ΠΑΤΡΙΚΑΙ ΝΟΥΘΕΣΙΑΙ-ΓΕΡΟΝΤΟΣ ΕΦΡΑΙΜ

[Silver]

ΚΕΦΑΛΑΙΟΝ Η΄
β΄) Περί Βίας, Ανδρείας και Αυταπαρνήσεως

17η .

Αγωνίζου, παιδί μου. Ουχί καιρός αγώνων ο παρών βίος; Ουχί όνειρον η ζωή παντός γηϊνου ανθρώπου; Ανύψωσον τους νοερούς οφθαλμούς της ψυχής σου και ιδέ ουρανίους στρατιάς αγγέλων και αρχαγγέλων. Ανάτεινον το όμμα της διανοίας σου έτι και ιδέ τον μακάριον τόπον του πρώην ανατέλλοντος εωσφόρου κενόν. Ω, τι μέγας προορισμός! Ω κλήσις αγιωτάτη! Εκεί κοντά εις τον θείον θρόνον θα βλέπουν αι ψυχαί το θείον κάλλος του Χριστού, και θα ανάγωνται από γνώσεως εις γνώσιν και από θεωρίας εις θεωρίαν προς πλεονασμόν πλούτου θείας χάριτος! Δια να αποκτηθούν όμως τα ουράνια αυτά αγαθά, οφείλομεν να επιδείξωμεν ανδρείαν, τόλμην και να συνάψωμεν μάχας, χωρίς να δώσωμεν εις ήτταν τα νώτα μας, αφορώντες εις τον Ιησούν ο Οποίος μας είπε: «Θαρσείτε, Εγώ νενίκηκα τον κόσμον» ( Ιωαν. 16,33 ) και « ο άχων του κόσμου τούτου εκβληθήσεται έξω» (Ιωαν. 12,31). Ελπίζοντες λοιπόν εις την ακαταμάχητον δύναμιν του Εσταυρωμένου, ας δώσωμεν τον εαυτόν μας εν απλότητι εις τον αγώνα του μονήρους βίου και ας παραμείνωμεν καταφιλούντες τους αχράντους πόδας του Σωτήρος χύνοντες δάκρυα ευγνωμοσύνης και χαράς. Τις λοιπόν ημάς χωρίσει από της αγάπης του Χριστού, θλίψεις, ή στενοχωρία ή διωγμός ή γυμνότης κ.λ.π.; «Σκύβαλα ηγούμαι είναι τα πάντα, ίνα Χριστόν κερδήσω» (Φιλ. 3,8), εβόα το στόμα του Παύλου. Ουχί και ημείς χρεωστούμεν μιμηταί του Παύλου να γίνωμεν και εις την αυτήν χάριν και αγάπην προς τον Χριστόν να φθάσωμεν; Ναι, αλλά όμως αγωνιζόμεθα ως εκείνος; Επάθαμεν και ημείς, εγώ, τα όσα αυτός δια τον ηγαπημένον Του Χριστόν έπαθε; Όχι, δια τούτο και γυμνός και ρακένδυτος υπάρχω και την αισχύνην περίκειμαι και πλανώμαι νομίζων ότι περίκειμαι διάδημα δόξης. Ουαί μοι, ουαί μοι τω αθλίω, τις μου το σκότος καταλάμψει, ίνα ίδω την ελεεινότητά μου!

[Silver]

ΚΕΦΑΛΑΙΟΝ Η΄
β΄) Περί Βίας, Ανδρείας και Αυταπαρνήσεως

18η .

Βιάζεσθε εις τα πνευματικά σας καθήκοντα, διότι η βία εις τα πνευματικά είναι ωσάν το τείχος το στερεόν, που δεν αφήνει να εισέλθη ο ποταμός μέσα εις τον κήπον, δια να καταστρέψη ό,τι εκοπίασεν ο κηπουρός. Εάν όμως αμελώμεν, τότε εισέρχεται ο ποταμός και καταστρέφει τα πάντα! Περί τούτου μας λέγει ο Κύριος εις το ιερόν Ευαγγέλιον «Εν τω καθεύδειν τους ανθρώπους ήλθεν αυτού ο εχθρός και έσπειρε ζιζάνια ανά μέσον του σίτου» (Ματθ. 13,25 ). Όσον βιαζόμεθα, τόσον θα κερδίσωμεν, όσον εργασθή κανείς, τόσον θα πληρωθή. Η ζωή του μοναχού είναι σταυρός καθημερινός, είναι Ιερός Γολγοθάς, όπου μας καλεί ο Ιησούς, ίνα συσταυρωθώμεν όσοι Τον αγαπώμεν και κατόπιν θα γίνη η ανάστασις της ψυχής.

[Silver]

ΚΕΦΑΛΑΙΟΝ Η΄
β΄) Περί Βίας, Ανδρείας και Αυταπαρνήσεως

19η επιστολή.
Μη μένετε αδρανείς, μόνον βιάζεσθε, ίνα μη κατακριθήτε, ως ακροαταί του νόμου και μη ποιηταί, διότι εφ’ όσον ζητείτε λόγον Θεού, άρα η ζήτησις προϋποθέτει υπόσχεσιν εφαρμογής, λοιπόν αγωνίζεσθε. Παιδιά μου, αγωνισθήτε, μαζί με τον Χριστόν μας θα τα υποφέρωμεν όλα. Ο κόσμος θα μας μισήση, διότι πρωτίστως εμίσησε τον Ιησούν μας, την ιδικήν μας αγάπην και λατρείαν! Χριστόν αγαπήσατε. Χριστόν αναπνέετε. Ιησούν ποιήσατε συγκάτοικον μέσα εις την ψυχήν σας, μη φοβήσθε κανένα, διότι είμεθα γεώργιον Θεού, ο βασιλεύς των βασιλευόντων, μας έχει ανακτορικούς υπηρέτας. Κανέν κακόν δεν θα μας εγγίση, διότι Χριστόν δουλεύομεν, εις Αυτόν υποτάσσονται τα πάντα!

[Catherine5]

What happened to Silver?
He stopped posting all of a sudden.
While I can't read any of this, I'm sure it's valuable for some readers here.
Perhaps he felt under attack from the scrutiny and/or felt unappreciated for his longstanding contributions, though those were mentioned.
What about inviting him back?
I hope he will resume, as readers are always going through these pages, if that little scroll symbol is any indication.
Christ Is Risen, Silver, we do appreciate you!

[Silver]

What happened to Silver?
He stopped posting all of a sudden.
While I can't read any of this, I'm sure it's valuable for some readers here.
Perhaps he felt under attack from the scrutiny and/or felt unappreciated for his longstanding contributions, though those were mentioned.
What about inviting him back?
I hope he will resume, as readers are always going through these pages, if that little scroll symbol is any indication.
Christ Is Risen, Silver, we do appreciate you!

Catherina, Christ, Who is our life (Colossians 3:4 ), is Risen!!!

Thank God I am still alive, but unwanted...

The reason? I 'm posting Geronta Ephraim's counsels, and because he is under the jurisdiction of......

Any way, if some one wants Geronta Ephraim's consels in Greek or English here is one of the 22 forums
that I am posting them :
In Greek:
http://www.orthodoxchristianity.net/for ... ,45.0.html
In English:
http://www.orthodoxchristianity.net/for ... d,9.0.html

I do appreciate your feelings,

In Christ,

Costas (Silver ).

[jgress]

Christos anesti!

We don't wish to exclude Silver's participation because of his jurisdiction. I was only concerned that posting works by Elder Ephraim might scandalize some people here. But if, as it seems, no one is scandalized, then I don't see a problem with continuing to post.

Jonathan

[Catherine5]

To Jonathan and other readers: Yes, I believe no one at all is even remotely displeased let alone scandalized. No one has ever complained in all these years.
Let's seek his forgiveness and invite him back, perhaps there was unwittingly too harsh of a spotlight glare on his work that one time before Pascha.

I personally feel the wider the material available, the more likely readers from other jurisdictions are to dive in and look through some of the rest of this site too. No matter what, they will be spiritually benefited. Then too, perhaps Greek speakers anywhere in teh world may be searching on the internet and find links to this site, of which they would never have heard had they not referenced some mention in Costas' posts here.

After all, there have even been OCA posters on here and who knows what else-! Frankly some of us have controversial opinions, anyway. However, that doesn't mean that some or many points of each controversial contributor are not incredibly smart or add great understanding in their areas of specialty.
So Costas Silver, if that's his last name!, is likely closer in spirit to the average reader than the stray poster who floats through from ROCOR-MP or anywhere. I think even some of those people sshould be heard out as long as they don't insult TOC personnel. What if they have a new perspective based on where they came from that those of us here lack? If they get belligerent, of course, they should be reprimanded.

I'm for extending a warm invitation to Costas to return.
I felt inexplicably sharp regret when I saw that his last post was a month earlier.
For this was the most stalwart poster, someone I picture industriously churning out posts, with neither snow, nor sleet, nor [whatever it was] staying the intrepid poster from his appointed rounds !

Why not have this rich treasure chest of material available here, rather than lose it to other sites?
After all, if anyone is not keen on this , they don't have to read this thread, right? There are plenty of others to look at.

To Costas:
Truly He Is Risen [I'm sorry my mind drew a blank for the Greek reply. All that comes to mind is the first part of the Greek alphabet, Alpha Beta Gamma Delta Epsilon...oops ran out but I know omicron, phi rho sigma tau upsilon, omega hover around the end of it!]

Thanks for your serene consistency here. I suspect that was keeping this site in a special hidden balance, because I noticed something felt wrong when your output ceased, apparently miffed.

-Catherina cinq/cinco/panj. That last is the Persian. In that language, the written symbol for five is curiously a turned over heart. Maybe to remind everyone that none of us want to tread on the heart of anybody here or outside either; or for their hearts to be sad or mournful, or feel rejected due to other people's hasty or brusque words, deeds, etc...