St. Anatoly of Optina (+1894): The heretics of the last times will not openly reject the dogmas, but they will distort the teaching of the Church.

 

 

My child, know that in the last days, as the Apostle says, difficult times will come (2 Timothy 3:12–13). And because the piety of men will decline, heresies and schisms will break out in the Church, and upon the episcopal thrones and in the monasteries, as the Holy Fathers foretold, there will no longer be experienced and skilled men in the spiritual struggle. For this reason, heresies will spread everywhere and will deceive many. The enemy of the human race will act with cunning in order to incline even the elect toward heresy.

He will not openly reject the dogmas concerning the Holy Trinity, the divinity of Jesus Christ, and the Mother of God, but he will begin, unnoticed, to distort the teaching of the Church once handed down by the Holy Fathers and received from the Holy Spirit, thus changing her very spirit and her ordinances. And these cunning devices of the enemy will be perceived only by a few—by those most experienced in the spiritual life.

 The heretics will take control of the Church; they will set their servants everywhere, and piety will be disregarded. But the Lord will not allow His servants to remain without defense and in ignorance. He said: “By their fruits you shall know them” (Matthew 7:16). Therefore you also must strive to distinguish the heretics from the shepherds by their deeds. For they are robbers of souls who plunder the spiritual flock, and such as these will enter the sheepfold—the Church—“climbing over the fence,” as the Lord said; that is, they will enter in an unlawful manner, using violence and transgressing the laws of God. The Lord Himself calls them robbers (John 10:3).

Indeed, the first thing they will do will be to persecute the true shepherds, to cast them into prisons and to send them into exile, for without committing these horrors they will not be able to steal the sheep. Therefore, my son, when you see the divine order of the Church being destroyed, the tradition of the Holy Fathers and the ordinance established by God, know that the heretics have already appeared, even if at times they will conceal their lawlessness and will gradually distort our faith in order more easily to deceive and entice the inexperienced into their nets.

That persecution will be carried out not only against the priests, but also against all the servants of God, for the demon, who is the leader of heresy, does not tolerate piety. Recognize these wolves in sheep’s clothing by their proud disposition, by their love of vainglory and of domination; they will be slanderers and traitors, sowing hostility and malice. The true servants of God are humble, lovers of the brethren, and obedient to the Church.

There will come a great oppression from the heretics even against the monks. And our monastic life will then be slandered: the monasteries will grow poor, the monks will diminish in number, and those who remain will suffer torments. Nevertheless, those who hate the monastic life and are pious only in appearance will strive to draw the monks to their side, promising them protection and worldly goods, and threatening the disobedient with exile. Because of these threats, the faint-hearted will then fall into great despair; but you, my son, if you live to those times, rejoice, for then the right-believing, even if they show no other virtues, will obtain a crown for the sole fact that they have remained steadfast in the faith, according to the word of the Lord: “Whoever shall confess Me before men, I also will confess him before My Father Who is in heaven” (Matthew 10:32–33).

Fear the Lord God, my son; fear lest you lose the crown prepared for you; fear lest you be separated from Christ and cast into the outer darkness and into the eternal torments. Stand firm and with courage in the faith of Orthodoxy, and, if it be necessary, gladly endure exile and other afflictions, for the Lord and His Holy Martyrs and Confessors will be with you: they will look with joy upon your deeds.

But woe to the monks of those days who will have gathered possessions and riches and, for the sake of a tranquil life, will be ready to submit to the heretics. They will lull their conscience, saying to themselves: “If we defend and save the monastery, the Lord will forgive us.” Unhappy and blinded ones! They will not consider that, together with heresy, the demon will also enter their monastery, and then it will no longer be a holy dwelling, but will become a mere building from which grace will depart. Yet God is stronger than the enemy and will never abandon His servants. And the true monasteries will endure until the end of the ages, only that they will choose for their habitation places deserted and far from the eyes of the world.

But do not be frightened by afflictions; rather fear the soul-destroying heresy, for it strips a man of grace and will separate him from Christ, since the Lord has commanded that every heretic be regarded as a heathen and a tax collector (Matthew 18:17). Therefore, my son, be strengthened in grace through Jesus Christ; strive with joy to accomplish the deeds of confession and endure sufferings as a good soldier of Christ (2 Timothy 2:1–2), Who said: “Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life” (Revelation 2:10). To Him be the honor, the glory, and the dominion, together with the Father and the Holy Spirit, unto the ages of ages.

 

(Fragment from Elder Anatoly the Elder of Optina (+1894), taken from the book I Saw the End of the World. The Testimonies of an Elder Who Lived One Hundred Years, vol. 1.)

 

Romanian source:

https://theodosie.ro/2026/03/01/ereticii-vremurilor-de-pe-urma-nu-vor-respinge-vadit-dogmele-ci-vor-rastalmaci-invatatura-bisericii-cuviosul-anatolie-cel-batran-de-la-optina/