SAINT PORPHYRIOS
We know that in the life of the
Saints of the Church, the Holy Spirit has imbued them with extrasensory
perception that defies the powers of nature.
One of the books of the life and works of St. Porphyrios that I was
blessed to translate from Greek to English, there is a dialogue between the
Saint and one of his spiritual children George.
George is interested in learning about life that exists in other
planetary systems. The dialogue goes as
follows:
George says: “This is in relation
to my continuous questions to him about life in other worlds, about life that
co-exists with us and other relevant doubts of mine which would often elicit a
reprimand from Papouli (St. Porphyrios).
He would always add the same refrain: “Oh, my dear George, you read too
much, certainly it is wrong, and this harms you because you always ask and ask
and you wait for answers to your questions and when you don’t receive them you
feel disappointed.”
George now relates to us what
happened late one evening when he received a phone call from the Saint. “So quite late on a very cold winter night,
it was probably past 10 p.m. and I was preparing to go to bed. Pappouli called me and asked me to pick him
up from his house in Tourkovounia and take him to Kallisia (a retreat center in
the mountains). Without saying a word, I
dressed, got in my car and went to pick him up.
During our trip there and especially after Penteli (a mountain), we took
the dirt road toward Kallisia. I started
my usual conversation by saying: ‘Look
Pappouli at how many thousands of stars are above us. It was a clear
night. Is it possible for some of them
not to be inhabited? Statistically, at
least, it seems impossible for there not to be life out there. There must exist some forms of life even if
they are drastically different then ours!’
‘In the meantime we had arrived at
the open space there were we parked the car in order to take the footpath to
St. Nicholas retreat center. We got out
of the car when, to my surprise, Pappouli asked me to accompany him all the way
to the Monastery. It already must have
been after 11 o’clock and I felt hesitant about going but I did not say
anything. The Elder explained to me that
he did not feel too well and it was likely that he might need my help. Starting off on the footpath Pappouli said to
me suddenly, “And why are you interested, George, my child, in life on other
planets or other forms of life here or elsewhere? Is it possible that this knowledge would make
you a better person? You must pursue knowledge of things that will improve
you. The other things are useless for
you. Therefore stop this type of inquiry.”
‘We proceeded silently for a short
while and then Pappouli turned and said to me, “Look at how beautiful, peaceful
and quiet the night is. All of nature is
sleeping and you have the impression that we are alone. But yet, around us, in spite of the fact that
you George cannot see it, there is pulsating life. There are different beings that are encircling
us, moving, living, existing but for you that should not be of any concern
since you do not have any connection with them.
Neither do they have any connection with you and therefore even if you
could see them, as I do, and you became convinced of their existence, this
would not help you at all to improve yourself which should constitute the prime
objective of each one of us.”
‘In this way the Elder answered me
indirectly. However, it was either the
night or the wilderness or the forest or the things that he had described to me
that made me feel somewhat fearful, although I do not usually fear such things.
Pappouli realized this, he laughed and without me saying anything to him, he
started to joke with me in order to change the subject. When we reached the Monastery we parted
company. I would now be alone taking the
return path back to the car. I confessed
to him that I had become frightened. The
Elder laughed and said to me that I should not fear anything because he would
accompany me in spirit back to the car. He added that if at any moment my fear
became overwhelming, I should look back at the Monastery and he would flash his
light. He had a small flashlight in
order to show me how he was following me and was thinking of me.
Troubled, I started my trip back to the
car and I tried as much as I could to control my fear which initially was not
very much. But after a short while, when
I had gone some distance and entered the forest, fear increased. I had the feeling that I was not alone, that
many eyes were watching me. I began to
hear strange sounds and generally I began to panic. Turning my head I saw
Pappouli’s flashlight only a few meters behind me. For a moment, I stopped and thought of
turning back and telling him to return to the Monastery since I was certain,
that in order for him to bolster my courage he was close behind me. But after this, I decided to call to him to
tell him to go back which I did and the flashlight went out. I continued walking so that I would not
repeat the same thing every time fear overcame me. I turned my head and saw the
light was always there to encourage me.
I turned my head and saw the light was always there to encourage me and
comfort me. When I was finally
approaching the car and all those that have travelled to Kallisia will remember
that the Monastery becomes visible only a few hundred meters before one reaches
the clearing where we left the cars. I
finally turned unconsciously in the direction of the Monastery and there was the
light of the Elder going on and off at a distance from the Monastery. The Elder had given me a good lesson in
reference to our discussions with him about my doubts but on the other hand, in
a miraculous way he showed me that he will always be with us. He also taught us that such inquiries about
the universe should not take place without the blessings of highly spiritual
people.
ST. PORPHYRIOS THE
ORTHODOX SAINT OF THE 20TH CENTURY.
HE WAS ABLE TO NAVIGATE
THE UNIVERSE WHILE STILL LIVING IN THE
FLESH. THIS IS BORNE
OUT TO US BY ONE OF THE SAINT’S SPIRITUAL CHILDREN IN GREECE. THIS YOUNG
SCIENTIST WAS ON THE NASA TEAM THAT
SUCCESSFULLY RESCUED THE CREW FROM A
DISASTROUS
EXPLOSION ON THE SPACE
SHIP ON ITS WAY TO THE MOON. ST.
PORPHYRIOS IS SAID TO HAVE
SAID TO HIS SPIRITUAL SON, “LET ME GO TO THE
SPACESHIP TO SEE WHAT
WE CAN DO TO SAVE THE SITUATION.” THIS
HAPPENED APRIL 13,
1970.
WE ARE CHILDREN OF
ETERNITY AND JESUS HAS SHOWN US THE WAY. HIS
SAINTS LIVED THE LIFE
OF CHRIST’S REALTIY.
Edited by:
+Fr. Costas J. Simones,
June 9, 2017, Waterford, CT, USA
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