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Obedience and the Layman: Elders, Spiritual Fathers, and Caution
10:56
What the video says
Father Alexi Young's essay 'Obedience and the Layman' explains that an Orthodox Christian begins with obedience to the commandments and the routine of an Orthodox way of life: attending divine services, receiving the mysteries, keeping the fasts, giving alms. St. Paisios calls the keeping of God's commandments perfect obedience toward Christ, and a priest working with converts first assigns this routine of piety to touch the heart rather than the head, as St. John Chrysostom warns against educating only the intellect while ignoring the heart.
The essay then examines obedience to a spiritual father and gives three principles. First, one must distinguish an elder from a spiritual father: an elder fills the prophetic ministry and must be obeyed as one who reveals God's will, but there are virtually no true elders today, and personality cults around those claiming the title have nothing to do with Orthodoxy.
Second, obedience to a spiritual father is a matter of leading and following, not commanding and obeying; it is not legalistic or based on a vow, but a living bond between two souls. Schema-monk John of Valaam monastery said he gives his opinion and then adds, 'but consider the matter yourself.' Third, since true guides are rare, a layman must exercise great caution before placing himself under obedience.
Elder Macarius of Optina wrote that finding a director was already difficult in his day, and Bishop Ignatius warned against conceited people who love to give unsolicited advice to nourish their vanity. A parish priest may direct the layman to a wise monastic, or the layman must seek God's will in scripture and wait patiently, lest he become a servant of men rather than a servant of God.
A true spiritual guide does not long to give advice, knows his own inadequacy, and leaves the decision to the spiritual child's judgment. Spiritual growth for the layman is now slow and painstaking, but Bishop Ignatius says it is a blessing that we feed on the crumbs from the spiritual table of the fathers, which can prevent spiritual death.
Key moments
- An Orthodox Christian strives to obey the commandments and fulfill the Orthodox way of life: divine services, the mysteries, the fasts, alms and charity, the bare minimum for those who follow Christ.
- St. Paisios writes that keeping God's commandments is nothing else than perfect obedience toward Christ the Lord.
- A priest working with converts assigns a routine of piety to test obedience and touch the heart, since St. John Chrysostom warns it is dangerous to educate only the intellect and ignore the heart.
- One must distinguish an elder from a spiritual father: an elder fills the prophetic ministry, but there are virtually no true elders today, and personality cults around those claiming the title have nothing to do with Orthodoxy.
- Obedience to a spiritual father is leading and following, not commanding and obeying; it is not legalistic or based on a vow, but a living bond between two souls.
- Schema-monk John, father confessor of Valaam monastery, said he gives his opinion and then always adds, 'but consider the matter yourself'; the spiritual father does not coerce or give orders.
- Elder Macarius of Optina wrote that finding a director who cures our self-will is a great help but most difficult in these days, and Bishop Ignatius warned against self-opinionated people who give misguided advice to nourish their vanity.
- A parish priest may direct the layman to a wise monastic; otherwise the layman must seek God's will in scripture and wait patiently, lest he become a servant of men rather than a servant of God.
An audio reading presents Father Alexey (now Hieromonk Ambrose) Young's essay "Obedience and the Layman." The essay begins with the foundation of the Christian life: obedience to the commandments and the routine of an Orthodox way of life, including divine services, the mysteries, the fasts, and almsgiving. St. Paisios calls keeping the commandments perfect obedience toward Christ.
A priest working with converts first assigns this routine of piety because it touches the heart, and St. John Chrysostom warns against educating only the intellect while ignoring the heart.
The essay then turns to obedience to a spiritual father and sets out three principles. First, an elder must be distinguished from a spiritual father. An elder fills the prophetic ministry and is obeyed as one who reveals God's will, but true elders are virtually absent today, and personality cults around those claiming the title have nothing to do with Orthodoxy.
Second, obedience to a spiritual father is a matter of leading and following rather than commanding and obeying. It is not legalistic and not based on a vow, but a living bond between two souls. Schema-monk John of Valaam said he gives his opinion and then adds, "but consider the matter yourself."
Third, because true guides are rare, a layman must exercise caution before placing himself under obedience. Elder Macarius of Optina wrote that finding a director was already most difficult in his day, and Bishop Ignatius Brianchaninov warned against conceited people who give unsolicited advice to nourish their vanity. A parish priest may direct a layman to a wise monastic, or the layman must seek God's will in Scripture and wait patiently, lest he become a servant of men rather than a servant of God.
A true guide does not long to give advice, knows his own inadequacy, and leaves the decision to the child's judgment. Growth is now slow and painstaking, but Bishop Ignatius calls it a blessing to feed on the crumbs from the spiritual table of the fathers, which can prevent spiritual death.
Main points
- Keeping the commandments and the Orthodox routine of services, mysteries, fasts, and almsgiving is the foundation that touches the heart, as St. Paisios and St. John Chrysostom teach.
- An elder fills the prophetic ministry, but true elders are virtually absent today, and personality cults around those claiming the title have nothing to do with Orthodoxy.
- Obedience to a spiritual father is leading and following, not commanding and obeying; Schema-monk John of Valaam gave his opinion and added, "but consider the matter yourself."
- Elder Macarius of Optina wrote that finding a director is most difficult, and Bishop Ignatius warned against self-opinionated people who advise to nourish their vanity.
- Without a guide, the layman seeks God's will in Scripture and waits patiently, feeding on the crumbs of the Fathers, which Bishop Ignatius says can prevent spiritual death.