The Path Orthodoxy

I in You; that they also may be one in Us...”
(Jn. 17:21, 17:11-23). What joins Christians
to be one: the Holy Mysteries and holy virtues,
to which faith also belongs. According
to the words of the Apostle it comes by
hearing (Rom. 10:17; Gal. 3:2). By faith we
walk, and not by sight (2 Cor. 5:7; cf. Rom.
8:25; Heb. 1:1; 1 Cor. 13:12). Faith seeks
the entire being. Shortly defined, faith is
the unconditional acceptance of God’s truth
in the Old and New Testaments. By it man
enters into direct association with God and
His Church, that is, with all members of the
Church, through prayer, and thus receives
the grace that he needs to be built up (Rom.
5:1-2).
All the gifts that are given to the Church
have one and the same goal: to build a new
Adam in each person just as he was when
he came out of the hand of the Creator. Each
man receives them and consciously builds
into the Theandric organism. His effort will
not be for naught, for the Lord will reward
him and reveal to him many more of the
mysteries, which are in His Church. It is
a priceless treasure from which to each is
given and it is never impoverished, for it is
enriched by Him who is most wealthy in all
things. Not even the angels know its mystery
and they themselves learn the knowledge
of God (Eph. 3:10). Many mysteries
were hidden from them, such as the mystery
of the incarnation, which was not known to
the angelic powers until that moment when
it occurred. The Church is a new revelation
for the angels themselves. Could the angels
comprehend how much the Lord could
humble Himself, to assume sinful human
nature (Phil. 2:7-8; cf. Heb. 2:14-17; Is.
53:3; Heb. 5:8, 12:2), to suffer, be crucified
and to die? Not even the highest ranks knew.
But the Church knows, for it has as its Head
the all-knowing. This is nicely expressed by
the church composer with the words: “The
entire angelic nature is amazed at the great
feast of the Thy incarnation, for they look
upon Him Who as God is unapproachable,
as an approachable man, who abides with
us...”. In another place the church composer
speaks more clearly: “Desiring to become
incarnate for our sake, O Gabriel, God the
Word revealed this mystery to you alone
and chose you to be a servant of this mystery,
and you contemplating this in yourself
sang: Alleluia”. When the angels, therefore,
learn, what can we say for men? It not only
hollows us, it also enlightens our darkened
understanding. It is, “on the other hand, a
new appearance of the wisdom, and power,
and God’s love for man, and on the other
hand, a new appearance of the love of God
and ascesis of man”.
Unity in Christ and in the Church also
brings in and of itself moral unity. When
Christ dwells in our hearts by faith (Eph.
3:17), then love for Him, for the Church
and for one’s neighbor also abides. This
means that the beginning of perfection is
faith, and its end is love (Col. 3:14; I Cor.
13:1-13; Rom. 13:8). Such a man no longer
looks at himself, but only Christ and he
only sees and identifies Him. It is not a short
nor easy path, but long and difficult and it
requires much effort and self-sacrifice, for
we have enemies, both external and internal,
even with demonic powers, according
to the words of Paul (2 Cor. 11:22-28, 6:4-
5). This was also felt by the young Church
of Christ which he at one time persecuted,
the most fiery preacher of Christ’s Gospel
and the most responsible for the spreading
of His Church (Acts 8:1-3, 22:4; cf. 1 Cor.
15:9; Eph. 3:8; Phil. 3:6). A true follower
of Christ does not complain about his suffering,
since he is neither the first nor the
last to suffer. Each Christian should accept
suffering just like the holy Apostle Paul.
For the sufferings of a believer of Christ is
a continuation of His sufferings (Acts 9:4)
and they benefit, not only individuals, but
also the entire Church, the house of God (1
Tim. 3:15). Whoever persecutes Christians
persecutes the Church, and whoever persecutes
the Church, persecutes Christ (Acts
9:4; cf. 22:7, 26:14; Gal. 1:13). This will
last until the end of the world.
The life of Christ is the life of the
Church and the life of each of His true servants.
He will strive to at least build in himself
a temple and abode, and when he has
succeeded with himself, he will work with
others, for according to the words of one
Holy Father “he who can save himself can
also save another.” Such a tireless worker
on the building, or better said, on the growth
of the Church of God, was the holy Apostle
Paul. He put all of his strength, both physically
and bodily, toward that goal, and
greatly endeavored and worked for each
church congregation (1 Thess. 2:7-8; 2 Cor.
12:15, 11:28; 2 Tim. 2:10; Acts 20:20, 18-
35). He would write an epistle with tearful
eyes when he heard of discord or inappropriate
life of certain members of the
Church (2 Cor. 2:4). He did all of this for
the sake of the unity of the Church, and because
of this, he is also called the theologian
of the unity of the Church.
*Excerpt from the book The Teaching
of St. Apostle Paul on the Church, Serbian
Orthodox Bishop of Eastern America Dr.
Mitrophan; translation by Protopresbyter
Stefan Zaremba.
“The life of Christ is the life of the Church and the life of each of
His true servants...”
The Path of Orthodoxy Winter 2016 • 7