Do Good Works Save Us?

St. Mark the Ascetic

Even though knowledge is true, it is still not firmly established if unaccompanied by works. For everything is established by being put into practice. Often our knowledge becomes darkened because we fail to put things into practice. For when we have totally neglected the practice of something, our memory of it will gradually disappear. For this reason Scripture urges us to acquire the knowledge of God, so that through our works we may serve him rightly. When we fulfill the commandments in outward actions, we receive from the lord what is appropriate; that any real benefit we gain depends on our inward intention. If we want to do something but cannot then before God, Who knows our hearts, it is as if we have done it, this is true whether the intended action is good or bad.

The intellect does many good and bad things without the body, whereas the body can do neither good nor evil without the intellect. This is because the law of freedom applies to what happens before we act.

Similarly, those who pray are protected from despair... Do you see how every virtue that is performed to the point of death is nothing other than refraining from sin? Now to refrain from sin is from within our own natural powers, but not something that buys us the kingdom.

While men can scarcely keep what belongs to him by nature, Christ gives the gift of sonship through the cross.

There is no perfect prayer unless our mind evokes the Lord.

Prayer is the mother of all virtues.

Excerpted from The Philokalia, Vol. 1 pages 126, 7

‘Spiritual’ Marriage

Harvard Theological Studies, X, Russian Dissenters,
The Bezpopovtsy, The Stranniki, Pages 160, 2-3

...the [Stranniki] initiates are under a vow themselves to adopt the wandering life before they die. In old age or in case of sickness felt to be mortal they retire into a wood, and there live till death overtakes them. The excuse for their disappearance from the ranks of society is usually that they have set off on a pilgrimage. ...The sick person is withal removed to a neighboring house or into a hiding place where he spends his time ‘in concealment and salutary fear,’ till presently he is received, baptized and installed a ‘perfect’ Stranniki. His vocation is then complete.

The dead are buried in obscure places, in a fest, a field; children often under ploughland or in kitchen-gardens. A Stranniki’s grave is unrecognizable, for no mound ever marks it...

Ivanovski [an untrustworthy New-Rite author] states, ...Beginning with Euthymius, everyone on of their leaders or elders kept a mistress... But it is possible that the ‘mistress’ of Eitheymius was a ‘spiritual’ wife, a relationship common though often reprobated in the Early Church from the time of St. Paul onwards for about four centuries. The Stranniki certainly regarded marriages contracted before a Nikonian or orthodox priest as mere fornication...

Such a relationship led to grave scandals in the Early Church: ...The institution was plainly incompatible with the idea of religious vagabondage, of inhabiting neither city nor village; and yet the conditions of human life had to be met, and in the sixties of the last century [that is the 19th century] the followers of Euthymius found themselves suddenly compelled to make their decision, whether or no a Strannik after initiation could or could not continue to lead a family life.

A convert, Nicholas Ignatiev Kosatkin in the Government of Novgorod, had fallen sick and sought ‘perfection’ ere death should overtake him. But in making his confession prior to being baptized he avowed no intention of parting from his wife, and even declared he would abandon the sect if its statues and if scripture were so interpreted. Nevertheless the prior or spiritual authority, deputed to ‘receive’ him, admitted him to baptism, because he was so grievously ill, and so he became a full member of the sect. Then he recovered after all, but refused to abandon his wife and children, nay, begat a new child. Thenceforth he began a propaganda in favor of marriage in the sect.

He found an ally in one Miron Vasilev, and it was resolved by most of the society under their guidance that marriage was allowable, along with the two other sacraments of baptism and penance, until the second advent - a sensible conclusion. Forthwith members who were married before they joined the sect began to live together again, where they had not done so all along. There was a minority however that held out against marriage, and met the argument that the early Chrisitans allowed it with the counter agerment that these only fled into the desert to escape persecution and hoped to return when the persecution was ended, whereas they, the Stranniki, had fled into the desert for good and ever, never meaning to return and live in an unregenerate world. In view of Uzov’s account of the sect one suspects that Ivanovski somewhat over-generalizes and accepts as valid and significant for the entire sect of Stranniki events and quarrels and decision that only really concerned a section of it.

There were other questions also which led to dissensions in the society, for example the trivial one whether a Strannik should carry in his pocket coins that bore the stamp of Antichrist. Euthymius had avoided this problem but one of his stricter followers Vasili Petrov raised it, and an insignificant minority followed him in his objection to money, and were known as the ‘moneyless’ ones. They got over the practical inconvenience by getting novices to carry money for them and make their disbursements...

Stranniki Would Never Pay Taxes

The Stranniki would have nothing to do with any aspect of Antichrist; they would not touch money, which bore the ruler’s portrait and the state coat of arms; they would not obtain a passport [identification], pay taxes, etc.

From the book, The Structure of Russian History, page 99

A “Padpolniki”

In many villages there was reserved a place in a cellar, called “Padpolniki” for a chance strannik, or wanderer. A strannik must agonize himself even during sleep. Hence he would not rest in a lighted and airy room, or in a bed. Among the wanderers one sometimes met men of great intelligence who, seized by a religious mania, or plagued by an accusing conscience, would abandon their palatial homes, don rags for clothes, wrap their feet in straw, and wander, praying and crossing themselves as they trudged along.

From the book, Fakers Old and New, pages 50-1.

How To Completely Renounce The World

A certain young monk asked an elder, “Father, now do I have to completely renounce the world?”

“Fear not,” answered the elder, “if you live a really Christian life, the world will immediately renounce you.”

If we obey God, God will obey us.

The early desert father, Abba of Iliu, said, “Obedience begets obedience, if a man obeys God, God will obey him.” (Vol. 2, Paradise of the Desert Fathers, p. 55).

“I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him.”

St. Mark the Ascetic once asked a visitor if there were still people in the world able to command and say, “mountain be moved into the sea,” and as the ascetic spoke those words the mountain before him began to move and so he said, “I did not mean for you to move,” and it re-settled.

Worthless Gold

The New-Rite Greeks have Kosmas Aitolos whom they call a holy prophet that spoke of the end times in this manner, “we would give thousands of gold coins but still will not find a little bread.”

Even the Protestant Larry Norman says a piece of bread will buy a bag of gold, so many believe gold is about worthless.

A Old Russian Proverb goes, “All that glitters is not gold.”

Visiting patriarchs to the 1666 Council of Moscow each received both 20,000 rubles in gold and furs for their participation (Zenkovskij S.A., 1995, 2006).

And silver is not much better, as Peter said, “May your silver perish with you...”

St Anthony of the Kiev Caves had no gold, but he built a monastery which became the first spiritual center of Rus.

The Teaching of the Apostles, Book I, Section II - Do not put a gold ring on your fingers, for all these ornaments are signs of lasciviousness and is solicitous in an indecent manner and does not become a good man.

Two negatives is a negative, “Riches will not profit in the Day of Wrath.”

It costs more than gold to redeem souls from destruction, if we would escape we must moderate our worldly attachments, renounce our sinful projects and hold ourselves in continual readiness to leave all and follow Christ. If we should be called to part with, not only our wealth, but every temporal comfort, the perfect freedom of his service will give a relish to our meanest provisions.

Sit loose from the world. Let not your hearts be overcharged with the cares of this life, nor filled with the love of the world, and that day take you unaware. The fashion of this world passes away, therefore live as strangers and sojourners. Lay up your treasure in heaven and get your affections set on things above. Be ready to suffer whatever the Lord calls you unto, patiently and in well doing, for in due time ye shall reap, be steadfast and immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, because your labor shall not be in vain. Whatever afflictions ye suffer for Christ, they are light and momentary, but the glory which Christ will give is weighty and eternal.

Money will not help in the end, but it is possible that neither will poverty. If a man be wicked as well as poor (as great numbers of people are) their poverty will excite no pity.

Forgive