The Meaning of Life

Bishop Pavel (Ivanovsky) of Vyazma (+1919)   

Source: От святой купели и до гроба: краткий устав жизни православного христианина [From the Holy Font to the Grave: A Brief Rule of Life of an Orthodox Christian].

 

 

 

I am the way and the truth and the life (John 14:6)

To resolve correctly and to pose the question: “Why were we created? To what should we strive?” — means to know the meaning of life. Unfortunately, some do not concern themselves at all with such a fundamental question, but live while life continues, eat in order to exist and exist in order to eat, and moreover as indulgently as possible, so as to pass their days as carelessly and as merrily as possible: “Live,” they say to themselves, “do not grieve; you will die — it is no loss!”… The life of such people in its value differs little from the existence of four-footed animals. To such carefree people applies the terrible word of God: “Woe to you who are full now!… Woe to you who laugh now!” (Luke 6:25).

But there are other people who, understanding the full baseness of animal-like existence and recognizing the relative value of strenuous ascetic struggle (“I want to live in order to think and to suffer!”), nevertheless see nothing beyond the grave, seek and do not find the higher meaning of being, fall into despair, and perish under the weight of life… And this happens because they proudly wish to bear everything themselves, by their own powers, and strive to know the meaning of existence apart from the Creator of the universe. They are like those travelers who, walking through a waterless desert and dying of thirst, spend their strength chasing deceptive mirages (phantoms) and pass hundreds of times by the rock with living water… This rock, or Stone, is Christ (1 Cor. 10:4), whom such builders of life neglect, but who speaks loudly to all who seek truth and spiritual strength, to all who thirst for the higher meaning of being: “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink” (John 7:37).

When creating man, the Lord God said: “Let us make man in Our image [and] according to Our likeness” (Gen. 1:26). In the image and likeness of God, which are found in the soul of man, is contained the whole meaning of our life, its highest goal: according to our image and likeness we must strive toward the Prototype, that is, toward God, so as to become more and more like Him and in union with the Lord to find our blessedness; in short, the purpose of man’s existence is “becoming like God.” Concerning this destiny of man, it is clearly said also in the Old Testament: “Be holy, for I [the Lord your God] am holy” (Lev. 11:44; 19:2; 20:7), and in the New: “Be perfect, as your Father in heaven is perfect” (Matt. 5:48). “That they all may be one: as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You, that they also may be one in Us” (John 17:21).

Such blessed union and likeness to God was also attained in Paradise by our first parents through obedience to the commandment of God (Gen. 2:16–17).

It is worthy of note that the power of the devil’s temptation and of sinful blindness consisted in this: that the devil promised our first parents that likeness to God which they already had (“you will be like gods” (Gen. 3:5)), but only through the transgression of God’s commandment. Thus, even now “every day” the devil tempts and destroys the souls of people by inclining them to find the meaning of being and to build their life apart from God, through the transgression of His law; and he tempts the body through various forms of gluttony (Gen. 3:6). But if the devil tempts people and casts them into sin and destruction, the Lord Jesus Christ saves sinners (Matt. 9:13; Luke 5:32; 1 Tim. 1:15), shows the true path of life, and gives the highest satisfaction to all the powers of man: “I am the way and the truth and the life” (John 14:6). The Lord Jesus Christ — the Savior — is the “way”; therefore only through Him do we know the meaning of being, through Him we attain salvation. He is the “truth”; therefore only through Him are we enlightened and attain wisdom. He is the “life”; therefore only through Him do we attain blessedness and the peace of the soul, for without Him, as without the sun (Mal. 4:2), there is no life, no spiritual joy, but only darkness and the shadow of death (Matt. 4:16): He is the “light of the world” (John 8:12).

And in what way is salvation attained through the Lord Jesus Christ? By imitating Him, by following after Him (Matt. 10:38), by drawing near to Him: through all this the soul receives true life, its spiritual food and drink, full satisfaction (John 6:35). In other words — our salvation is in “becoming like God,” and becoming like God is walking the path of Christ, that is, in the fulfillment of the Evangelical Law (Matt. 19:17), in the fulfillment of the will of the Heavenly Father (Matt. 12:50; John 15:10). But likeness to God must not be understood in such a way that man can ever become equal to God (this would be senseless), but rather that man, according to the measure of his strength, by the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, must always strive to become like God, and indeed more and more approaches the image of God. In this eternal striving toward the Light, in this eternal drawing near to God, lies the mystery of the endless paradisal blessedness of all the saved. Millions upon millions of years will pass; the saved in Paradise with each moment will attain greater and greater likeness to God and blessedness, and yet, just as at   beginning, they will never see its limits, because beyond the grave there is no longer time, the perfections of God are boundless, and the Lord Himself for the blessed souls is the never-setting Sun, pouring forth forever and ever unceasing light and blessedness (Rev. 21:23).

Behold the meaning and the goal of our life: they are so radiantly great and beautiful that they surpass the strength and understanding of weak man. Neither to know fully the true meaning of life nor to attain salvation can we by our weak powers; this is impossible for man, but possible for God (Luke 18:27): “By His divine power (of the Lord Jesus Christ) there has been granted to us everything necessary for life and godliness” (2 Pet. 1:3). But His gracious powers, as was written in the first part of this little book, are given only in His Holy Church through the Holy Mysteries. “Without Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5), that is, nothing truly good and beautiful. Why? Because however close one may plant a wild shoot (a wild plant) near the gracious vine, it cannot bear good fruit until it is truly grafted onto the gracious vine and takes its sap.

The Lord Jesus Christ precisely is the gracious, fruitful Vine, and we are the wild shoots. If we are grafted onto Him, then we shall bear beautiful and abundant fruit (John 15:4–5), being sanctified by His most pure sap, that is, by His Holy Blood and the other mysteries. True, even the wild shoot bears not a few fruits, sometimes beautiful in appearance, but only in appearance: in reality these fruits are bitter, hard, and unfit for use. So also are the “good deeds” of unbelieving people: in appearance they seem good, but in reality, they are full of self-love, the bitterness of doubt, and the like. Thus the Lord for us is “Everything,” but we without Him are “nothing”; He is our life, light, strength, and joy: “Thou art my strength, O Lord; Thou art my power; Thou art my God; Thou art my rejoicing” (Fourth Ode of the Resurrectional Canon, Tone 8).

What, then, do those mentioned builders of life without Christ say in their own justification? They say many things, but above all that Christianity has fallen behind life and has become outdated. But who declares this? First of all, those who have an entirely false conception of Christianity: they think that Christianity is nothing more than a teaching, whereas it is precisely life itself, the true life: “The words that I speak to you are spirit and life” (John 6:63), and Christ Himself is our life (Col. 3:4). Therefore, if any life has fallen behind, then, on the contrary, it is their life — the life of unbelievers — that has fallen behind the perfect life, behind Christianity. We repeat: those are in false blindness who think that Christianity is something like a philosophical teaching, Buddhism, Confucianism, and the like.

Secondly, those who reason about Christianity in every distorted way and evaluate it are precisely the persons who in reality have not lived the Christian life and do not know it at all… Were they ever poor in spirit, or meek, or mourning for sins, or hungering for righteousness, and the like? Nothing of the sort! They, being ignorant of the Christian life, wish to measure it with their petty measure, wholly unsuitable — as though beauty were measured in inches or music in pounds — forgetting that this is both unreasonable and false: “The natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Cor. 2:14).

The spiritual life can be known and judged only by the righteous man — the spiritual man. “The soul sees the truth of God according to the measure of its life” (Isaac the Syrian). But carnal people — enemies of Christianity — occupy themselves chiefly with this: in bold blindness they build a “tower of Babel” up to heaven, call it “the latest word of science,” supposedly overthrowing Christianity, and in their pride do not wish to see that their tower is collapsing, and that impartial history has already lost count of the former “towers of Babel,” while Christianity stands unshaken and will remain forever unconquerable, despite all the forces of hell (Matt. 16:18).

For Christianity is nothing other than the strength of life, its justification — the beauty of life and holiness: “Whatever things are true, whatever things are honorable, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there be any virtue and if there be any praise, think on these things” (Phil. 4:8). Thus Christianity is the light and the sanctity of life. How then can one rise up against what is truly beautiful? This is blindness. Those who do not wish to understand this because of their stubbornness or pride, who assert that Christianity does not correspond to life or has fallen behind it, may be likened to those people who themselves have fallen into a deep dark pit and assure others that the sun no longer exists and that the sun has fallen behind them…

But to those among them who wish to be convinced of the opposite — of the truth of Christianity — it must be pointed out what was said above, namely: that the spiritual is known only through the spiritual life, that the light of Christianity can illuminate a person only gradually through his own personal experience as a living and active member of the Church of Christ: “Come and see” (John 1:46). “Taste and see that the Lord is good!” (Ps. 33:9).

He who has tasted, even for the shortest time, the sweetness of the Evangelical Good News will no longer wish to feed on the bitterness of unbelief, but, on the contrary, sells and gives all that he has only in order to acquire the one pearl precious for life — the faith of Christ (Matt. 13:45–46), through which we attain the eternal salvation of the soul. And this is more precious than all the treasures of the world (Matt. 16:20), for our soul is immortal, whereas the treasures of the world are all corruptible and quickly passing; they lose their value at the grave. But our soul will be completely satisfied only by that which does not die, which is eternal — young — incorruptible… “To an inheritance incorruptible, undefiled, and unfading, reserved in heaven” we are all called (1 Pet. 1:4) — young and old, wise and simple, rich and poor — all, all are obliged to seek first of all and above all eternal salvation, “the Kingdom of God and His righteousness” (Matt. 6:33).

Let no one think that the Lord calls to Himself and saves only the righteous: He “came to save sinners” through repentance (1 Tim. 1:15).

Let no one think that, in order to obtain salvation, special feats of vigil, fasting, virginity, dwelling in monasteries, in deserts, and the like are necessarily required. Special feats are the path of the chosen: they are only for those who are able to bear them or receive them (Matt. 19:12).

But we, all the rest — ordinary people — can and must be saved also in the world, in the ordinary conditions of life: let us only perform our work without laziness and with God’s blessing (1 Cor. 10:31), not murmur at our lot, considering every blessed task as salvific for ourselves, even if we should have to spend our whole life darning old stockings; let us faithfully fulfill our duty as Christians with respect to the temple of God, confession, and communion, and toward our neighbors “not do to others what we would not wish done to ourselves” (decree of the Apostolic Council), and we shall be saved by the grace of God. Let us say even more than this: from the lives of the saints it is known that some lay people, even in the married state, attained such spiritual perfection as great ascetics and hermits did not attain (see, for example, about the two daughters-in-law, Menaion Reading, Jan. 19); therefore the venerable Macarius the Egyptian wrote for the instruction of us all: “God does not look whether one is a virgin, or a spouse, a monk, or a layman, but seeks only the heartfelt willingness for good deeds. Acquire such willingness, and salvation is near you, whoever you may be and wherever you may live.”

However, those who are able to bear special feats, or can receive the holiness of virginity, are obliged to do so, for we are all called to what is better, not to what is worse: “He who is able to receive it, let him receive it” (Matt. 19:12), the Lord commanded. To such chosen ones the Lord grants higher rewards in heaven and crowns them with special honor. Thus the virgins will be numbered among the firstfruits of God and of the Lamb and will enjoy such blessedness and sing such a wondrous song to the Lord that no one except them can learn it (Rev. 14:3–4). Virgins were the holy prophets Elijah and John the Baptist, the holy apostles John the Theologian, James, Paul, and others. Following their example many saints desired to remain forever in virginity; and in order to preserve themselves from the temptations of the world they withdrew into desert places. From this arose monasteries and monasticism. The foundation of monasticism consists of the vows of virginity, non-possession, and obedience.

Life according to these holy vows is a life like that of the angels; it is a constant sacrifice in which both soul and body are dedicated to God. For such self-sacrifice a hundredfold reward is promised by the Lord: “Truly I say to you, there is no one who has left house, or brothers, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for My sake and for the Gospel’s, who shall not receive now, in this time, amid persecutions, a hundredfold more houses, and brothers, and sisters, and fathers, and mothers, and children, and lands, and in the age to come eternal life” (Mark 10:29–30).

In order to have an understanding of the monastic vows, let us speak of each of them separately in the words of the holy Fathers of the Church: “Virginity is a work so great and wondrous that it surpasses all human virtues” (St. John Chrysostom).

“Virginity especially makes the soul the bride of the Heavenly Bridegroom — Christ — and the body the temple of the Holy Spirit” (Venerable Nilus).

Concerning the importance of non-possession, the Venerable Peter of Damascus speaks thus: “For the weak it is better to withdraw from everything, and non-possession is much better than almsgiving. He who once has given away everything (which everyone receiving monasticism is obliged to do) has fulfilled the duty of love and mercy toward the poor more perfectly than one who gives them a small part of his possessions but keeps the greater part for himself. It is good for God’s sake to give alms, but no offering is so pleasing to God as wholly to surrender to Him one’s soul and will.”

“Obedience is better than sacrifice and more pleasing to God, for in sacrifices the flesh of another is slain, but in obedience one’s own will” (St. Gregory the Great).

“Obedience uproots all passions and plants every good thing; it brings the Son of God to dwell in man, raises man to heaven, and makes him like the Son of God, Who was obedient to His Father even unto death on the Cross” (Venerable Barsanuphius).

Much has been said by the holy Fathers in defense and praise of monasticism. Whoever wishes to know in detail should read their writings, especially those of Basil the Great and John Chrysostom, Ephraim the Syrian, Abba Dorotheus, and John of the Ladder; but we, from the much that has been said, will take at least a little.

Saint Basil says: “Monks are the true imitators of the Savior and of His life in the flesh. For as He, having gathered disciples, lived with them and had all things in common, so also these, obeying the abbot, truly imitate the life of the apostles and of the Lord, if only they keep the rule of life.”

Saint John Chrysostom, in his sermons to the people in the city of Constantinople, not only praised the monastic life but also advised lay people to visit monasteries. Reasoning about the benefit of such visits, he says: “The poor man, having visited the dwellings of the monks, will depart from the monastery with greater consolation in his poverty. And if a rich man visits the monks, he will return from them a better man and with sound understanding about things. When one clothed with dignity comes to them, here especially all pride disappears. Here even wolves are turned into lambs. If in anyone there has been kindled the desire to lead such a beautiful life, then while this desire is still burning in you, go to these angels and be inflamed still more. For not so much can my words inflame you as the sight of the deed itself.”

One of the sermons of Saint John Chrysostom on monasticism ended with this appeal: “Therefore go to them more often, so that, being protected by their prayers and instructions from the defilements that continually assail you, you may pass the present life as well as possible and be made worthy of the future blessings.”