Category Archives: The Diary of a Pustinnyk

The Coronavirus Diary of a Joyous Pustinnyk — 15

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Remember the Little things Diary #Day 15

Christ is Risen!

+ St George’s Day

 We remember today those Doctors, Nurses and Carers who work in our hospitals, surgeries and care homes. We thank them for their skill, courage and commitment. We have some of these front line heroes as part of our Parish who daily enter into battle against Coronavirus disease.

 I have two icons of St George at home, one, silver embossed, on the wall next to my staircase which I purchased many years ago whilst on holiday in Rhodes; the other given to me more recently. Every morning, when going downstairs I say, “St George defend me from every evil attack this day.”

 

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Saint George fought against evil with the virtues of valour and strength.

May the Holy and Great Martyr George the Trophy Bearer intercede before Christ for our Doctors, Nurses and Carers.

 

Troparion of St George Tone 4

As the deliverer of captives and defender of the poor, healer of the infirm and champion of kings, victorious great martyr George intercede with Christ our God for our souls’ salvation.

 

Nouns and Verbs

 

Matthew 7:21

 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.

and

And Matthew 20:1-16 The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard

 

Proper Nouns of holy faith possess a piety:

Bell and Bible, Church and Chalice, Lance and Liturgy;

But holier the Verbs; to love, to save, to heal, to pray,

To feed the hungry, clothe the poor, follow and obey.

 

Working in God’s Vineyard some sweat in the heat of day

But all receive the same reward, all have equal pay.

 O happy servants pruned and fruitful whom His Kingdom gain,

Rejoicing in the Son shine and singing in the Reign.

 

 “A small but always persistent discipline is a great force; for a soft drop falling persistently, hollows out hard rock.” St Isaac the Syrian

 

Love and prayers

Eν Χριστώ

 

The Coronavirus Diary of a Joyous Pustynnik — 14

Monastery Vigilromanian orthodox nuns

Christ is Risen!

Remember the little things  — Day #13  

Dear friends in Christ, on this Day of Days, may the Light of the Risen Christ shine in your hearts.

Matthew 28:6 

6 He is not here: for He is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.

 

Tismana

Tismana monastery

The New Birth

Reflection on a pilgrimage to Tismana monastery in Oltania, Romania

John 3:3 “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

 

The dawning mist, warmed by the red glowing charcoal of the solar orb

Infused the morning’s breath with pine tree, herb and scented smells.

Creation’s glorious incense clouds ascended to the heavenly altar above

To greet and meet before the throne, the vigorous calling of the Temple bells.

 

Beginners in life’s marathon we too climbed to make our prayerful progress in the faith

Joining streams of gliding nuns to Church, those angelic shadows of their Master’s way.

A fresh, cold, sparkling spring gushed from a rock next to the monastery’s holy gates

Quickening our spirits within as living water to refresh this beautiful new born day.

 

Some standing ready for the fight, others prostrate stilling the struggles of the night

Curled, we knelt within the nave as pre-born babies within their mothers’ wombs.

In the dark stillness of that marbled sepulchre burst forth Christ in resplendent light

With resurrection hands outstretched to deliver us in new birth from our earthly tombs.

 

 In Heaven’s panoply of the bright, host-filled company the embers of our spirits glowed

From sparks to flames, we shone as satellite moons orbit and reflect the glory of the Sun.

Whilst shafts of gold and arks of rainbow-promises fulfilled, through windows blazed

Blessing the bescreened holy ones whose crowns after life’s hard labour had been won. 

 

To the glory of God

 

Souls that love truth and God, that long with much hope and faith to put on Christ completely, do not need so much to be put in remembrance by others, nor do they endure, even for a while, to be deprived of the heavenly desire and of passionate affection to the  Lord; but being wholly and entirely nailed to the cross of Christ, they perceive in themselves day by day a sense of spiritual advance towards the spiritual Bridegroom. 

St. Macarius the Great 

 

 

Eν Χριστώ

The Coronavirus Diary of a Pustinnyk — 11

angel oak tree

1500-year-old Angel Oak tree in South Carolina

Remember the Little Things — Day #11

I love trees. Trees are magnificent in their audacious grandeur; sown in the dark soil they seek the light.

The trees which were bare a month ago are now in full bloom. Spring has come with all its glorious plenary pulchritude. We thank God for such beauty. Trees offer shade and colour; they even take our carbon dioxide and exchange it for oxygen. Trees are the lungs of the world.

The newly glorified Saint Amphilochios of Patmos (1888-1970) said: ” Whoever does not love trees, does not love God.”

 In these hard times, it is a temptation to become despondent; but this spirit comes from the evil one. Our lives are hidden in Christ (Colossians 3:3) like the roots in the soil. Our faith can defy the weight of oppression like the sap which defies gravity through capillary action. Our lives can extend to all like the branches. If we have the will, with that awesome synergy which is Christ’s gracious dialogue with us, through His mercy and our hard work, we may bloom in holiness and bear fruit that will last.

Hearts of Oak

Theme: Despondency

John 15:5 “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.”

Luke 6:44: “For every tree is known by its own fruit.

“When despondency seizes us, let us not give in to it. Rather, fortified and protected by the light of faith, let us with great courage say to the spirit of evil: “What are you to us, you who are cut off from God, a fugitive for Heaven, and a slave of evil? You dare not do anything to us: Christ, the Son of God, has dominion over us and over all. Leave us, you thing of bane. We are made steadfast by the uprightness of His Cross. Serpent, we trample on your head.”

St. Seraphim of Sarov

 

“It was said of Abba John the Dwarf that one day he said to his elder brother, ”I should like to be free of all care, like the angels who do not work, but ceaselessly offer worship to God. ”So he took leave of his brother and went away in the desert. After a week he came back to his brother. When he knocked on the door he heard his brother say,” Who are you?” before he opened it. He said,” I am John, your brother.” But he replied,” John has become an angel and henceforth is no longer among men.” Then John besought him, saying,” It is I.” However, his brother did not let him in but left him there in distress until morning. Then, opening the door, he said to him, “You are a man and you must once again work in order to eat.” Then John made a prostration before him, saying,” Forgive me.” 

 

I hear Lord, there was once a Tree planted here in this place

 A Tree so fine and so splendid, a Tree full of beauty and grace.

  “Who planted this Tree of Life Lord here in this garden?

 It’s said that its fruit was so sweet and had the gift of peace and pardon

 Who tended this Tree in its youth Lord when it was growing into the light?

 When the gales blew and the storms raged in the middle of the night.

 Who first saw this Tree bud and blossom into flower

 As the sap of its spirit gave joy to each hour?

 Who watered this Tree Lord when it was parched and dry

 When some men ate of its labour and others wagged heads and passed by?

 Who cut down its branches where the birds of the air made a nest?

 Didn’t they taste of its fruit Lord, did not they know it was best?

 Who cut the Tree down to the ground Lord whilst it was rich in finest full bloom?

 There must have been more than one axe Lord, to bring about such a doom.

 But look Lord I see a young sapling springing from out of its roots

 And what wondrous a sight to behold Lord, there are thousands and thousands of shoots!

 What is this Garden called Father, is it Eden, what mystical name please impart?

 “The Tree is my Son, my young gardener and the garden my child is your heart.”

 

My love

Eν Χριστώ

The Coronavirus Diary of a Pustinnyk — 10

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In the windows of the houses in the street where I live and all around Britain we see Rainbows appearing as a sign of hope against the Coronavirus pandemic. It is also God’s sign of promise and covenant. (Genesis 9:12-13)

I see people waving through windows to their friends – looking out of their windows to see that rare glimpse of a car or a person passing by. In the window above my front and rear door hangs a Cross. On my inner doors, I paint in holy oil the same symbol of our faith. In my front window there hangs a lamp which burns in the evening as a sign of the presence of Christ and His saints.

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The peace plant and hyacinth — late hyacinths in my front “garden”; the perfume is  exquisite — Herbs are doing well!; a little mint, thyme and parsley at the herb tub — Glory to God for all things!

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Mirrors and Windows

In these challenging times, people find themselves adjusting to the basic necessities of life-food, medicine and shelter. There are no celebrations in local restaurants, fashion has become superfluous and even having your hair cut becomes a problem if you live on your own. 

 Vanity has become a pointless luxury -it always was! Why dress up when there is nowhere to go?  The writer of Ecclesiastes expresses it well. ( Ecclesiastes 1:1-12)

 Job also reminds us that the statutes of God must be kept whether or not it results in joy or sorrow. In the Gospel of Matthew 28:20 Christ makes a new covenant, which is for us to teach others to observe all that which He has commanded us and that He will be with us always, even to the end of the age. Amen

 

Mirrors and Windows

Matthew 5: 8 “Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God.” 

Matthew 5:48 “Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.”

 

When we look at ourselves in a mirror we see only 

A reverse reflection of who we are with all our imperfections. 

Even then we possess ourselves in vanity. 

When we look at an Icon, we have a window into heaven 

And behold a revelatory image of the perfection we can achieve. 

Only then do we lose ourselves in Divinity. 

We must replace our mirrors with windows if we want to turn our

 Darkness into Light. 

 

“He who really keeps account of his actions considers as lost every day in which he does not mourn, whatever good he may have done in it.”

St. John of the Ladder

The Coronavirus Diary of a Pustinnyk — 9

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Remember the Little things #9

 

Yesterday, I was delighted to receive feedback from some of our parents concerning their young children being taught our Christian Faith at home. Our Sunday School is called ” Martha’s House,” which seems not only appropriate but in some way prophetic since the lock down. Our Sunday school leader gave construction tasks for our children to make Crosses and to build model Churches- the results were truly amazing!

 A three-year-old from one of our families decided to invite spiderman and his friends into his model Church on the Sunday of St Mary of Egypt, whilst singing “Lord da da mercy”. How considerate and proper to invite spiderman now that Church is held on the world wide web. All are welcome! 

Glory to God! 

 

Psalm 8:2

Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants

You have ordained strength,

Because of Your enemies,

That You may silence the enemy and the avenger.

 

The Little Child

 

Matthew 2; 21 “Then he arose, took the young Child and His mother,

                     And came into the land of Israel.”

 

Did you sit at Joseph’s feet to see him work with wood?

Did you watch him smooth the plane to make the bad grain good?

Did you play out in the streets with friends and hit the ball?

Did they ask you for some food and then you gave it all?

O how I’d like to know the child in you but nothing much is told

All we hear are miracles about the sick, the young and old.

 

I want to know the little Christ that danced and sang and played.

I want to hear the stories of the little toys that Joseph made.

I want to see the joyful child that gave such love for free.

I want to find the little child that lives inside of me.

O how I’d like to rediscover some story of your fame

Before you calmed the waters and healed the sick and lame.

 

To the Glory of God

Abba Pambo said, “If you have a heart, you can be saved.”

 

 

The Coronavirus Diary of a Pustynnik — 8

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Remember the little things #8

Dear Friends in Christ,

My “obedience” today was to trim the candles on the Holy Table and to clean the candlesticks.  Many of the faithful kindly bring beeswax candles back from Greece and Cyprus which, after being blessed, find their way into the Temple on the Holy Table and for the faithful to light on the candle-stands in front of the holy icons. 

Bees not content with giving us the sweetness of honey, give us a double blessing from their ascetic labour- they provide us with candle wax too.

It is a salutary lesson to observe the way the candle sacrifices itself, burning itself up in order to give light. 

Oh, that we were as productive as the bee and as selfless as the candle.

“Everything becomes more and more itself. Here is a joy that cannot be shaken. Our light can swallow up your darkness, but your darkness cannot now infect our light.” C. S. Lewis, The Great Divorce

 

The Candle

Matthew 5:16 “Let your light so shine before men,

that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”

 

The candle shines warm with a tender glow 

Inviting prayers of saints in heaven from those below.

 

A living flame to energize the evening gloom

Bringing hope and faith from despair and doom.

 

Its fragrance is the gentle offering of the beeswax comb

Its warmth and light bring sweet comfort to our home.

 

How beautiful the issue of its martyrdom for others

Sharing its holy energy for our Christian brothers.

 

Remembering still when our swift prayers have ceased

The candle’s light endures, to celebrate the feast.

 

Tears of wax flow down and gently weep

For those who live and those who sleep.

 

The nimbus signs the Pentecostal flame

As a blessing to endorse the votive name.

 

Burning up itself the stiffened tallow

Shrinks to nothing save to hallow

 

That which is offered with its light

Prayers which give our dim eyesight.

 

So may we, who upon life’s rocks are hurled

Shine as lights in this dark world.

 

“God is a fire that warms and kindles the heart and inward parts.  Hence, if we feel in our hearts the cold which comes from the devil – for the devil is cold – let us call on the Lord. He will come to warm our hearts with perfect love, not only for Him but also for our neighbour, and the cold of him who hates the good will flee before the heat of His countenance. “

St. Seraphim of Sarov

The Coronavirus Diary of a Pustynnik — 8

feeding birds

Remember the little things  #8

I have been reflecting greatly upon the first miracle of Our Lord which took place in Cana of Galilee, when, as a guest at a wedding, He changed water into wine. (John 2:1-11) The sheer grace and magnitude of this sign left me reflecting on how we work miracles and show hospitality in lockdown mode?

 Yesterday I had a knock on the door and there outside were two parishioners kindly and most generously bringing me some household items. As they stepped back two metres, it gave me the opportunity to offer them some incense, charcoal, floats, wicks and candles for their worship at home. We exchanged some kind and encouraging words through the “Chapel “window and they left.

 I know others from our God blessed Community who also go to the help of the poor, shop for the housebound and enrich the lives of others by their invitation to join them with online fellowship. 

However, I must tell you I show hospitality to some winged secret” guests .” Angels maybe in the Divine services, but I am talking about feeding the birds. Each day I leave some morsels of bread or nuts on my garden wall but whilst my back is turned they swoop down and take that which is given! So no photos!

 We too can change bitter waters into sweet wine if we show compassion, kindness and meekness.

The poem which follows is dedicated to my dearly departed spiritual father who showed me great kindness and hospitality and whose meekness was beyond compare.

 

The Wedding Banquet

John2:2 “Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding.”

 

In South Cambridge Newnham terraces*, a place of late Victorian Mews

Where once the Deans of Cambridge held romantic rendezvous;

There is greater love in West View, which is from the east and old

That issues forth from Cana where living streams bear gold.

Where once the Saviour graced a marriage and turned water into wine

His disciples now shelter others in the branches of His Vine.

Here dwells a confluence of Christian souls of hearts and constant minds

Since “Love is not love which alters when it alteration finds.”

Such living streams of wisdom meander to a calm Bethesda pool

“Love never ends,” it is eternal for “Love is not time’s fool.”

“Love bears all things, believes all things hopes and endures all things”

Transcending any human love and in hands of angels brings

The indwelling of the Holy Guest with an invitation to the poor

To glimpse the wedding feast of the Father’s House through a simple terraced door.

 

“Oh, what great happiness and bliss, what exaltation it is to

address oneself to the Eternal Father. Always, without fail, value

this joy which has been accorded to you by God’s infinite grace

and do not forget it during your prayers; God, the angels and

God’s holy men listen to you.”

 

St. John of Kronstadt

*This poem refers to the home of my spiritual father and his Khouriya in Cambridge, England, and their enduring love.

My love and prayers,

Eν Χριστώ

 

 

The Coronavirus Diary of a Pustynnik — 7

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Remember the Little Things-  Day #7

After my midnight Jesus Prayer I looked out of my “Chapel” window at home and saw peeping through the clouds the moon and the stars. I was reminded of that beautiful Psalm:

Psalm 8:3-6 

3 When I consider your heavens,

    the work of your fingers,

the moon and the stars,

    which you have set in place,

4 what is mankind that you are mindful of them,

    human beings that you care for them?

5 You have made them a little lower than the angels

    and crowned them with glory and honour.

6 You made them rulers over the works of your hands;

    you put everything under their feet.

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God has crowned us with glory and honour and yet we often fail to give Him glory and dishonour him with our selfish greed. We fail to connect the vast beauty of creation with our Creator and we abandoned our responsibilities as stewards of this world in which He has placed us. We too often seek the riches of this passing world rather than the Great Treasure of Heaven. Wanting to be like God was the first sin in the Garden of Eden. (Genesis 3:5)

Counting the Cost

Matthew 19:24 “And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.”

The little boy asked the man,” Why are you counting stars?”

“Because no-one else has done it, I started long ago with Mars.” 

“But what’s the purpose of your exercise?” the little boy enquired.

“I own them all!” the man exclaimed, “I’ll stop when I’ve retired.

“I’ve counted over five million, the sum of twenty years;

I count them silently each night so no-one ever hears.”

“They are not yours the boy replied, they all belong to God!”

But the man continued counting stars, pointing at them with a nod.

There are many who like this astronomic man, reap what they have not sown

Who count that which is not theirs and claim it for their own.

 The exercise of counting cash has equal futility,

After all, you cannot take it with you into eternity.

Far better spend your money wisely than buy expensive cars 

What a cost for those who ignore heaven and keep on counting stars!

 

“ Pride is darkness, but humility is light.” St. Tikhon of Zadonsk, Journey to Heaven.

Eν Χριστώ

 

 

The Coronavirus Diary of a Pustinnyk — 2

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“Remember the Little things”, #2

Day #2

Dear Friends in Christ,

God bless you

A virtual tour of my chapel!

Spot the difference!

 

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Today it was my obedience to wash the white and embroidered Holy Table cloth which was made and given to our community by a Greek lady from Polydroso Marousi in Athens back in 1998. She also embroidered a matching Gospel book cover( kalima) with an icon of St Nicholas Planas. I replaced it with the beautiful cloth from Syria that Fr Christopher of blessed memory gave to me.

The lectern from where I read morning and evening prayer each day( and the Lord’s prayer at midday)is composed of a chair with five cushions, a throw and a runner. Unseasonal I know but effective none the less. You will notice my silent server in the corner Katharis…always there ready to wash my hands before the services.

Then there is my Vestry….well actually you guessed it, it’s a chair with my Vestments on it. Glory to God by His mercy He provides us with everything we need!

Today God supplied me with some parsley and thyme from my little garden which made the spaghetti and tomato sauce for my evening meal taste even better! Glory to God for the little things.

My love and prayers

The Coronavirus Diary of a Pustinnyk — 1

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The Diary of a Pustinnyk of my heart, “Remember the Little things“, #1

Dear brothers and sisters,

Christ is in our midst.

In these difficult times, the Church is closed but the Church continues as the people of God “the living stones” and by the grace of God, the faithful continue to be connected in that Communion of Saints on earth and in heaven through prayer, calls, emails and texts.

As we use this quiet and stillness not only to deepen our prayer but to reflect more deeply on the calling of our faith as the people of God, it is good to “remember [and record] the little things” as St David of Wales said.

Allow me then to introduce to you, the diary of a Pustinnyk [Hermit] of my heart, “Remember the Little things“, and follow it day by day, as he reflects and prays for all of us.

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Remember the Little things #Day 1

Dear  Friends in  Christ,

May God bless you all 

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As we are all too aware- we can have no visitors but God has a way of teaching us His ways. A huge bumblebee flew in through my “Office” window upstairs at the back of my house, as if to remind me that Christ’s work must go on. The weather yesterday (Friday) was warm and sunny 21 c.! I quickly closed my curtains and the bee found his way out. Lo and behold a few hours later the same bee (I am sure )found it’s way into my front bedroom window. Again I closed the curtains, I told him ” No visitors allowed!” and he flew out. To see a bumblebee in March in England is in itself is quite remarkable but to see the same visitor twice, once in the morning when the sun is in the east and once in the afternoon when the sun is in the west is even more remarkable. This little visitor reminded me of St Paisios words:

http://orthodoxwayoflife.blogspot.com/2009/12/flies-and-bees-advice-from-elder.html

Let us strive dear brothers and sisters for the sweet things and make every effort to climb step by step nearer to God in the holiness of life.

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*It is good to” remember the little things” as St David of Wales said.