On Giving Thanks to God For All Things (St. Nikodemos the Hagiorite)

 

 By St. Nikodemos the Hagiorite

Job's imitator, divine Chrysostom, always used to say this memorable quote, on every occasion: "Glory be to God for all things. I will not stop repeating it always, for everything that happens to me." The great Gregory Palamas of Thessaloniki used to say the same in every matter, imitating the divine Chrysostom, who added with his eloquent tongue: "So let us give thanks for everything, for whatever happens, this is thanksgiving. For to do this when all is going well is no great thing, because the very nature of things prompts it. But if we give thanks while we are in the depths of misfortune, this is admirable. Indeed, when we give thanks for those things which others blaspheme and are discouraged by, see how much philosophy there is! First, you make God glad. Second, you have shamed the devil. Third, you have proven that what happened was nothing. That is, at the same time that you give thanks, God removes the sorrow and the devil retreats.

Paradise and Hell According to Basil the Great and Gregory the Theologian

Saint Basil the Great refers to the fire of the Three Children in the furnace to interpret Psalm 28/29:7, where it says the fire was split or divided in two. It did not burn for those who were in the midst of the furnace, but for those who were outside the furnace the same flames did burn. In a similar way, says Basil, after the Great Judgment the righteous will experience the fire of the presence of the Lord as light and delight, while sinners will experience the fire of the presence of the Lord as burning and punitive.

 

It Is Better to Shine the Shoes of Hitler in Paradise Than to Go to Hell

Elder Epiphanios Theodoropoulos (+ 1989) often held discussions with Old Calendarist zealots. His efforts in this was not only at the level of writing on the subject, but also through conversations. This is how one such conversation took place:

"You New Calendarists will not go to Paradise," said a fanatical zealot.

"We will go and with confidence," the Elder responded calmly.

"You will not go and I say it with certainty."

A Dialogue About Hell with Saint Gregory the Dialogist

Having witnessed the endless string of disasters that shattered his beloved Italy in the late 6th century AD, Pope Saint Gregory the Great set down in the Dialogues a sequence of tales to help his contemporaries escape from their worldly troubles and contemplate eternal life. The Dialogues are in the form of a dialogue with his deacon Peter. The following is taken from Book 4, where a dialogue takes place on the subject of hell and eternal torment.

PETER. I understand very well what you say, but by this reason I am driven into such straights, that I must stand in fear both of those sins which I know, and also of those which I know not. But because a little before you discoursed of the places of torments: in what part of the world, I beseech you, are we to believe that hell is, whether above the earth or beneath the same?

The Beneficial Tale of Saint Zacharias the Cobbler and John

Sts. Zacharias and John of Constantinople (Feast Day - November 17)

Verses

Zacharias together with John,
Bear the mind of Cherubim with their vigils.

There was a man who was reputable and notable in the things of the world, whose name was John, who turned away from all of life's pleasures, and occupied himself in the monastic and humble life. And devoting himself to the things of God, he was eager to please only God. Abiding always in prayers and supplications, he zealously progressed in greater virtue set before him. Besides all his other virtues, an essential work was for him to go keep vigil all night in the churches of the Lord. For this reason one night he went to Constantinople to the great church of the Word of God, Hagia Sophia. Finding the doors closed, he sat on a bench nearby, since he was tired. While sitting there, he recited with a quiet voice his services.

Is Heaven and Hell Here and Now?

By John P. Bougas

The Gospel reading for the Sunday of the Last Judgment is about hell and eternal life, or more generally about the future life, or better on the future existence and non-existence of humanity.

Often we hear that heaven and hell are here and now and we pay for everything here. This is said by people who do not believe in the existence of a future life. However it is also said by religious people and even Christians, who are carried away by the passion for vengeance against others who did something bad to them and they say, "now they are being punished," considering that since they did wrong to them they are paying for it in this life or in their ignorance believe in a punishing and vengeful God.

What is the River of Fire?

By Fr. Demetrios Bokos

The event of the Final Judgement has been proclaimed from ancient times. When the Prophet Daniel was held captive in Babylon, he had an apocalyptic vision where he saw a throne, on which sat the "Ancient of Days", namely the pre-eternal God, clothed in garments white as snow, while the hairs of His head were pure white like wool. His throne and the wheels of His throne emitted flames of fire. And from the throne flowed a fiery river. An innumerable amount of Angels attended Him and stood around Him. Then the books were opened and judgement took place (Dan. 7:9-10).

A Revelation of the Torments of the Damned to Abba Makarios the Great

This image depicts a beneficial story told by Abba Makarios the Great of Egypt (Jan. 19) and recorded in the Sayings of the Desert Fathers. It is from the Cemetery Church of All Saints in the town of Perama of Rethymnos, the seat of the municipality of Mylopotamos of Crete, by the iconographer Emmanuel Sephakis. It illustrates through graphic imagery the torment of those who lived life selfishly, in turn having no communion with God or man in the next life, as well as the alleviation the damned receive when they are prayed for by the righteous. The tale is told as follows:

Elder Sophrony on the Toll Houses, Hell and Paradise

- The toll houses about which the Fathers write are symbols of a reality. The Fathers understand them as follows: after the fall of man, the soul is nourished by the body, in other words, it finds refreshment in material pleasures. After death, however, these bodily passions that used to divert the soul no longer exist, because the soul has left the body, and they choke and stifle the soul. These are the toll houses and hell. Abba Dorotheos says that hell is for someone to be shut up for three days in a room without food, sleep or prayer. Then he can understand what hell is.

How to Talk to Children about Demons, Hell and Death

By Nun Magdalene

It is a serious educational mistake to talk to young children in detail about demons, because if a child hears once how they are, it is impossible to not stop imagining them.

Adults may be warned of the danger they risk by allowing images of demons invade their minds, but a young child, even if they are warned, can't easily stop thinking about something that torments them, and this can result in a dangerous state of mind or, at least, to suffer from nightmares. When young children ask about the devil or the existence of evil spirits, it is preferable not to make a thorough analysis, but to say that you should not give them more attention than they have in dreams or something similar. Generally we should turn the minds of children to Christ, the saints and the angels.

A Reflection on Hell (F. Dostoevsky)

By Fyodor Dostoevsky

Fathers and teachers, I ponder, "What is hell?" I maintain that it is the suffering of being unable to love. Once in infinite existence, immeasurable in time and space, a spiritual creature was given on his coming to earth the power of saying, "I am and I love." Once, only once, there was given him a moment of active lifting love, and for that was earthly life given him, and with it times and seasons. And that happy creature rejected the priceless gift, prized it and loved it not, scorned it and remained callous. Such a one, having left the earth, sees Abraham's bosom and talks with Abraham as we are told in the parable of the rich man and Lazarus, and beholds heaven and can go up to the Lord. But that is just his torment, to rise up to the Lord without ever having loved, to be brought close to those who have loved when he has despised their love. For he sees clearly and says to himself, "Now I have understanding, and though I now thirst to love, there will be nothing great, no sacrifice in my love, for my earthly life is over, and Abraham will not come even with a drop of living water (that is the gift of earthly active life) to cool the fiery thirst of spiritual love which burns in me now, though I despised it on earth; there is no more life for me and will be no more time! Even though I would gladly give my life for others, it can never be, for that life is passed which can be sacrificed for love, and now there is a gulf fixed between that life and this existence."

What the Fiery Furnace of Babylon Foreshadowed

Within historical context, St. John Chrysostom explains that the Three Holy Children, who refused to worship the pagan idol in Babylon, were delivered from the burning fiery furnace of King Nebuchadnezzar for the following reason:

"For fire is accounted by the Persians to be a god.... God, therefore, being desirous to pull up by the roots the material of impiety, permitted the punishment to take this form, in order that: He might give the victory to his servants before the eyes of all these fire-worshipers; and, that He might persuade them by the plain fact that the gods of the nations are in dread not of God only, but even of the servants of God. Consider how the crown of victory was woven by the adversaries, and the enemies themselves were made witnesses of this trophy." ("On the Statues", Homily 4)

How Did St. John Chrysostom Understand the "Wrath of God" and "Divine Punishment"?

By John Sanidopoulos

St. John Chrysostom probably more than any other Father of the Church speaks about the "wrath of God" and "divine punishment". Most who read these passages often do so through the lenses of western medieval or reformation theology, even many Orthodox Christians, who are unable to read the depths of the spirit behind the letter. The reason for this is because, as St. Symeon the New Theologian explains, when speaking about matters of divine judgement, "the interpretation is difficult because it is not about things which are present and visible, but about future and invisible matters. There is therefore great need of prayer, of much ascetic effort, of much purity of the nous, both in us who speak and in those who listen, in order for the first to be able to know and speak well and for the others to listen with understanding to what is said." Therefore, those of a carnal, simplistic and overly literal understanding of these passages fail to understand the depth of divine judgement, inflicting upon the nature of God human-like passions, which is exactly what the ancient pagans did with their gods in order to make the impassioned state not only a natural state, but to deify it as well.

Abba Isaac the Syrian, the "Unjustly Accused" Saint (7 of 7)

Fr. John Photopoulos

...continued from part six.

(The letter below refers to only two volumes of the works of Pseudo-Isaac that were published by the Monastery, as the third had not yet been published. Instead of a response to this letter, the third volume was published.)

March 15, 2006

To the Abbot of the Sacred Monastery of the Prophet Elias in Thera,

the Reverend Archimandrite Damaskinos Gavalas

I do not know you, but I take courage to bother you about a serious issue, in my opinion. This is in regards to the publication by your Monastery of The Ascetic Discourses of Saint Isaac the Syrian vols. B1 (Discourse 1 - 3) and B3 (Discourse 12 - 41), which were translated by Nestor Kavvadas.

Abba Isaac the Syrian, the "Unjustly Accused" Saint (6 of 7)

...continued from part five.

6. Abba Isaac on Eternal Life and Eternal Hell

All of the above cacodoxies of the Pseudo-Isaac writings have nothing to do with Abba Isaac and his all around Orthodox teachings.

A) Regarding the Nestorian cacodoxies, despite the best efforts of Alfeyev and those with him, they cannot prove that such delusions exist in the authentic works of the Saint.

B) Regarding the apokatastasis of all, the following must be said:

Abba Isaac the Syrian, the "Unjustly Accused" Saint (5 of 7)

Metropolitan Kallistos Ware

...continued from part four.

5. The Appalling Intervention of Bishop Kallistos Ware

In 1998 Bishop Kallistos Ware of Diokleia wrote an article for the journal Theology Digest (1998) titled: "Dare We Hope for the Salvation of All?" He concludes by writing: "Our faith in God’s love makes us dare to hope that all will be saved."

With this article the foundation of Orthodox Eschatology is debated, in fact the very words of Christ. Bishop Kallistos asks if an eternal hell will exist. He places the reader before the philosophical dilemma: ultimate dualism or ultimate restoration and reconciliation. Here's his reasoning:

Abba Isaac the Syrian, the "Unjustly Accused" Saint (4 of 7)

Dr. Sebastian Brock

...continued from part three.

4. The Blasphemy of Pseudo-Isaac

After the pseudo-revelation that Saint Isaac was Nestorian, another "revelation" followed. A certain Dr. Sebastian Brock discovered in an Oxford library in 1983 a manuscript in the Syriac language of the tenth or eleventh century that contained a collection of ascetic discourses (41 Chapters) that bore the name of Isaac the Syrian. Most of the Discourses were published by Brock in an English translation in 1995.

Holy Prophet Ezekiel as a Model for our Lives

Holy Prophet Ezekiel (Feast Day - July 23)

By Protopresbyter Fr. George Papavarnavas

The Prophet Ezekiel belongs to the chorus of the four major Prophets. The other three Prophets are Isaiah, Jeremiah and Daniel. He was born in 620 B.C. and his father was a priest. According to others he also was a priest. He was taken captive to Babylon after the first seizure of Jerusalem in 598 B.C. The same year, while in exile, he was called to the prophetic office, and he was active among his exiled compatriots. His name means: "God is strong" or "He who is strengthened by God".

Abba Sisoes on the Remembrance of Hell

St. Sisoes the Great (Feast Day - July 6)

Three old men came to see Abba Sisoes, having heard about him. The first said to him, 'Father, how shall I save myself from the river of fire?' He did not answer him. The second said to him, 'Father, how can I be saved from the gnashing of teeth and the worm which dieth not?' The third said, 'Father, what shall I do, for the remembrance of the outer darkness is killing me?' By way of reply the old man said to them, 'For my part, I do not keep in mind the remembrance of any of these things, for God is compassionate and I hope that he will show me his mercy.' Hearing this, the old men went back offended. But the old man, not wishing to let them go away hurt, said to them, 'Blessed are you, my brothers; truly I envy you. The first speaks of the river of fire, the second of hell and the third of darkness. Now if your spirit is filled with such remembrances, it is impossible for you to sin. What shall I do, then? I who am hard of heart and to whom it has not been granted so much as to know whether there is a punishment for men; no doubt it is because of this that I am sinning all the time.' They prostrated themselves before him and said, 'Now we have seen exactly that of which we have heard tell.'

Saint John of Damascus on Hell

Below are some very characteristic and very important passages from Saint John of Damascus on the subject of Hell:

1. Hell is not God's punishment, but it is a state of receptivity. It appears that Hell and Paradise as "places" do not exist. There is only God, who is present in all places (omnipresent).

"Και τούτο δε ειδέναι δει, ότι ο Θεός ού κολάζει τινά εν τω μέλλοντι, αλλ' έκαστος εαυτόν δεκτικόν ποιεί της μετοχής του Θεού. Έστι μεν η μεν μετοχή του Θεού τρυφή, η δε αμεθεξία αυτού κόλασις." ("Κατά Μανιχαίων", PG 94:1545D-1548A)

"And so we know, that God does not punish anyone in the future, but everyone makes themselves receptive to share in God. And so to share in God is a delight, while not sharing in Him is hell." ("Against the Manicheans", PG 94:1545D-1548A)

2. Hell exists not because the damned are overdue, but because the damned remain unchangeable in their desire for sin. And again we see that only the omnipresent God will exist in the future age because, as he says, the object desired by sinners will not exist. What will exist is only what will be desired by the righteous, that is, God.

"... μετά το θάνατο, δεν υπάρχει τροπή μήτε μετάνοια, όχι επειδή ο Θεός δεν δέχεται μετάνοια - ο Ίδιος δεν μπορεί να αρνηθεί τον εαυτό Του ούτε χάνει τη σπλαχνικότητα -, αλλά η ψυχή δεν αλλάζει πια [...] οι άνθρωποι μετά το θάνατο έχουν το άτρεπτο, ώστε από το ένα μέρος οι δίκαιοι ποθώντας το Θεό και έχοντας αυτόν πάντοτε να ευφραίνονται, ενώ οι αμαρτωλοί ποθώντας την αμαρτία και μην έχοντας το υλικό της αμαρτίας ... να κολάζονται χωρίς να έχουν καμιά παρηγοριά. Γιατί τι είναι κόλαση παρά η στέρηση εκείνου που σφοδρά επιθυμεί κανείς; Κατά την αναλογία λοιπόν του πόθου, όσοι ποθούν το Θεό ευφραίνονται και όσοι ποθούν την αμαρτία κολάζονται" ("Κατά Μανιχαίων", PG 94:1573ΑΒ. Μετάφραση: Ν. Ματσούκα, Πουρναράς, Θεσσαλονίκη 1988, σελ. 145.147).

"... after death, there is no means for repentance, not because God does not accept repentance - He cannot deny Himself nor lose His compassion - but the soul does not change anymore ... people after death are unchangeable, so that on the one hand the righteous desire God and always have Him to rejoice in, while sinners desire sin though they do not have the material means to sin ... they are punished without any consolation. For what is hell but the deprivation of that which is exceedingly desired by someone? Therefore, according to the analogy of desire, whoever desires God rejoices and whoever desires sin is punished." ("Against the Manicheans", PG 94:1573ΑΒ)

Here we observe the following: since God accepts repentance, this means that there are those who are damned, because the sinner does not express repentance. Hence, their soul freely and definitively chooses sin.

Illustrative of the above is the following:

"Ο Θεός και τω διαβόλω αεί παρέχει τα αγαθά, αλλ' εκείνος ου θέλει λαβείν." ("Κατά Μανιχαίων", PG 94:1569Β)

"God forever supplies good things even to the devil, but he does not want to receive it." ("Against the Manicheans", PG 94:1569Β)

The above passage continues:

"Ο Θεός και στο Διάβολο διαρκώς χορηγεί τα αγαθά, αλλά εκείνος δεν θέλει να τα πάρει. Και στην αιωνιότητα ό Θεός παρέχει σ' όλους τα αγαθά γιατί είναι πηγή των αγαθών αναβλύζοντας σ' όλους την αγαθότητα, ενώ ο καθένας καταπώς έκανε δεκτικό τον εαυτό του, μετέχει στο αγαθό [...] εκείνοι που δεν έχουν τις συνηθισμένες ηδονές υποφέρουν αθεράπευτα, χωρίς ο Θεός να έχει κάνει κόλαση, αλλά εμείς επειδή στρώσαμε την κόλαση για τους εαυτούς μας, και άλλωστε μήτε το θάνατο τον έκανε ο Θεός, αλλά εμείς οι ίδιοι τον προξενήσαμε για μας" (Μετάφραση: Ν. Ματσούκα, Πουρναράς, Θεσσαλονίκη 1988, σελ. 139.141).

"God forever supplies good things even to the devil, but he does not want to receive it. And in eternity God supplies good things to all because He is the source of good things gushing forth goodness to all, while everyone makes themselves receptive, and they share in the good ... those who do not have habitual pleasures suffer without being healed, without God making hell, but because we lay out hell for ourselves, and indeed nor did God make death, but we ourselves caused this for us."

So we can say the exact Orthodox doctrine teaches that:

In the Eternal Kingdom there are not separate places, but states of sharing in and being receptive to God. Thus Hell and Paradise are names of states experienced and not "places".

In the Eternal Kingdom only God exists, whose light some will experience as Paradise and others as Hell.

Hell and Paradise will be experienced not because God condemns or rewards people, but because they freely chose the state they will be in. Indeed, proof of Hell being a free choice is that God accepts repentance, but there is no expression of repentance for God to accept them because the person "does not want it".

Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.