Testimony of Archimandrite Daniel Gouvalis.
Theologian, writer, Oropos
Soul and self-government
In the late 1970s, Elder Porphyrios suffered a serious heart attack and, after his hospitalization in
HYGEIA”, he was hosted in the homes of his spiritual children.
He had difficulty receiving visitors, because he did not want to get tired. However, I managed to visit him.
At that time, I was a Deacon, I was not burdened with pastoral duties and I had time to study spiritual
matters. For my emerging questions, the Elder had
unparalleled answers and clarifications. After we sat
in the room for a while, we went down and took a walk nearby. We were walking and discussing various
topics. We came to a grove where there was a fountain.
As we looked at the surface of the water, he told me something
very beautiful about the prayer of Jesus. Then he asked me: - What is the soul
- It is an immaterial substance from which thought or
will and emotion originate.
- The soul is a created hypostasis
I liked this phrase, because with the word hypostasis
the concept of the person is defined, which was excluded from
my own definition. Then the talk turned to the "image" and with careful words and precise expressions
as if He emphasized to me that he was trained in theology:
“In
the image” refers mainly to man’s free will, to the freedom of his
will. Man has freedom, the ability to freely choose his way of life and
his behavior.
Man
can agree or oppose the law of God. He differs from animals because he
carries within him the divine image. In his pastoral activity, the Elder
greatly respected man’s free will. He wanted everything to be done in
freedom, without direct or indirect violence. He said that when and what
is done without the full participation of the will, serious problems
are created later, and he told me an incident about someone who became a
monk without to want it wholeheartedly. He told me
This man did not do well to become a monk.. He chose something that he did not want 100%, he did not make the right
choice.
He was influenced by impulsive moments... and chose something that he
did not want wholeheartedly, something that did not give him
inner completeness and so now he is presented with
strange situations. The same is true from the other
side. If someone wants to dedicate himself to God but by some concessions to temptations is led to marriage,
then he, as a family head, will appear strange and
problematic. Everyone with a clear mind should distinguish the
possibilities his, his gifts, his inclination (the
spiritual predisposition) and his calling (the calling) and
then with complete freedom to carve out his own
path. And may this path please him
The Elder attached great importance to freedom in
the education of children, so that they would not be oppressed
by their parents. Those who approached the Elder felt
comfortable near him, because he was positive and avoided exerting
pressure. When some of the Lord's disciples (without a stable
faith) abandoned Jesus, he asked the twelve
and “Do you also want to go away?” Do you also want
to
leave? Christ did not He wanted to gain many followers, but he wanted
those who would follow him to do so of their own free will and not by
force. Those who knew the Elder understood that a wind of freedom blows
within the Church of Christ. Christianity and freedom are interrelated
concepts. No feat has any value when it is carried out in a forced
manner.
Bibliography. I HOLY PORPHYRIOS THE PROPHET. MARTYRS. SAINT
PAUL'S HOLY CELL OF SAINT THEODORES. VOLUME C.
