Română
In this episode, Metropolitan Neophytos of Morphou speaks on how we can acquire and keep humility. Through real stories of saints and practical steps, he explains why humility is the “garment of divinity” and how silence, heartfelt prayer, and letting go of self-righteousness help transform the soul.
This English translation of the sermon of His Eminence Metropolitan Neophytos of Morphou during the 2nd “Lighting the lighter of the saints” Spiritual Dialogue Meeting with His Eminence, 14 April 2019, was provided by the ‘Metropolitan Neophytos of Morphou Homilies’ YouTube channel and was presented for otelders.org by Porphyrios from the ‘Orthodox Treasures YouTube Channel.’ The meeting was hosted by the Renewal Committee of the Church of Panagia Kataphygiotissa in Platanistasa and took place at the event hall of the Holy Church of God’s Wisdom (Agia Sophia) in Strovolos, Cyprus.
Original video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wXLtYgP-1M Greek with English subtitles: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOuoYydc3rk
Check out Orthodox Treasures’s YouTube channel, which generously recorded and shared this homily with us. They are doing a great mission by sharing inspiring Orthodox Christian books: https://www.youtube.com/@OrthodoxTreasures-m7p
Metropolitan Neophytos:
Good evening to everyone.
With the grace of God and of Panagia Katafygiotissa I am here with you today.
After that extended introduction — which we saw and listened to, especially the texts that were read — they were so moving and set the tone for the festive atmosphere of the Holy Week and the Resurrection.
I thought to myself, “You poor bishop, what are you going to say now? Your sermon will probably sound like a cacophony after everything our Church has already written down.”
I’m happy that this year, I don’t have a fixed subject for my sermons. This thought came to me after what we experienced last week at Akaki, where I go every year for the past two decades and deliver a sermon of my own inspiration. This year, [however], — because we have all grown and matured together and now, thank God, we are growing older and wiser — I said, “Let’s see what the people need.”
Often, we hierarchs have fallen into the habit of delivering monologues through our sermons. But today, especially in our age, here in Cyprus and in the Church of Cyprus I feel like we are at a turning point. Something is coming to an end, and something else is about to begin.
That’s why Ms. Pitta so eloquently remarked that in everything we do, there is a dose of uncertainty. This uncertainty doesn’t reflect a lack of faith, but a sense that something no longer fulfils the meaning of our existence like it used to.
Therefore, especially the bishops as well as the priests must listen to the needs of the faithful. [There is a growing desire] for – dare I say – a catechetical sermon, [one that helps us] learn our faith.
Our Europe today is filled with knowledge, and as the poet Veritis reminds us “It is full of lights which are not the Light.”
So, this practice, of you asking questions and us answering, is an ancient practice, I have you know.
These big books that you see, the Complete Works of St. John Chrysostom, were the interpretation of the Gospel, of the [works] of the Holy Apostles, and the questions of the people of Constantinople to this great prelate.
There were no microphones then; They didn’t drink tea or coffee, so, we have it better.
Saint Porphyrios told me once, “When you reach middle age,” “technology will help you out.” “Your voice will be heard from Australia to Canada.”
So now the words of the saints come true. I am ready to listen to your questions.
Let me hear from Mrs. Pitta, who is responsible for this effort.
[To Mrs. Pitta] Look, God gave you the charisma of leadership. If you fail as a leader… God gave me eloquence, if I fail in my sermons, I will be damned. [Similarly], if you don’t fulfill your role here, you will be damned too.
(people from the audience interrupt with some comments)
[His Eminence]: Only God’s mercy can save us, not our deeds.
I just want to know how much time I have.
[Mrs. Pitta]: As much time as you like.
[Discussion about the time remaining for questions and answers]
[Question]: How do we acquire and keep humility?
How do we deal with thoughts [logismoi] of boasting and vainglory?…
[His Eminence]: This is a difficult question.
It’s a difficult question, I repeat, because we speak of humility, but none of us can claim to be humble.
As I mentioned a few days ago in another sermon, one of the holy people I met in Greece was Holy Elder Evmenios Saridakis the Leper, who was a disciple of St. Nikephoros the Leper.
I met him when I was a young university student, and recognised his holiness, and he agreed – after many requests – to become my spiritual father and hear my confessions.
I also went to St. Iakovos of Evia for confession, but he [St. Evmenios] was closer to us, he lived in Athens, so we could visit him whenever we needed.
Well, next to him we learned, I might say, the monastic discipline.
On how to cultivate and keep humility – which is even harder than monastic discipline– he would say,
“Until you die,” “until the moment when your soul comes out of your mouth,” “you will be saying in your nous,” “‘Lord, Jesus Christ, grant me meekness, humility and simplicity.’”
I repeat. These are three virtues that we all need.
I repeat them so that we keep them in mind, not as a meditation, — that is a temptation for the Roman Catholics, to engage in religious contemplations.
Orthodox Christians realize what they lack spiritually and transform that realization into prayer.
“Lord Jesus Christ, grant me meekness, humility and simplicity.”
We were young then, 20, 22 years old, and we would ask him: [What about] temperance?
A young man needs temperance and his temperance is often tempted.
He would respond: “Temperance will come easily.” “The other three are more difficult [to acquire].”
So, humility is not a matter of technique, as modern gurus suggest, as if we can flip a switch in our souls and suddenly acquire humility.
“Humility,” as St. Isaac of Syria says, “is the garment of divinity.”
As you saw earlier on the screen, “the Extreme Humility of Christ” is the main symbol of the Holy Week.
It’s no coincidence that in the prothesis where the priests commemorate we see the Extreme Humility of Christ, which is what?
It is the fact that Jesus Christ condescended to die standing upright in the tomb.
But standing upright! This is very important.
He is a God that is never abandoned by the Holy Spirit, since He is always united with Him, but He condescends to die for us.
Now, on a more practical level:
How can we cultivate humility?
We need to learn to stay silent.
But unless you pray beforehand, don’t try these exercises that I will give you now because Satan will know and he will ruin your efforts.
Only those who pray [can do this].
I repeat: I will give you some practical advice.
For example: we should not respond when we are wrongly accused.
This is how St. Nektarios [of Aegina] became a saint.
He appeared to someone and said, “I didn’t do much ascesis.” “I did the usual, what every priest, bishop does.”
But I became a saint — not least, a myrrh-flowing miracle-worker saint — “because when I was accused,” —and, mind you, by bishops [of all people]— “I stayed silent and didn’t claim my right.”
Pay attention to what we say at the memorial service: “Blessed are You, O Lord; teach me Your commandments”.
Europe teaches us to claim our rights.
You see the chaos dividing these two worlds, Orthodoxy on the one hand and the Western self-centeredness on the other.
So, as we diminish our sense of self-righteousness, which is one of the simplest things that we can start from and then go to bigger ones.
That is, when we are wronged, we should first look for strength in prayer and stay silent.
Let’s not fight as much [to assert our] our self-righteousness.
A priest or a spiritual father can help us find this balance.
A man of God, [who was] a very close friend of mine and helped me a lot, he was ten years older than me, his name was Gerasimos Fokas (✝2015), He became Metropolitan of Kefalonia for 20 days.
And then God “grabbed” him and took him to heaven.
I noticed that, even though he was a rich kid, he would always wear the same pair of trousers.
[For example], we would go pay a visit someplace.
They would place five fruits on the table; he waited until everyone else picked, –we would always hurry to pick the best, the most shiny and beautiful one– but Gerasimos would always pick the worst.
Never the best, always the worst one.
I was surprised, so I told him once: “Gerasimos, wherever we go you eat the worst;” “you are dressed the simplest way;”
And he said, “To cultivate humility, my master.” He would call me, “My master”.
“In order to cultivate humility,” “let us learn to give up our rights.”
So, humility means not to demand your rights.
Just like Christ [our] God restrained His own omnipotence and was crucified and died for our sake, and He was mocked.
What you saw Christ do, that’s what you and I should do, too.
He was mocked, the only thing He said, –He didn’t stay silent–, He said, “If I have spoken evil, bear witness of the evil;” “but if well, why do you strike Me?” [John 18:23]
Pilate asked Him, “What is truth?” And He stayed silent.
So, let’s not treat the Passion of Christ sentimentally. “Oh, poor Jesus, look at what He had to suffer!”
These Passions [of Christ] are “salvific lights.”
Therefore, we watch Christ’s humility and we find similar ways to cultivate humility.
I repeat, reading the Gospel regularly, or the Lives of the Saints.
That’s another way to learn humility, by studying the Lives of the Saints.
Humility is the centre of our existence, Every saint was given a way in order to become humble.
Keep that in mind!
St. Nektarios [acquired humility] by staying silent, by giving up his rights.
Others practiced patience as they buried their children.
Others were patient with diseases, with grave diseases.
We Cypriots say, “Buddy, there is nothing as precious as health.”
And I answer back: “Was Saint Nikephoros healthy?”
It was through his disease (leprosy) that he became a saint.
But first we should ask for humility [to be granted to us by God].
Now, on how to maintain it.
That’s only possible with inner prayer from the heart.
This is how you maintain all virtues, but most of all humility.
Meekness helps a lot, so does simplicity.
You see, Holy Elder Evmenios was right in what he told me.
A person who lacks simplicity [is destined to] be tortured by logical questions.
And logic is “a problem.”
Because in our age we equate the rational part of the soul with the noetic part of the soul, which is the heart.
Humility is maintained through prayer from the heart.
Or, as St. Isaac of Syria says, “Unless we pray with pain, …” “humility can be cultivated and maintained through a disease” “or through defamation [against us].”
These are words of St. Isaac, not mine….
In any case, whether you are sick, defamed or wronged, you need to labour on the inner prayer from the heart.
[To do this pray] either with, “Lord, Jesus Christ, have mercy on me,” or with the “Most Holy Theotokos, save us,” or “O Theotokos and Virgin,” or with the Psalter, which is equal to the noetic prayer.
Our friend, Abbot Petros, [the abbot] of the Holy Monastery of Dionysiou in Mount Athos once told me, “The bizarre thing with these three new saints,” “Iakovos, Porphyrios and Paisios,” is that they received the grace [of the Holy Spirit] at a very young age.
St. Porphyrios was 15, 16 years old when he got the gift of clairvoyance through Elder Dimas.
And he told me something I hadn’t considered until then.
He told me, “The weird thing [with St. Porphyrios is not as much how he acquired the gift from the Holy Spirit]” “but the fact that he [managed] to maintain it.”
Many monks here in Mount Athos acquire the gift of clairvoyance through much ascesis.
But then they get the thought that they have become saints and the gift leaves them …
Thus, [it’s impossible to remain humble], without ardent and painful prayer.
[This kind of prayer] is the result of looking inwards, that’s what “painful prayer” means.
I watch my passions [vices] within me and repent every day for them.
And through this daily, diligent repentance, the unceasing, inner prayer from the heart is born.
This [prayer] then brings Christ’s humility in our heart, and then we see happen what St. Justin Popovic said happen:
“My humble Lord, humble me through Your humility”.
Listen to what this man of God said.
“My humble Lord, humble me through Your humility”.
Now, [the questions asks] how to deal with thoughts of pride and vainglory.
This is something you should ask your spiritual father about.
because the thoughts of boasting and vainglory are inevitable for all of us.
All of us.
They said to me earlier, “Your Eminence, sing us a song;” “you have a beautiful voice.”
And I felt pride within myself.
There is no question about whether we will get [this sort of] thoughts.
We certainly will — all of us.
Do you think that the saints didn’t have thoughts?
They did … they had desires too.
But they learned to repent.
That’s the point.
These thoughts of pride and vainglory, or even worse, carnal thoughts and carnal desires; which we all have, because we all have a body, as men “wearing flesh and inhabiting this world” (from the service of the Holy Confession).
we need to use all these thoughts as a means of repentance.
Did I boast for my voice? “My Christ, forgive me.”
Do I have feelings of vainglory? “My Christ, forgive me.”
If we have someone who truly loves us and humbles us, that is of great help.
That’s why monasteries need an elder.
(he draws an analogy between the elder and subordinate monk, and the wife and husband).
Usually at home, it’s the mothers who bear the role of the elder.
That’s why men are humbler.
Because they become subordinates (makes an analogy between the elder and subordinate monk and wife and husband).
And if we are married, we are greatly humbled by the problems of our children.
Whether it’s health problems: Mental, physical problems, or other disabilities.
Especially today with all these temptations, our children are the best [opportunity] for us to be humbled.
They are our best teachers [of humility].
The thing is we want to correct children and make them like us, as if we are good [role models] ourselves.
If we think in this manner, I deem we stand outside Orthodoxy.
We should talk to Christ [about our children] …
Now, if you have small children like the deacon [here] does you will certainly have to take care of them [actively], [rather than just talking to Christ about them when they’ve reached an older age].
St. Porphyrios would say, “[Take care of them] until the age of seven”.
St. Paisios said, “No, he exaggerates,” “[take care of them] until the age of twelve”.
