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Pain and Faith: Elder Ephraim's Teaching on Suffering as a Path to Virtue
29:12
What the video says
The video presents part two of a series on the benefits of pain, quoting Elder Ephraim of Philotheou in Arizona on pain and suffering. Pain is the consequence of the fall and the fruit of disobedience, but it is also an opportunity to acquire virtue, and whoever faces it with the prism of eternity is already a victor. The first chapter, 'Confronting Pain: Pain and Faith,' explains that faith, prayer, and holy patience are the antidotes to all forms of pain.
Doubts may come, but they should not make a home in us, and for most people the constant prayer remains 'Lord, I believe, help my unbelief.' Faith in the crucified and resurrected Christ is tested and strengthened through sorrow, and it is the faith of the Church, where pain is lessened and understood. The speaker cites Scripture, St. Isaac the Syrian, St. Augustine, St. Cyril of Jerusalem, and St. Demetrius of Rostov, ending with a prayer: 'Come, my King, sit in the throne of my heart and reign there.'
Key moments
- Elder Ephraim of Philotheou teaches that within pain one can detect joy and hope, just as Christ's triumph sprang from his passion; great souls owe their grandeur to the heavy blows of pain.
- Theologically, pain is the consequence of the fall and the fruit of disobedience; ethically, it is an opportunity and a means to acquire virtue and attain perfection.
- Faith, prayer, and holy patience in God's way are the soul-saving medicines so that pain can be confronted and become a means of spiritual maturity, humility, and salvation.
- Pain is a severe temptation and test of faith because Satan casts doubts into us; doubts may come but should not make a home in us, and most must cry out, 'Lord, I believe, help my unbelief' (Mark 9:24).
- In temptations and pains our faith is tested and becomes stronger; sorrow works out patience and hope (Romans 5:3-5), because we are called to believe through a fiery furnace of sorrow in Jesus Christ and him crucified.
- Doubt does not always indicate a lack of faith; faith entails risk and a painful and fearless journey to meet God, being a source of doubt and struggle before it becomes a source of serenity.
- A Christian should not become a helpless fatalist; we have the right to defend ourselves against injustices, but if there is no other exit, we should pray for the wrongdoers to stop their bad deeds.
- The Lord does not show himself in the same manner to all, but according to the measure of each one's faith; in his own country he did few miracles because of their unbelief, while elsewhere he found people who believed.
This video presents Part 2 of a series on the benefits of pain, covering Chapter 1, 'Confronting Pain: Pain and Faith' (pages 141-154), from a book by Georgia P. Kounavi published by Apostoliki Diakonia of the Church of Greece (first English edition 2001). The speaker quotes Elder Ephraim of Philotheou of Arizona, who teaches that within pain one can detect joy and hope, just as Christ's triumph sprang from his passion, and that great souls owe their grandeur to the heavy blows of pain.
Theologically, pain is the consequence of the fall and the fruit of disobedience; ethically, it is an opportunity and a means to acquire virtue and attain perfection. Whoever faces pain with the prism of eternity is already a victor. Faith, prayer, and holy patience are named as the antidotes to all forms of pain, the soul-saving medicines by which pain becomes a means of spiritual maturity, humility, and salvation.
Pain is also a severe temptation, since Satan casts doubts into us; doubts may come but should not make a home in us, and for most people the constant prayer remains 'Lord, I believe, help my unbelief' (Mark 9:24). Faith in the crucified and resurrected Christ is tested and strengthened through sorrow, and sorrow works out patience and hope (Romans 5:3-5).
The speaker notes that doubt does not always indicate a lack of faith: faith entails risk and a painful and fearless journey to meet God, being a source of doubt and struggle before it becomes a source of serenity. A Christian should not become a helpless fatalist; we may defend ourselves against injustices, but if there is no other exit, we should pray for wrongdoers to stop their bad deeds.
The Lord shows himself according to the measure of each one's faith, doing few miracles in his own country because of their unbelief. The talk cites Scripture, St. Isaac the Syrian, St. Augustine, St. Cyril of Jerusalem, and St. Demetrius of Rostov, and closes with the prayer: 'Come, my King, sit in the throne of my heart and reign there.'
Main points
- Elder Ephraim of Philotheou teaches that within pain one can detect joy and hope, as Christ's triumph sprang from his passion; great souls owe their grandeur to the heavy blows of pain.
- Pain is the consequence of the fall and the fruit of disobedience, yet also an opportunity and means to acquire virtue and attain perfection.
- Faith, prayer, and holy patience are the soul-saving medicines against pain; doubts may come but should not make a home in us, and most must pray 'Lord, I believe, help my unbelief' (Mark 9:24).
- Doubt does not always indicate a lack of faith; faith entails risk and a painful and fearless journey to meet God before it becomes a source of serenity.
- A Christian should not become a helpless fatalist: we may defend ourselves against injustices, but if there is no other exit, we should pray for wrongdoers to stop their bad deeds.