The way to holiness is traveled by those who struggle strenuously and responsibly against demonic activity and sinful passions. This struggle is catharsis, cleansing. It is followed by adornment of the soul with the virtues. Another struggle begins at this point – to embed the virtues permanently in the soul, to guard them, and to simultaneously maintain a healthy sense of humility.
Cleansing of the passions purifies a person, while the achievement of virtue in his life makes him pleasing to God. But neither one of these is the purpose of our spiritual life. The struggles are motivated by man's desire to share in holiness. But, it is the works of man himself. This spiritual truth is emphasized by al the Fathers of the Church.
Entrance into the realm of holiness, the condition of dispassion, ascension toward greater things, the sweet and blessed transformation, the blessedness of peace, union with God, the condition before the Fal , the angelic way of life, deification – al these patristic expressions seeking to describe and define the saint – the person united with God.
The saint is not the rare exception, standing aloof, especial y destined for sanctification. The saint, rather, is a person who, through personal struggle, helps himself to succeed in his purpose – the purpose that stands always under the shadow of divine grace. The saint is a simple, social, gracious, joyful, authentic, unaffected person who exemplifies heart-felt, honorable and sincere relationships with other people, with other saints, and with God. The presence of the saint is a blessing, a transmission of peace, a source of joy, and an occasion to glorify God.
The saint possesses harmonious relationships with people, and his over-abundant love extends even to the non-rational creatures of God, which the saint helps, heals and directs – while they in return serve, protect and watch over the saint. The saint, living in the condition of grace that existed in Paradise before the Fal – an undisturbed relationship with God – attains liberation from the carnal passions, patience, fearlessness, endurance of climatic change, and a healthy unconcern about what he shal eat, what he shal wear, or where he shal stay. Nor is he concerned, for example, with how to cross over river currents, great distances, open seas –
or how to pass the darkness of night. There are many narrative stories in the synaxaria about saints who were hosts to wild beasts in the cel s or caves of their ascetic endeavors (St. Gerasimos of the River Jordan, St.
Seraphim of Sarov), who walked on water as if on land (St. Mary of Egypt, St. Gabriel Iverites, St. Lawrence of Salamina), who delayed the setting of the sun (St. Bessarion), or who flew as if they had wings (St. Maximos the Kavsokalyvitis).
Particularly marvelous in the lives of the saints is the profound and harmonious unity and symphony that can be observed in al of them. The perfect love and divine light of the Holy Spirit removes contradictions and oppositions from their lives and teachings. This is a significant indication of authenticity.
The saints are gifted, possessing the varied charismatic gifts of the Holy Spirit. They are healers of souls and bodies. They are also prophets, seers and visionaries, ful of discernment. The particular gifts vary from person to person – al saints do not possess al gifts. The charismata are awarded to saints to help them in their struggles of love with the fal en and suffering nature of fel ow human beings.
The godly lives of saints are characterized mainly by love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness and temperance – the fruit of the Holy Spirit described by St. Paul the Apostle in his letter to the Galatians. The saints love obscurity, silence, quietude. Reticence accompanies virtue which, if self-proclaimed, ceases to be virtue. The saints, reluctant to emerge from their silence, never seek to demonstrate their charismata, as contemporary heretics readily do. The greatest tragedy, worse even than any sin, is boasting over false holiness. The security of holiness is humility and the discernment to attribute it only to the al -holy and al -perfect God.
THE SANCTIFICATION OF BODY AND SOUL IN THE SAINTS
In Orthodox spiritual tradition, sanctification of the soul is cultivated simultaneously with sanctification of the body. In the future life we shal receive our bodies without signs of corruption, as depicted in Orthodox iconography which expresses deified human nature. In heavenly life we shal al be of an average age, yet ful y able to recognize each other. Biological needs and functions wil not exist. Our relationships wil be determined by the distance of our vision of God.
The sanctification of bodies is vividly expressed in icons. Divine light shines in their faces of saints (Prophet Moses, St. Sissoes, St. Pamvo, St. Basil the Great, St. Alexios the Man of God, St. Seraphim of Sarov), and even their garments or other objects are sanctified (the sacred belt of the Theotokos, the monastic cowl of St. Michael Meleinos, the cross of saintly Athanasios of Mt. Athos). They transmit – through touching, kissing and pious reverence – grace, blessing, fragrance, sanctification and healing. This is also true of the sacred myrrh-bearing relics (St. Demetrios of Thessalonica, St. Symeon, St. Simon, St. Neilos and St. Theophilos of Mt. Athos), of the sacred incorruptible relics (St. Spyridon, St. Gerasimos, St. Dionysios, St. Patapios), and is witnessed by the many miracles that occur during the commemorations, litanies and prayers of the faithful.
The saints are the true servants and devotees of Christ. They love Christ above everything and they reveal their love in word and deed. Christ loves them al the more for their love for him. The saints resemble Christ mainly in the degree of their love. In this life they loved us, and now that they are near Christ - “the utmost desire” of their heart – they love us even more. This is why they assist us in our distress. According to St. Basil the Great, the saints are the nobles of the earth, the ones who have been glorified, the magnanimous, the robust, the authentic, the pure, the beautiful, the strong - the ones who deserve God because they became his friends through love.
Among the innumerable saints, some are distinguished by particular charismatic attributes of their lives, such that they attain a special popularity among people according to age, gender, character, profession or other particularity. Some of the saints are young persons (St. Mamas, St. Nestor, St. Elpida), some are children (St.
Kerykos, St. Agapi, St. Kionia), some are parents (ST. Basil and St. Emelia, St. Efstathios and St. Theopisti, St.
Xenophon and St. Maria), some are elderly (St. Haralampos, St. Kyriakos), some are soldiers (St. Demetrios, St. George, St. Theodore), some are physicians (Sts. Anargyroi, St. Panteleimon), some are clerics (St. Stephen the Deacon, St. Theodore of Studium the Presbyter and Abbot, St. Polycarp the Bishop and Martyr of Smyrna), some are great pastors of their people (St. Spyridon, St. Myron, St. Nikephoros), and stil others are local saints of a particular region. There are saints from al areas of the earth, of al occupations, and of al type and characters.
The spirit of struggle and energy was exemplified in the preaching of the Gospel by St. Paul the Apostle.
That same spirit was demonstrated by St. John Chrysosotom, who would not hesitate to censure the imperial family. The multi-faceted, learned in al the sciences, and richly endowed with charismata, St. Basil the Great –
ascetic, orator, author, philanthropist, bishop, confessor, theologian and ecumenical teacher, il and humble monk, fearless before the threats of tyrants – is a true model in the bril iant firmament of holiness. St. Gregory the Theologian, pressed by St. Basil the Great, went to Constantinople, but after a storm of controversy, left for the quiet of Pontos, where he wrote theological poems in the Homeric dialect. Contemporary commentators dare to refer to him as melancholy. Yet everyone, combative and social, “melancholy” and quiet, is able to reach God. Christian Orthodoxy is not a single type or form. It is not monolithic, antiquated or inflexible. Even in our own century the Holy Spirit gives new life and new saints (St. Nektarios of Pantapolis, St. Arsenios of Cappadocia, St. Savvas of Kalymnos, St. Methodia of Kimolos, St. Silouan of Mt. Athos, and contemporary saintly fathers of Mt. Athos such as Fr. Jerome Simonopetritis, Fr. Isaac Dionysiatis, Fr. Savva Micragiannanitis and Kal inikos the Hesychast).