Orthodox America
A few years ago, Metropolitan Vitaly (Russian Church Abroad), said that
the world has now opened the first page of the Book of the Apocalypse; in other
words, we have now begun to live in the times described in that dread book of
prophecy.
Similarly, less than fifty years ago Archbishop Theophan of Poltava told
a spiritual child: "You ask me about the near future and about the last
times. I do not speak on my own but give the revelation of the Elders: The
coming of Antichrist draws nigh and is very near. The time separating us from
him should be counted a matter of years and at most a matter of some
decades."
In 198l, just a year before his death, the late Hieromonk Seraphim (Rose)
said to an audience of Russian youth in San Francisco:
"Even secular writers speak of our
'apocalyptic' times. And truly, the problems that plague the world today--the
exhaustion of resources and food, overpopulation, the literal monsters created
by modern technology, and especially the weapons capable of destroying entire
countries or even the whole civilized earth---all point to the approach of a
crisis in human history quite beyond anything the world has ever seen, and
perhaps to the literal end of life upon earth."
Take Heed that ye be not deceived... (Luke 21:8)
Many people, however, would argue that such end of the world predictions
have often been heard in history, ever since the time of the apostles.
"Besides," they say, 'look at how much better things are today than
they were even five years ago. Computers have brought improved communication;
advances in medicine and other sciences hold promise of being able to solve many
of today's problems; the whole situation in the Soviet Union is changing: the
Cold War has ended and we are on the way towards nuclear disarmament... In
short, for the first time we are looking towards the possibility of real
security for the future through lasting peace."
Yet Saint Paul tells us that it is in just such times as these that we
must be most discerning: The day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the
night, for when they shall say Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh
upon them...
Indeed,
it is a question of discernment: the ability to identify and set things apart as
different and distinct, the ability to recognize deception which, from the time
of Adam, the Enemy has used to draw man away from God. Apostle Paul, in his
epistles, constantly exhorts his reader: Be not deceived. In both Old and New
Testament times people ran after false prophets because they lacked the
discernment necessary to distinguish between him that serveth God and him that
serveth Him not (Mal. 3:18). One of the signs of the end of time will be that
many such false prophets shall rise and shall deceive many (Matt. 24:11). And
this widespread deception will prepare the way for the acceptance of Antichrist
(Il Thess. 2:3).
Like the
Pharisees and Sadducees, whom the Lord sternly upbraided, many people today can
discern the face of the sky, but fail to discern the signs of the times
(Matt. 16:3), which to the sober observer are becoming increasingly---and
shocking – apparent: in spite of seemingly promising political developments,
our generation has descended into wickedness like unto "the days of
Noah" spoken of by Christ, with an unprecedented increase of immorality,
demonic activity materialism. "Peace" is desired above Truth, inviting
a religious synthesis (already preached by New Age devotees) which accepts
Christ equally with Mohammed and others as 'Great Masters' a deception made
possible
We should not assume that because we are Orthodox Christians we are
'safe' from such delusion; it takes many forms and can be very refined. We must,
therefore, strive to be spiritually vigilant and pray for discernment, that we
may escape the snares of the Evil One.
Discernment is light, and the spiritual insight it
generates is more necessary than all other gifts. For what is more necessary
than to perceive the wiles of the demons and with the help of God's grace to
protect one’s soul? --St.
Peter of Damaskos, Philokalia
Without discernment we can only understand things on a superficial level;
we cannot penetrate to the real meaning of events and issues; we cannot prepare
for what is to come; we may fall to one unhealthy extreme or another.
Discernment is all the more crucial today when we no longer have the
support of a basically, Christian society. No longer is the Christian
perspective the accepted norm. We must, therefore, be conscientious in applying
discernment to issues which affect us and our children. For example, what are
the implications of sex education and the proposed introduction of religious
education in schools? Unless we are careful to exercise discernment we are in
danger of accepting facts with the interpretation given them by the context in
which we receive them: the political philosophy of the journalist, the levity of
the newscaster, the moral values of the movie maker, the ethics of our business
partner...
In the realm of spiritual struggle, discernment refers to the
"lantern of the soul by which man finds his way along the spiritual path
without falling into extremes" (Philokalia, volume II). It is
"characterized by an unerring recognition of what is good and what is not,
and the knowledge of the will of God in all that one does" (St. Peter
Damaskos, Ibid.). There are, of course, many levels of discernment, and few
attain the heights manifest by the clairvoyant elders and saints. But in this
age of spiritual confusion and uncertainty it is imperative that we strive to
acquire it to the measure that God's grace will grant it to us.
How is this accomplished? The Holy Fathers tell us that discernment is
born of humility. The late Archpriest Boris Molchanoff, in his excellent study,
Antichrist, [Available from St. John of Kronstadt Press, Rt. 1 Box 205, Liberty,
TN 37095] says that to acquire discernment "one must first of all be
obedient to the mind of the Orthodox Catholic Church."' This means that
"one must verify each of one's own reasonings with the word of God and the
teachings of the Fathers". Therefore, careful and constant study of
Scripture---which Fr. Boris says should be our "constant handbook" and
"guidebook"--together with the commentaries of the Fathers, is an
indispensable aid to discernment, particularly concerning the Last Times. And
since our contemporary Holy Fathers now testify that we do, indeed, seem to be
at the beginning of the Apocalypse, discernment is all the more critical if we
are to withstand the apostasy and endure the prophesied tribulations to come.
Fr. Alexey Young, Editor.
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