Paschal Epistle 2012 TOC-R

His Holiness RAPHAEL ARCHBISHOP OF MOSCOW,
METROPOLITAN OF ALL-RUSSIA

 To Archpastors, pastors, monks and nuns and all faithful children of the True Orthodox Church

 "This is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, whom thou hast sent Jesus Christ" (John 17: 3)

 My Beloved!

 So came the spring days, when we greet each other again vseradostnym apostolic greeting: Christ is Risen! The Resurrection of Christ shone once, never leave any true believer, this incomparable Easter joy. And he will always bear witness to the joy of all - near and far, as exemplified by the St. Seraphim of Sarov, who welcomed all who came to him saying: "Christ is risen, my joy!". But that gives us this good news of the resurrection of Christ? The Holy Apostle Paul answers this question: "For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive, each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then Christ's at His coming" (1Kor.15 :22-23). The first man created by God - Adam, at the instigation of the devil breaking the commandment of God, lost his perfect knowledge of God, and therefore was deprived of eternal life. But, have appeared to the world of the only begotten Son of God, the devil to destroy it and return the believers hope for perfect knowledge of God and to her and to eternal life, which is only possible with God. This hope announced to the apostles of Christ, and this hope in all the centuries of its history of being preached to the Holy Church.

 Now we - successors of this ministry - children of the True Orthodox Church will witness the truth of our faith in the Resurrection of Christ and our hope for the future resurrection of Christ. Yes, we will not be in vain the grace of the Holy Spirit, sent by our Lord Jesus Christ from the Father to His disciples, but - yes, it bears fruit in good works, with their example of the saints - ancient and recent. By the grace of God, our Church, using the world is his saving ministry in our beloved homeland and far beyond. This year, as you know, the Church is our last farewell to a faithful servant of Metropolitan Vladimir and Orekhovo-Zuyevo Sergius, whom the Lord called to Himself February 3 (January 21 old style). Lord give rest to the faithful servant of his mansions of the righteous in the hope of resurrection and eternal life! And we all, no matter what rank you were not designed to serve our Lord, we will continue to carry the cross of his ministry, always rejoicing in the Risen Christ! The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God the Father and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen (2Kor.13: 13)

 † RAFAIL the grace of God -
Archbishop of Moscow,

METROPOLITAN OF RUSSIA
Primate True Orthodox Church
Pascha 2012
City of Moscow

Paschal Epistle -- 2012 TOC-AB

As we contemplate once again the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ, we must not loose sight of the Wisdom that the Church has provided us with in teaching us about the meaning of these events. It is sometimes missed by the theologians of the modern era that, when Our Lord was given a name in the apparition of an Angel to St. Joseph, the sacred name of Jesus was not a name that was new to the world of the Israelite and Jewish peoples at that time. Since the use of English bibles in the New World and the British Isles make no mention of the name of Jesus in the Old Testament, many peoples in these lands are given to interpret that an original name has been provided by the Angel in order to emphasize the uniqueness of the Divine Person of Our Lord made incarnate. However, in our Orthodox Faith, we are long used to the fact from our knowledge of the Septuagint that the name of the sixth Book of the Old Testament is the Book

of Jesus, Son of Nun. It is significant then that we reflect on the message conveyed to us by St. Joseph's dream, for there is no evidence given, especially in the genealogies of the Old and New Testaments that, following the customs of the people of Juda and the House of David, any relative of this name in the families of Joseph and Mary lived in proximate times to the birth of Our Lord.

Most people of English origin would of course have heard the name of the sixth book of the bible as the Book of Joshua, but they would not be inclined to understand that the Greek language would transliterate the original Hebrew name of Yehoshua or Joshua (which in Hebrew means "Yahweh saves") with the Greek (and Latin) form of the name "Jesus." Thus, it would be ordinary to understand for the peoples in our lands to recognize that Joshua of the Old Testament was a military warrior who succeeded in bringing his people, the Israelites, out of their long course of wandering in the wilderness into the promised land of Israel. As Orthodox Christians, we should be able to understand that Jesus the son of Nun was commissioned by Moses specifically to end this wandering and thus to realize the fulfillment of the promise of the Covenant that was brought to completion by restoring the Israelite people to the land promised to their forefathers by Almighty God, and that thus Joshua would wage battle on the walls of Jericho to begin this earthly victory for his people that would lead then to the time of Solomon and David in establishing the Kingdom of Israel on the Earth. Also, precisely because we are Orthodox Christians, we should quickly comprehend the parallel meanings in the New Testament of the angelic mention of this name to St. Joseph, especially when the Angel adds: "For He shall save His people from their sins." Thus, for us, we can immediately understand that Our Lord Jesus Christ is commissioned by His Heavenly Father, not to be an earthly warrior, but rather, to begin the spiritual warfare that will end the spiritual wanderings of the human race and bring His people into the land of the New Israel which is the Kingdom of Heaven.

It is precisely that spiritual warfare that we observe in these holy days leading up to and culminating in the Most Holy Day of Pascha. On Great Friday, we hear the words of Our Lord with his last breadths on the Cross, saying, "It is completed. Father, into Thy hands I commend My Spirit," and thus we learn that the Law and the warfare of the Old Testament is completed, and that now we have come to the time where we must wage the spiritual warfare of the New Testament. In this spiritual warfare, the first victory we encounter after the sad day of Great and Holy Saturday, is the Great and Awesome Resurrection of Our Lord from the dead on Pascha Sunday. It is this victory that we celebrate together on this Holy Day, and it must begin for us the struggle of warfare that allows us to continue the fight to bring Our Lord's people, the Orthodox Church, to the Heavenly Jerusalem of the New Israel. Just as Jesus the son of Nun had to battle in earthly warfare the assaults of the Canaanite peoples, so we today must battle in a spiritual way the assaults of the demons on the Orthodox Church. 

This includes not only the personal assaults that the demons make on each one of us in our day to day lives, but also the assaults of those who would want to destroy Orthodoxy among the Orthodox people. We experience today many attempts, even by those who would call themselves theologians, to change the meaning that the Church has long given to its understanding of Orthodoxy, and thus to reduce it in some way to be equivalent to the understandings of Christianity that are held by those among the hetorodox, or even worse, to render Orthodoxy as equal in the Sight of Almighty God to the many other religions of the Earth, be they labeled by their followers as Christian, Jewish, Islamic, or pagan. Although the motives of Masonry have long sought to accomplish this, it is sad to see that, even among those who would in their minds express the wish to remain numbered among the Orthodox, there would be some that would actually enroll their efforts to convince the Orthodox peoples of the Earth that they should abandon the most basic beliefs of Our Orthodox Faith. In my own life I have encountered Christian Clergymen, some of them of high reputation in the world, seeking to encourage the abandonment of such basic beliefs that we hold in the Orthodox Faith, such as the belief in the existence of angels, or the miracles of the New Testament, or even, astonishingly, the doctrine of the Resurrection or of the Holy Trinity. We must battle today these assaults on the very substance of our Orthodox Faith, and we begin this battle today when we respond to each other with the greeting of "Christ is Risen." Yea, He is Risen indeed.

Thus to all our people, desiring to assist them in the preserving of Holy Orthodoxy, I greet them once again with the meaning of the struggle of spiritual battle: "Christ is Risen. He is truly Risen."

           Unworthy Hierarch,

(His Beatitude, Metropolitan) +John

           First Hierarch of the Holy Synod

Autonomous Orthodox Metropolia of

      North and South America and

               the British Isles

Milan Synod is Nonexistant

"It now appears that we find ourselves in a situation that has recently developed, namely, that there is now a lack of Episcopal oversight for the native peoples of Western Europe within the Traditional Orthodox Christian Church.   Because our Holy Synod was canonically granted autonomy in 2011 over portions of Western Europe, we cannot now allow the traditional Orthodox Christians of the remaining portions of Western Europe to find themselves without episcopal protection.  It is incumbent upon us therefore who derive our canonicity from the Tomos of Autonomy for Western Europe that was granted in 1984 by His Beatitude, the late Archbishop Auxentios of Athens, to extend the protection of our Holy Synod to the native population of traditional Orthodox Clergy and laity of Western Europe that were formerly protected by our Mother Synod in Milan and Aquileia.  We therefore call upon all the Clergy and laity of Western Europe who have suddenly found themselves to be without episcopal protection to contact Our Holy Synod to avail themselves of a proper episcopal protection within the communion of the True Orthodox Churches associated with our Holy Synod." 

His Beatitude +JOHN, Metropolitan of New York, Primate of the True Orthodox Metropolia of North and South America and the British Isles

The Orthodox See of Milan and all-Western Europe has been abandoned by the stepping down of +Evloghios of Milan from his role as Metropolitan of Milan & Aquilia and Primate of the Milan Synod. This action is seen to hasten their acceptance under the omophorion of the Moscow Patriarch.

“The Milan Synod” officially the Autonomous Metropolia of Western Europe had been established in 1984 as a traditional Orthodox ecclesiastical body by the late Archbishop Auxentius of Athens on behalf of the Holy Synod of the Old Calendar Orthodox Church of Greece in opposition to the various errors and innovations of the modernizing (Orthodox) Church as well to resist the grave heresy of ecumenism. But its Western European leadership has often succumbed to the temptation of being part of the status quo, being part of the majority at the expense of losing Her Genuine Faith.  Its first primate was Metropolitan Gabriel of Lisbon and all his contemporaneous hierarchs in Portugal left this Old Calendar Western European witness to successfully come under the modernist Orthodox Church of Poland.  Archbishop Evloghios of Milan was then elected as the synod’s second primate by the remaining Old Calendar hierarchs of the Autonomous Metropolia of Western Europe.  But soon +Evloghios would come under the influence of others so that for many years the Milan Synod appeared to be outside its vocation of being a witness of traditional Orthodoxy in Western Europe.  Their traditional stance was strengthened in 1997 when the Orthodox Synod in Milan accepted into its ranks Archbishop John of New York & New Jersey and Archbishop Hilarion of Austin & all-Texas. But in 2011, when the American and British jurisdiction of the Milan Synod were given its own rights to administrate themselves and His Eminence Archbishop of New York become His Beatitude Metropolitan John of NY and primate of the True Orthodox Metropolia of North and South America & the British Isles one could observe the subsequent rapid decline of the Milan Synod.

Under Metropolitan John’s leadership the True Orthodox Metropolia of North and South America & the British Isles has entered into ecclesiastical communion with like-minded Traditional Orthodox Churches in Russia, Greece, Bulgaria and Switzerland. In light of the current vacancy not only in the See of Milan but throughout Western Europe Metropolitan John has opened his arms in invitation to all traditional and right-believing Orthodox once under the former Milan Synod to find ecclesiastical protection in the True Orthodox Metropolia of North and South America & the British Isles. Let us pray for our brethren this Pascha throughout all of Europe.

Source:

Orthodox Metropolia [ read ]

News-NFTU article  [ read ]

News-NFTU article  [ read ]
Ortodossia in Occidente  [ read ] On this, the last remaining web presence of the former Milan Synod, you will see Metropolitan Evloghios of Milan celebrating Palm Sunday liturgically vested simply as a priest not as a bishop; as depicted above.

History of True Orthodoxy in the 20th/21st Century

Greece

In 1924, the Bishops of the Church of Greece implemented the calendar change discussed at the pan-Orthodox congress. In protest, the former Primate of the Church of Greece, Germanos of Demetrias, retired in protest. Lay groups and brotherhoods formed to keep the use of the Orthodox calendar alive, despite state persecution (Greece was an Orthodox country, and the Church enjoyed certain privileges from the state) and finally, in 1935, three Bishops, certain that waiting for a reversal of the calendar change was irresponsible to their flocks, immediately declared their separation from the official Church and declared that the calendar change was a schismatic act.

The Florinite/Matthewite Schism. By the 1940′s, two parties had formed within the Church of Greece: the Florinites (under Metropolitan Chrysostom of Florina) and the Matthewites (under Bp Matthew of Bresthena). The issue had been the former’s vacillation on whether the mysteries of the State Church were still grace-filled. Both sides had their respective justifications for their positions, and both were violently persecuted by the state. In actual fact, the Matthewites were holding the Church’s position consistently. That they labelled the Florinites as a whole as opportunists who were trying to ingratiate themselves with the state was unfortunate, and not altogether true for the followers of Metropolitan Chrysostom, and so the parties became psychologically distinct.

In the end, a real physical division was formed, whereas a real doctrinal division ended: Bishop Matthew singlehandedly consecrated another Bishop, and together they made more new Bishops. After the death of Bishop Matthew, however, Chrysostom of Florina reaffirmed the decision of 1935 declaring the New Calendar State Church as schismatic. (The reasons for this are unclear, and speculations give various answers.) In any case, the Matthewites proceeded to elect Archbishop Agathagelos to the rank of Primate of Athens in 1958.

After the death of Metropolitan Chrysostom, the Florinites had no Bishops, and it is said that Metropolitan Chrysostom advised his flock to go under the protection of the Matthewite Bishops. Fearing the repercussions, however, the Florinites opted to seek a new hierarchy and appealed to Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia (ROCOR) to help them.

In 1960, Archimandrite Akakios (Pappas) was made a Bishop for these communities without the official blessing of the ROCOR by Archbishop Leonty of Chile and Bp Theophilos Ionescu, a Romanian New Calendar Bishop under the ROCOR. Later Bp Akakios and Bp Theophilos made 5 more Bishops, and they proceeded to elect Auxentios of Patras to be their new leader as Archbishop of Athens. The ROCOR under Metropolitan Philaret eventually recognized the validity of the secret consecrations in 1969.

Unfortunately, the splits between the True Orthodox continued to the present day. In disobedience to the blessed Archbishop Auxentios of Athens (+1994), new factions continued to form and continues to the present day. Sadly, the Matthewites also continued to split into different groups. All the groups continued to act in defiance of the canons, leaving the True Orthodox people divided and confused.

A New Change

In 2008, Metropolitan Anghelos of Avlonos headed an initiative to stop factionalism by forming the True Orthodox Synod of the Patristic Calendar [TOC-PC], which aims to end factionalism by calling for a resolution of the remaining True Orthodox factions to reunite in council and finally make a unified decision towards resolving the divisions. Until that day comes, however, the TOC-PC continues to reach out to provide pastoral care to the True Orthodox and preach the Gospel of Christ to all nations.

Russia

With the Declaration of Metropolitan Sergius in 1927 attempting to submit the Church to the godless authorities, Orthodox Bishops in Russia began to apply Ukaz 362 of Patriarch St Tikhon and became administratively independent until such time as they could operate freely.

Ukaz 362 was written to preserve the Orthodox Church in times of persecution so that the Churches could survive. It gives the Bishops of the Russian Church, temporarily, the right to self-govern apart from each other until such time as they can organize. It is a masterpiece of self-preservation in a time where the rules of canonical order could not be followed to the letter due to the difficulty of travel, etc.

The number of Catacomb Churches in Russia is to date fairly large and to this day, no one knows where all of the catacomb Churches are. The history of the different catacomb Episcopates since 1927 is still not completely documented. There are also questions as to the legitimacy of certain catacomb Bishops. Sadly, these questions will have to be determined by a future all-Russian Council.

The Russian Church Today

Today the situation is considerably clearer than it was 20 years ago; many of the groups that exist today have either been merged into other jurisdictions or have formed small, independent groups, administratively separate from the rest of the Church. Much of their current history was tied together with ROCOR, as many of the original Catacomb Bishops had been killed during state persecutions or died in hiding. But ROCOR did not make the situation better: in some cases they denied the truth of Holy Orders in the Catacomb Churches that survived during the Soviet period and caused confusion. Finally, in 2007, much of ROCOR joined with the Soviet Moscow Patriarchate, leaving scattered ROCOR communities under other Bishops.

In 1998, groups of isolated and Catacomb Communities united in Council to become the True Orthodox Church of Russia [TOC-R], headed by Metropolitan Raphael (Prokofiev) of Moscow. Like their sister Church in Greece, they reach out to those in other True Orthodox communities and former ROCOR parishes to unite the Church and provide a unified witness to Christ against the Soviet Moscow Patriarchate.

In The Americas and Western Europe.

Being a missionary-minded leader, the blessed Archbishop Auxentius of Athens (+1994) (with the approval of the TOC of Greece synod) created an ecclesiastical body of Western European bishops for all Western Europe on September 14, 1984 old style; at first headquartered in Portugal later in Milan, Italy. Until very recently, the largest True Orthodox group specifically commissioned for Western Europe was the Autonomous Metropolia of Western Europe and the Americas headed by Metropolitan Evloghios of Milan (often called the “Milan Synod”), which was not only in communion with the True Orthodox Church of the Patristic Calendar, but also the Mother Synod of the North American Metropolia.

In February 2011, with the approval of the entire Milan Synod, Metropolitan Evloghios of Milan elevated its Archbishop of New York to be His Beatitude Metropolitan John of New York and president of the new autonomous synod known as The True Orthodox Metropolia of North and South America and the British Isles [TOC-ABI)

Due to confusion which reigned among the subordinates of Metropolitan Evloghios of Milan over the years, a number of parishes and dioceses transferred their allegiance. After Metropolitan Evloghios and Archbishop Abundius of Lecco declared their intentions to join the Soviet Moscow Patriarchate, communion was broken with the sister Churches throughout the world.

Therefore, Western Europe is currently (until the election of a new Primate for Milan and Italy) administered by two jurisdictions: the American Metropolia (through the Deanery of the British Isles) and the Church of Greece (through communion with the Dioceses of Arles and Laussanne).

Latin America

Currently Latin America is administered by three jurisdictions of the True Orthodox Church, who, while administratively separate, are in full communion. There are approximately 25 open parishes of the True Orthodox in Latin America and approximately 30 who meet privately due to state support of the Roman Catholic Church, and their “sister Church”, World Orthodoxy, which generally agrees not to missionize the largely Roman Catholic populace.

The largest organization of parishes is under two Bishops of the True Orthodox Church of Greece. There are also a Metropolitan and three ruling Bishops of the True Orthodox Church of Russia in Latin America. The Metropolia of the Americas & British Isles  also has a vicar Bishop assigned to Latin America. The current highest-ranking Hierarch is Metropolitan Chrysostomos of Ecuador, ruling with jurisdiction granted over all of Latin America. The senior-ranking Hierarch is Metropolitan Theodosios of Santiago and Chile of the True Orthodox Church of Russia. And His Grace Bishop Christodoulos of Miami and Cuba (American Church) is assigned as a Synodal representative for Latin America and currently has a mission in Miami and Cuba, as well as missions forming in other regions.

True Orthodox Christians Elsewhere

Bulgaria.

It is with great joy that the Holy Synod of the True Orthodox Church of Russia has announced the election of Archbishop Daniel (Mogutnov) of Plovdiv to the headship of the True Orthodox Church of Bulgaria by decision of the Synod meeting of February 7/20, 2012. Vladika Daniel’s see will be in Plovdiv, the second largest city in Bulgaria. His leadership now adds yet more administrative protection for True Orthodox Christians throughout the world.

Abkhazia.

Abkhazia currently has one Bishop who is part of the True Orthodox Church of Greece of the Patristic Calendar, H.E., Metropolitan of Abhazia and Sconditsky IOTAM.

Belarus.

Belarus currently has one Bishop who is part of the True Orthodox Church of Russia, H.E., Metropolitan EPIPHANY of Minsk and Byelorussia.

Georgia.

Georgia currently has one Bishop who is part of the Synod of the True Orthodox Church of Greece of the Patristic Calendar, H.E., Archibishop CHRISTAFOR of Mshieta Tbilisi and Vseia-Hartlinsky.

Serbia.

Serbia has two parishes with priests currently under the omophor of H.B, Metropolitan JOHN of New York, True Orthodox Metropolia of North and South America and the British Isles.

Ukraine.

Ukraine has seven Bishops who are part of the True Orthodox Church of Russia, headed by H.E, Metropolitan ANDREI of Kyiv and all Ukraine.

..........................................................................

Source: gleaned and compiled from THE TRUE ORTHODOX CHURCH website.

A Meditation: Lenten Preparation

Commemoration:

February 6, 2012 (February 19 ns)

Eastern Calendar/Sunday of the Last Judgment (meat-free), Tone three

Western Calendar/Sexagesima Sunday

St. Vedast, bishop of Arras (540). St. Amand, apostle of Maastricht (675) (Neth.). St. Photius, patriarch of Constantinople (891). [Metropolia Calendar]

St. Bucolus, bishop of Smyrna (ca. 100). New Hieromartyrs Demetrius priest and Martyr Anatolius (1921). New Hieromartyr Basil priest (1930). Sts. Barsanuphius the Great and John the Prophet, monks of Palestine (6th c.). Virgin-martyr Dorothea, and with her Martyrs Christina and Callista, sisters, and Theophilus, at Caesarea in Cappadocia (288-300). Martyr Julian of Emesa (312). Virgin-martyr Fausta, and with her Martyrs Evilasius and Maximus, at Cyzicus (ca. 305-311). Virgin-martyrs Martha and Mary, and their brother Martyr Lycarion, in Egypt. St. Dorothea, schemanun of Kashin (1629). St. Mael, bishop of Ardagh, disciple of St. Patrick (488) (Celtic & British). Martyrs Faustus, Basil and Silvanus of Darion in Constantinople (Greek). St. John of Thebes, monk (Greek). St. James, ascetic of Syria (ca. 460). St. Arsen of Iqalto, Georgia (1127). New Hieromartyr Priest Basil Nadezhnin of Moscow, (1937)

Holy Rule of St Benedict

Chapter 7 Of Humility (cont’d)

The ninth degree of humility is, when a monk withholdeth his tongue from speaking, and keeping silence doth not speak until he is asked; for the Scripture showeth that "in a multitude of words there shall not want sin" (Prov 10:19); and that "a man full of tongue is not established in the earth" (Ps 139[140]:12).

Meat-fare Sunday by Saint Theophan the Recluse

[I Cor. 8:8–9:2; Matt. 25:31–46]

The great judgement! The judge cometh in the clouds, surrounded by a countless multitude of bodiless heavenly powers. Trumpets sound over all the ends of the earth and raise up the dead. The risen regiments pour into the determined place, to the throne of the Judge, having already a foreboding of what verdict will sound in their ears, for everyone’s deeds will be written on the brow of their nature, and their very appearance will correspond to their deeds and morals. The division of those on His right hand and those on His left will be accomplished in and of itself.

At last all has been determined. Deep silence falls. In another instant, the decisive verdict of the Judge is heard: to some, “Come,” to the others, “depart.” “Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us! May Thy mercy, O Lord, be on us!” they shall say, but then it will already be too late to plead. We need to take the trouble now to wash away the unfavourable marks written upon our nature. Then, at the judgment, we would be ready to pour out rivers of tears in order to wash ourselves; but this would do no good. Let us weep now, if not rivers of tears, then at least streams; if not streams, then at least drops. If we cannot find even this much, then let us become contrite in heart, and confess our sins to the Lord, begging Him to forgive them, and promising not to offend Him any more through violation of His commandments. Then, let us be zealous to faithfully fulfil this promise.

New Bishop for the Church of TOC of the Americas & British Isles

Bp Fanourius (front row) Metropolitan John (back, center)
newly elevated Bishop Christodoulos  (to the right of Metropolitan)

On Sunday, January 30 (February 12 ns), the Reverend Archimandrite Michael (Acosta), bishop-elect, was consecrated His Grace Bishop CHRISTODOULOS of Miami and Cuba by His Beatitude Metropolitan JOHN of New York and His Grace Bishop FANOURIUS of Lincoln at the Holy Archangels Parish of Lincoln, NE, with the assent of His Eminence Archbishop HILARION of Texas, who could not attend.

The new Bishop will be the Synod's representative for Latin American Parishes.

The Lincoln Parish was blessed with the consecration during a period of great change in the Metropolia, as it adapts to its current role of filling the void left by attempted absorption and collapse of the Milan Synod.

Bp CHRISTODOULOS is assigned as a Synodal representative for Latin America and currently has a mission in Miami and Cuba, as well as missions forming in other regions.

Many Years! Ad Multos Annos! ¡Muchos Años!

Source

Practice of the Virtues

On the Practice of the Virtues, Contemplation and the Priesthood

Saint Theognostos

 From Philokalia, Vol. 2.

Do not try to embark on the higher forms of contemplation before you have achieved complete dispassion, and do not pursue what lies as yet beyond your reach. If your wish is to become a theologian and a contemplative, ascend by the path of ascetic practice and through self-purification acquire what is pure. Do not pursue theology beyond the limits of your present state of development: it is wrong for us who are still drinking the milk of the virtues to attempt to soar to the heights of theology, and if we do so we will flounder like fledglings, however great the longing roused within us by the honey of spiritual knowledge. But, once purified by self-restraint and tears, we will be lifted up from the earth like Elijah or Habakkuk (cf. 2 Kgs. 2:11; Bel and Dr., verses 36-39), anticipating the moment when we will be caught up into the clouds (cf. 1 Thess. 4:17); and transported beyond the world of the senses by undistracted prayer, pure and contemplative, we may then in our search for God touch the fringe of theology.

 If you wish to be granted a mental vision of the divine you must first embrace a peaceful and quiet way of life, and devote your efforts to acquiring a knowledge of both yourself and God. If you do this and achieve a pure state untroubled by any passion, there, is nothing to prevent your intellect from perceiving, as it were in a light breeze (cf. 1 Kgs. 19:12 LXX), Him who is invisible to all; and He will bring you good tidings of salvation through a yet clearer knowledge of Himself.