"Respecting the freedom of others in spreading the Christian testimony according to Saint Paisios" - by Dr. Achilleus Papatolioutranslated

Freedom is the basic virtue of the Orthodox mission, the most necessary condition, freedom in everything and freedom after everything for the propagation of the Christian witness as a calling and mission, as crucifixion and ministry. The Church is a center to which everyone is called, respecting the principle of their free will. The Church must respect the freedom of both its members and those to whom it preaches the Gospel of Salvation. The aim of the Christian witness is to form ecclesiastical societies not as "states of God", but as states of free persons.

Christ's saying "if he will come after me", fully confirms the respect for the religious freedom of every human being, which is a sacred, human, essential, non-negotiable and universal right, which has been explicitly recognized in the international jurisprudence. The Church calls people to freedom. Christian testimony is a work of humility with respect for human dignity, it is an emptying offering of love.

Love means respecting the freedom of another. Saint Paisios the Saint to a pilgrim's question about whether he should...