“THE ANGELIC LIFE” ORTHODOX MONASTICISM

My beloved brothers and sisters in Christ Our Only True Lord, God, and Savior,

CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND EVER SHALL BE.

"THE ANGELIC LIFE" ORTHODOX MONASTICISM

MONASTICISM is the glory of the Church, and the monastics–as Saint Gregory of Nyssa teaches–are the hair of the head of the body of the Church and are a real adornment of the head. For monastics are dead to the world as strands of hair are dead, yet they shine and radiate the Light of Christ" (in Metropolitan Hierotheos Vlachos). And as Saint Sophrony of Essex said: "To me a monastery is a place where our entire life is dedicated to following Christ, to attaining the mind of Christ Himself, Who bears within Himself all of mankind… As monasteries we put caring for anything in the material realm off to the side. This does not mean that we do not help our fellow men materially; we do tha constantly. But our primary concern does not lie in this but in our abiding in God." Saint Isaac the Syrian says "The boast of the Church of Christ is the Monastic Way of life." Saint Theodore the Studite also calls monks "the salt of the earth and the light of the world," "a light for them that sit in darkness," and "an example and a declaration." Father Alexander Schmemann observed: "According to Saint Theodore the monks must be in the Church active inner kernel, a perpetual reminder of the Christian’s ultimate calling, the ‘support and affirmation’ of the Church"

MONASTERIES ARE THE "nerves and support of the Church" as well as her boast and adornment because they directly contribute to the Church’s primary work, which is to save souls. Monasteries accomplish this in several ways:

1) They provide a place conducive for salvation for people who want to dedicate themselves to God
in the traditional, Orthodox way.
2) They offer a warm, peaceful, and theocentric place of pilgrimage for lay people who have been
drained by the cold, noisy, and egocentric world, and who feel the need to "recharge their batteries."
3) Saint John of Sinai wrote: "Angels are a light for monks, and the monastic life is a light for all men.
Hence monks should spare no effort to become a shining example in all things." Monastics who are
devoted to God and focused on the spiritual life will naturally inspire others by their good example.
4) A monastery with a priest can serve the Divine Liturgy daily, bringing great benefit to those attending
as well as to the many souls commemorated, both living and departed. The priests can also offer the
Mystery of Confession to pilgrims, which can be helpful especially for people who would otherwise
not go to confession.
5) Because monastics are free from the burdens of the married life, they typically have more time to help
the world through prayer, and can also use their talents to do God-pleasing activities, such as writing
books, painting icons, composing hymns, etc. Larger monasteries have also been known for their
effective social work in the form of caring for orphans, the elderly, the poor, sick, etc.
6) The spiritual focus of monasteries has enabled them to preserve authentic Christianity in times when
other Christians have been overcome by the spirit of this world.
7) Last (and certainly not least), throughout the history of the Church, time and time again it was the
the monasteries and the monastic hierarchs that PRESERVED THE ORTHODOX FAITH IN ITS PURITY.
And in the opinion of Saint Ignatius Brianchaninov, even faith itself will disappear without the presence
of monasteries, which act as "barometers" of the Church.

The Focus and Aim

The focus of all Christians is to love God with all one’s heart, soul, and mind, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself. This central role of love is even more pertinent for monastics, who are called to be exemplary Christians. This is why Saint Paisios of the Holy Mountain declared: "The whole work of a monk is love." Elder Aimilianos said: "What kind of life is monastic life? First of all, as we live it and feel it, it is a life of love." When Elder Paisios of Sihla was asked: "How must monks live in order to save their souls? He replied: "Live in love, for the Savior says, "By this shall all men know you are My disciples, if you have love one to another" [John 13:35).