The Economic Crisis and Spiritual Freedom

Bishop Klemes of Gardikion (now Metropolitan of Larissa and Platamon)

Address delivered at the Fifth Pan-Hellenic Youth Meeting of the Church of the Genuine Orthodox Christians of Greece, Ktima 10, Gorytsa, Aspropyrgos, Attica, Saturday, October 19 / November 1, 2014.

 

 

Your Beatitude; Most Reverend and Right Reverend Hierarchs; Beloved Fathers and Brethren, Young Men and Young Women of our Church;

It is a great honor and joy for me, but also a weighty responsibility, to address, at such a festive Gathering, the young people of our Church of the Genuine Orthodox Christians of Greece. The occasion is wonderful; we are passing through the period of our ecclesiastical Union. We feel a special blessing from our Lord, and we receive divine gifts with gratitude. One such gift is our Gathering today, and we thank God for it.

Our Gathering is a much-desired opportunity; it brings us Pastors close to our Hope—to you, our youth, our future. You have dreams and prospects, and we both envy you, rejoice in you, and feel deeply for you. But above all, we love you!

Our Lord and God loves you, and life smiles upon you with optimism. Heaven and your conscience call you to soar to great heights, to achievements, to the development of your gifts, to creativity with freedom, genuineness, truth, courage, and love.

And our Church, the Body of Christ, shows you and offers you the framework for living these values; it offers you the ecclesiastical way of existence, and the Theanthropic ways. Freedom from every heavy yoke and the departure from the “ego,” the opening toward true relationship and communion with God, with yourselves, and with your neighbor.

This can always take place, under any circumstances. And it has been observed historically that the more oppressive the conditions of life are, the greater the possibilities we have for spiritual enlivening and freedom. And the more we are outwardly in comfort and prosperity, the more easily we become inwardly enslaved to various passions-masters, which demand a tribute of life, the surrender of our freedom, and our captivity, temporal and eternal.

For this reason, the various “crises” are permitted through divine love for mankind, so that the stagnant waters may be stirred up and we may be roused from our deep lethargy, in order to reconsider mistaken attitudes and choices, to return to our authentic selves, and to make a new beginning.

* * *

Thus it has always been with us, with our much-suffering and glorious Nation, with the Greek people. We seemed to be fading away, to be disappearing, to be crushed, to be coming to an end...

But no! We always resisted, struggled, remained hopeful, endured and persevered; in the end, we achieved great things, culminating in the triumph of our Resurrection.

We had a driving force; we had Faith. We had love of God and love of mankind; we had love of country and a sense of honor! We had that which has been preserved until today, though it is flickering faintly; that is, we had the “Greek philotimo”!

We produced noble people, people with visions and ideals, people of generosity, beneficence, sacrifice, and service. We did not from of old keep our treasure only for ourselves, but transmitted it with love and concern to others as well, through missionary work, with remarkable results not only religious, but also humanitarian and civilizing.

* * *

But how did we, the descendants of Saints and Heroes, come to the state in which we now find ourselves?

Today we are in a crisis; this is what is heard and seen everywhere, with the economic crisis as its chief manifestation. There is a great and costly price being paid here, felt by everyone, young and old, since more or less all of us are suffering. Indeed, the very survival of the poorest and weakest is directly threatened!...

Reductions in wages and pensions, unemployment, emigration abroad, anxiety, insecurity, an increase in crime, suicides, growing waves of political and economic migrants... The horizons seem to be closing in dangerously...

The blame assigned by various people is considerable and serious, and concerns mainly the politicians and the political system in general, which was unable to respond properly to the challenges, which squandered the public funds and debased values, and which also spread the falsehood that money and goods were available, though in fact they were borrowed!...

As is well known, every crisis has certain deeper spiritual causes. The deeper level of the economic crisis is political, cultural, social, moral, spiritual, and religious. I would also say ecclesiastical.

Has not our Orthodox Church, for approximately a century now, been mercilessly assailed by blows from her own leaders, aimed literally at her destruction? The persecution was not so much external, although there was such persecution as well. It was, and remains, an internal corrosion, carried out through methodical moves and actions, by means of supposedly modernizing reforms, foremost among them that of the Calendar, until we have reached the unchecked escalation of the heresy of Ecumenism, which undermines the very foundations of the essence of Christianity, since it sets itself against the Orthodox Church of Christ as a syncretistic Pan-Religion...

These crises which we have just mentioned were regarded by the overwhelming majority of people as progressive phenomena; now, amid the chaos of bankruptcy, both economic and spiritual, many see grave mistakes, but few decide not to perpetuate them and instead to change course.

If we look a little more closely at the spiritual causes of the economic crisis, we will see that in developed countries, as also in our own homeland during recent decades, people became accustomed to comfortable living, easy profit, deceit and degradation, and in general grew accustomed to what is called consumer mania. They became dominated by machines, with self-love, hardness of heart, egocentrism, love of pleasure, greed, indifference toward others, and forgetfulness of God. A terrible existential void became apparent, one that identified the meaning of life with the enjoyment of material goods and the gratification of bodily/carnal sensations. All these things had, and continue to have, tragic consequences.

People are now unable to make the simple distinction between “what I want” and “what I need.” I want many things, but in reality, I do not need all of them in order to live...

If we do not acquire self-mastery, guided by right reason—or rather, by the word of God—preferring not our own benefit, but that of the many; if we do not learn to wait for everything we desire to come in its proper time, if and when and as God grants or permits it, and not when and as we ourselves want it, forcing matters, then even amid the crisis we ourselves will increase its intensity and burden and will not contribute to alleviating it; we will be and remain slaves of corruption, and not children of freedom and grace!

* * *

But wherein does the true freedom of man lie? The answer of the Church of Christ, through Her Saints, is that it lies in self-determination. We are created according to the Image and Likeness of God, that is, free, which means possessing self-determination.

Despite our natural, social, and other limitations, we are able to choose our purpose and direct ourselves toward it. If what we choose and what pleases us entails dependence upon the senses, sensible things, and material goods, and indeed gives rise to crisis, then it is not related to true freedom, but brings spiritual slavery.

If what we choose and what pleases us entails dependence upon the senses, sensible things, and material goods, and indeed gives rise to crisis, then it is not related to true freedom, but brings spiritual slavery. For this reason, Dostoevsky somewhere posed the interesting and decisive question: “happiness or freedom?”

The “happiness” of egoism and disobedience to the divine will is, in essence, the worst form of slavery, because it subjects the supposedly happy person to the man-slaying devil. This is the “freedom of egoism,” which satisfies the will of the flesh, but leads to separation in soul and heart from other people and from God, to loneliness and to death. Behold hell!...

By contrast, the “freedom of love” is the only true freedom, because it is identified with the divine will, the will of sacrifice and responsibility, which unites us spiritually with other people and with God; this true freedom is cruciform and resurrectional; it is paradisiacal. This is the path our Most Holy Lady walked and manifested, as did all the Saints. This is what our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, the Only Lover of Mankind, taught and revealed, both by rejecting the “temptations” of love of pleasure, love of money, and self-love in the wilderness, and above all through His Immaculate Passion and Saving Crucifixion, which bestowed upon us Life and Incorruption!...

* * *

The economic crisis today places great challenges before all of us, and especially before the young, for the rediscovery and recovery of our spiritual freedom.

The solutions which bring about good results in society do not come about violently and mechanically. They require a spiritual process within the soul of each one of us.

Since the true freedom of the soul is not connected with material measures, but with spiritual ones—with peace, solidarity, harmonious relationships, understanding, compassion, patience, forgiveness, and true love—what is therefore required is a return to ourselves, for our purification and liberation from the passions that have accumulated, so that our inner unification may be brought about by the Grace of God.

This penitential course and process constitutes the therapeutic method for finding our true identity and encountering God, so that our relationships with others may also be placed on the proper foundation and directed along the right path.

A complete reversal is needed: liberation from the suffocating structure of modern life and, as far as possible, detachment from its spirit. Our great responsibility and urgent duty is to change our materialistic mentality, to establish new priorities, to distinguish our desires from our real needs, and to become simple in our way of life, self-controlled, merciful, and devoted to the common good.

* * *

What does this economic crisis, with its restrictions, mean in practical terms for a young person—a believing young person, a modern young person of the “Old Calendar” (!)? That is, what challenges does it place before him for spiritual freedom?

Our humble proposal and exhortation is this: that our young people come once again to love their martyric Church and their Faith, their homeland, their history, their language, their culture, their weighty heritage, their dignity and nobility!...

Why?

So that they may realize that freedom begins within themselves, in their own hearts and minds;

So that they may be genuine, honorable, and sincere seekers and lovers of the Truth;

So that they may not complain and cast the burdens upon others, but instead assume their share of responsibility;

So that they may not become accustomed to ease, idleness, deceit, and falsehood, but to sacrifice, self-offering, and conscientious hard work;

So that they may not exist for themselves alone, but may learn to live with others;

So that they may begin to look upon their neighbor with compassion and prefer his good to their own;

So that they may learn to be content with the few things that are necessary, and desire to share these with others;

So that they may rejoice with those who rejoice and sorrow with those who sorrow;

So that they may acknowledge their mistakes, accept corrections and suggestions, know how to engage in dialogue, and, when necessary, yield and make concessions;

So that they may not imitate and envy things that are alien, unworthy, and harmful, but instead aim at what has been tested and proven enduring, at what is lofty and pure, at what is eternal;

So that they may not become enslaved to homogenizing theories and practices that turn them into controlled instruments and robots and reduce them to servitude, but instead uphold, preserve, and embody their distinctive Greek Orthodox identity;

So that they may not be enticed by and succumb to the suggestions of whatever temptation continually besieges them and seeks their capture and destruction, but instead display a heroic and martyric spirit;

So that they may not be carried away by outbursts of anger and wrath, nor descend into obscenities and insults, but restrain their “shattered” nerves and learn self-control and peace;

So that they may not be overcome and shattered in soul and body, nor despair amid the failures and disappointments of life, but with repentance and determination throw themselves once again, with optimism and renewed strength, into the arena of struggle;

So that they may look with purity and self-sacrifice upon the image of God, even though faded, in every human being;

So that they may listen attentively to the needs, pain, and toil of others, and learn to honor, respect, and obey.

So that they may put an end to their dependence on the internet, Facebook, YouTube, online games, gambling, virtual reality, and all those supposedly modern goods which “kill” their precious time and blacken their souls; for they lead to falsehood, deceit, and wicked and insatiable love of pleasure, with its countless tentacles, which make them slaves of corruption and literally render them useless!

[In saying the above, we do not reject the necessary use of technological achievements, but condemn their misuse, knowing that the boundaries between use and misuse are not merely difficult to distinguish, but almost nonexistent...].

[We continue], so that they (the young) may learn to feel the need to kneel and entrustingly lay before our Lord, as a beloved and compassionate Father, their grievances, weaknesses, and sins;

So that they may have recourse as often as possible to the stole of their respected, trusted, and discerning Spiritual Father, in order to lay down their burden and receive an infusion of new Life;

So that they may open themselves in love, eucharistically and ecclesially, to the Virtues and to the Mysteries, to the Divine Energies!...

With faith, hope, and love, which lead to likeness with God, that is, to theosis, every crisis is overcome; our calling is to be united with the Triune God in His eternal, ever-new, ageless Kingdom!

* * *

Beloved young men and young women;

Do not squander your youth! You are potential Saints, not a faceless herd of animals destined for slaughter! We look to you with great expectations; do not disappoint us!

I know that you, too, look to us who are older, and especially to the Clergy, with high expectations, and you do not want us to disappoint you. And in this you are absolutely right. The example of those who are older counts far more than their advice.

In a certain sense, we mutually commit ourselves to helping one another. We pray for you, and we ask you to pray for us. May our Lord grant us opportunities for communication and edification!

The final word of my text is this: Against the mutual tearing apart of the law of the jungle that prevails around us, set forth sacrificially the “rending” (according to Saint Gregory the Theologian) of healing and victorious Love!

The Love of God for Man, and of Man for God and for his fellow man, will triumph!

Be with the Free, with the Victors!

Thank you!

 

Source: Μαρτυρία Πίστεως καὶ Ζωῆς [Witness of Faith and Love], Bishop Klemes of Gardikion, Phyle, Attica, 2017, pp. 175-183.