστερών καί δεόμεθα να αξιωθώμεν της εκ δεξιών αυτού παραστάσεως. Αυτό φανερώνει ο Σταυρός.

Όταν γίνεται με ευλάβεια, καί βάνομεν τήν χείρα κάτω στο έδαφος, καί σφραγίζομεν τόν εαυτόν μας με τό σημείον του Τιμίου Σταυρού, καί σημαδεύομεν όλο τό μυστήριον της ενσάρκου οικονομίας του Κυρίου ημών Ιησού Χριστού διότι με τήν ένωσιν των τριών δακτύλων σημειώνομεν τήν Τρισυπόστατον Θεότητα, καί τό αδιαίρετον των τριών προσώπων, καί ότι ο Υιός σαρκωθείς, ουκ απέστη του Πατρικού κόλπου, κάν τοις βροτοις ωμίλησε.

  

Απόσπασμα εκ του βιβλίουΟΙ ΑΔΑΜΑΝΤΕΣ ΤΟΥ ΠΑΡΑΔΕΙΣΟΥ

Εκδόσεις Κων/νου Δουκάκη - Αθήναι 1885

THE CROSS AS A SYMBOL AND THE TREE OF LIFE

The Cross as a Symbol

 Saint Gregory of Nyssa (ca.335--ca.395)   Comments,  "For  truly,  to those who are able to see,the mystery of the Cross is especially contemplated in the law. Therefore,the Gospel says somewhere that not one  iota  or  one  tittle shall pass away from the law (Mt.5;18), signifying in these words the vertical and horizontal lines by which the form of the Cross is drawn."

 At the Feast of the Cross,we chant,"The four ends of the earth are
sanctified  today by the exaltation of Thy Cross with its four arms."
Saint Gregory of Nyssa speaks of the symbolic implications of the physical attributes of the Cross,saying,"This is the very thing we learn from the figure of the Cross:that He Who was stretched upon it binds together all things into Himself,and by Himself brings to one harmonious agreement the diverse natures of actual existences."Saint Paul prays that Christ might dwell in our hearts through the Faith,which has been rooted and founded in love,in order that we might be able to apprehend with all the saints what is
the breadth and length and depth and height(cf.Eph.3:17,18).

Saint Gregory of Nyssa says the apostle" is describing by the figure of the Cross the power that controls and holds together the
universe,when he expresses a desire that they may be exalted to know the exceeding glory of this power, calling it height,and
depth,and breadth,and length....It manifests a great
mystery:that both things in heaven,and things under the earth,and all the furthest bounds of the things that are,are ruled and sustained by Him Who gave an example of this unspeakable and mighty power in the figure of the Cross.

Saint Kosmas chants to the Cross,saying,"Stretched out in wondrous fashion, the Cross sent forth rays as the sun,and 'the heavens declared the glory of our God(ps.18:1),"Saint Ephraim the Syrian chants,"The Height and the depth have been reconciled in Him!"

The Tree Of Life

  
Saint Irenaeos(ca.130ca,236),Bishop of Lyons writes:The sin that was wrought through the tree was undone by the obedience of the Tree, obedience to God whereby the Son of Man was nailed to the Tree,destroying the knowledge of evil,and bringing in and conferring the knowledge of good...So by the obedience,whereby He obeyed unto death,hanging on the tree,He undid the old disobedience wrought in the tree.
And because He is Himself the Logos of God almighty,Who in His invisible form pervades us universally in the whole world, and encompasses both its length and breadth and height and depth-for by God's Logos everything is disposed and administered-The Son of God was also crucified in these,imprinted in the form of a cross on the universe for He had necessarily,in becoming visible,to bring to light the universality of His Cross,in order to show openly
through His visible form that activity of His:that it is He Who makes bright the height,that is, what is in heaven,and holds the deep,which is in the bowels of the earth,and stretches forth and extends the length from east to west, navigating also the northern parts and the breadth of the south,and calling in all the dispersed from all sides to the knowledge of the Father."

The Cross,the Tree of Life,was planted in the Place of the Skull
(Mt.27;33,Mk. 15:22, Jn.19:17),and upon it the eternal King worked salvation in the midst of the earth(Ps. 73:13).It sanctifies the ends of the world,and both angels and men rejoice.Saint Theodore the Studite(759-826) chants,"The Church has been revealed as a second Paradise,having within it, like the first Paradise of old,a tree of life,Thy Cross,O Lord.
By touching it, we share in immortality."Saint Joseph the
Hymnographer(810-886) writes: "Christ stretched out His hands upon the Cross,and so destroyed the sin of our forefather who stretched out his hand in greed.By the Tree He healed the curse of the tree(Deut.21:23).

You write about anger in the heart of a fool

Elder Joseph the Hesychast (Sixth Letter)

  "So listen to me once again. Lay a solid foundation. 
Build a beautiful  little palace in the heavens. Clean the inside of the cup, as the Lord instructs us, so that the outside becomes clean as well, because everything done with the body  resembles leaves which merely decorate the outer man.
Those works are well and good, but everything I have written
to you about previously is what cleanses a person internally.
These things will open the eyes of the soul. It is through them
that the heart is purified to see God on that day. For without 
noetic work, there is little benefit from outer works.

If you do not see tears pouring forth every time you remember God, you suffer from ignorance, which leads to pride and  hardness of heart. So let humility serve as a garment in all your actions, and become a sponge in the brotherhood that mops up every reproach and abasement. Do not water your soul with honors and praises but with reproaches and accusations, even if you are innocent.


Never seek to find what is just, because then you are unjust.
On the contrary, learn to endure temptations bravely, regardless of what kind the Lord permits. Without a lot of excuses, just say, "Forgive me !" and without actually being at fault, repent as if you were. Do so with conviction of soul; not just outwardly admitting to be at fault for the sake of praise, while inwardly judging.

Taken from, Monastic Wisdom, The
Letters of Elder Joseph the Hesychast

Δῶστε, δῶστε στοὺς φτωχούς!

ΙΩΑΝΝΗΣ ο Χρυσόστομος

Ξέρω ὅτι πολλοὶ ἀπὸ τοὺς συγκεντρωμένους πάλι θὰ μᾶς κατηγορήσουν, ὅταν μιλοῦμε γι' αὐτά, καὶ θὰ ποῦν «Μή, σὲ παρακαλῶ, μὴ γίνεσαι φορτικὸς καὶ βαρετὸς στοὺς ἀκροατές• ἄφησέ το στὴ συνείδηση τοῦ καθενός, ἄφησέ το στὴν κρίση τῶν ἀκροατῶν• ἔτσι τώρα μᾶς ντροπιάζεις, μᾶς κάνεις νὰ κοκκινίζουμε!...».

Ἀλλ' ὄχι! Αὐτὰ τὰ λόγια δὲν τὰ ἀνέχομαι! Γιατί οὔτε ὁ Παῦλος ντρεπόταν νὰ ἐνοχλῆ συνέχεια γιὰ τέτοια πράγματα καὶ νὰ ζητᾶ σὰν ζητιάνος. Ἐὰν ἔλεγα τοῦτο, δηλαδὴ δός μου, φέρε γιὰ τὸ σπίτι μου, ἲσως νὰ 'ταν ντροπή. Ἂν καὶ οὔτε τότε θὰ 'ταν ντροπή. «Οἱ γὰρ τῷ θυσιαστηρίῳ», λέγει, «προσεδρεύοντες, τῷ θυσιαστηρὶῳ συμμερίζονται» (Α' Κορ. 9,13). Πλὴν ὅμως πιθανὸν νὰ μὲ κατηγοροῦσε κάποιος, ὅτι μιλῶ γιὰ τὸν ἑαυτὸ μου• τώρα ὅμως παρακαλῶ γι' αὐτοὺς ποὺ στεροῦνται, μᾶλλον ὄχι γι' αὐτοὺς ποὺ στεροῦνται, ἀλλὰ γιὰ σᾶς ποὺ δίνετε• γι' αὐτὸ καὶ μιλῶ χωρὶς νὰ ντρέπομαι.
Γιατί ποῦ εἶναι ἡ ντροπὴ σὰν πῶ, δῶσε στὸν Κύριο ποῦ πεινᾶ, ντύσε τον ποὺ γυρίζει γυμνός, φιλοξένησέ τον ποῦ εἶναι ξένος; Ὁ Δεσπότης σου δὲν ντρέπεται μπροστὰ σ' ὅλη τὴν οἰκουμένη νὰ λέγη «ἐπείνασα καὶ οὐκ ἐδώκατέ μοι φαγεῖν» (Ματθ. 25,42), ὁ ἀνενδεής, ἐκεῖνος ποὺ δὲν ἔχει ἀνάγκη ἀπὸ τίποτε' καὶ ἐγὼ θὰ ντραπῶ καὶ θὰ διστάσω; Σὲ παρακαλῶ, μακριὰ τέτοια πράγματα! Τοῦ διαβόλου εἶναι αὐτὴ ἡ ντροπή!

Δὲν θὰ ντραπῶ, λοιπόν. Ἀντίθετα μάλιστα καὶ μὲ παρρησία θὰ πῶ• δῶστε σ' ὅσους ἔχουν ἀνάγκη, καὶ θὰ φωνάζω πιὸ δυνατὰ ἀπ' αὐτούς. Γιατί ἐὰν κάποιος ἔχη στοιχεῖα καὶ μπορῆ νὰ μᾶς κατηγορήση, ὅτι αὐτὰ τὰ λέμε γιὰ νὰ σᾶς παρασύρουμε πρὸς ὄφελός μας, καὶ μὲ τὸ πρόσχημα τῶν φτωχῶν κερδίζουμε ἐμεῖς, τότε πράγματι αὐτὰ δὲν εἶναι μονάχα ἄξια ντροπῆς, ἀλλὰ καὶ μυρίων κεραυνῶν, καὶ οὔτε ἀξίζει νὰ ζοῦν ὅσοι κάνουν παρόμοια.

Ἀλλὰ ἐάν, μὲ τὴ χάρη τοῦ Θεοῦ, καθόλου δὲν σᾶς ἐνοχλοῦμε γιὰ τὸν ἑαυτό μας καὶ κηρύττουμε ἀδάπανο τὸ εὐαγγέλιο, χωρὶς βέβαια νὰ κοπιάζουμε ὅπως ὁ Παῦλος, ἀρκούμενοι πάντως στὰ δικά μας, μὲ ὅλο τὸ θάρρος θὰ σᾶς λέγω, δῶστε στοὺς φτωχούς• καὶ δὲν θὰ σταματήσω νὰ τὸ λέγω, καὶ ὅταν δὲν δίνετε θὰ σᾶς εἶμαι σκληρὸς κατήγορος!
 Από Αὐτοβιογραφικὲς σελίδες καὶ ἀπάνθισμα κειμένων του
Εἰσαγωγὴ καὶ ἀπόδοση στὴ νεοελληνικὴ Ἀρχιμ. Χρυσόστομος Π. Αβαγιάνος, ἔκδ. Ἀποστολικὴ Διακονία τῆς Ἐκκλησίας τῆς Ἑλλάδος, Ἀθῆναι 1998.