“Stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the Gospel.” (Phil.1:27)
The Elder taught that the basic element of the Spiritual life in Christ, the great mystery of our faith, is unity in Christ. It is that sense of identifying with our brother, of carrying the burdens of one another, of living for others as we live for ourselves, of saying “Lord Jesus Christ have mercy upon ME” and for that “ME” to contain and to become for ourselves the pain and the problems of the other, of suffering like they suffer, of rejoicing like they rejoice, their fall becoming our fall and their getting up again becoming our getting up again.
This is why his last words,
his last entreaty to God,
his last prayer,
his greatest desire was that we “become one.”
That was what he ached, wished and longed for.
In this wonderful and simple way, how many problems were solved and how many sins were avoided.
Did my brother fall? I fell. How can I blame him since I am at fault? Did my brother succeed? I succeed. How can I envy him since I am the winner?
The Elder knew that because it’s our weakest point, it is here that the evil one does greatest battle.
We put our own interests first.
We separate ourselves.
We want to flee the consequences of our actions for ourselves only.
However when such a spirit prevails, there is no salvation for us. We must want to be saved along with everyone else. We should, together with God’s saint, say, “If you don’t save all of these people, Lord, then erase my name from the book of Life.” Or, like Christ’s apostle, wish to become accursed from Christ, for the sake of my fellow man, my brothers and my sisters.
This is love. This is the power of Christ.
This is the essence of God.
This is the royal way of spiritual life.
We should love Christ who is EVERYTHING, by loving His brothers and sisters, for whom the least of which Christ died.
Klitos Ioannidis