Слово 64

(1) About blasphemy. Whoever says that in modern times it is impossible to receive the Holy Spirit, and whoever blasphemes the actions of the Holy Spirit, saying that such actions are from the devil, introduces a new heresy into the Church of God. 1. Because our Lord Jesus Christ says in the Holy Gospel: all sin and blasphemy will be forgiven by man; and even blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven by man... neither in this age nor in the next (Matthew 12:31-32), then we must investigate and know what kind of blasphemy that happens against the Holy Spirit? There is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit when someone attributes the actions of the Holy Spirit to the devil, as Basil the Great says (Rules summarized in questions and answers. 273). When someone sees that some Christian brother performs miracles or has any gift of the Holy Spirit, such as contrition of heart, or tears, or humility, or understanding of divine things, or anything else that the Holy Spirit gives to those who love God, and says that this is the charm of the devil, he blasphemes the Holy Spirit. Also, the one who says that those who are worthy of the influence of the Divine Spirit, as sons of God, and those who fulfill the commandments of God and their Father, are deceived by the devil - and this one blasphemes the Holy Spirit working in them, just as the Jews blasphemed the Son of God when, seeing how the demons were cast out by Christ, they blasphemed with great insolence that He Beelzebub, the prince of demons, casts out demons. But others, hearing this, do not hear and, seeing this, do not see, and about everything about which the Divine Scripture testifies and certifies that it happens from the Holy Spirit and from divine influence, as if they have gone out of themselves and rejected all the Divine Scripture, and have cast out all the knowledge given by this Scripture from their minds, they do not tremble to say, accursed, that such actions occur from intoxication and demons. As if they were unfaithful and complete ignoramuses, not learned in the divine mysteries, when they hear about divine illumination or illumination of the soul and mind, or about contemplation and dispassion, or about humility and tears from the action and grace of the Holy Spirit, immediately, as if not having the strength to endure the great brilliance and power of these words, the eyes of their souls are darkened more than they are enlightened, and with great they insolently decide that this is from demonic delusion, and the damned do not tremble at the judgment of God or the harm caused to those who hear them. Moreover, they do not hesitate to assert, boldly, that in present times nothing like this comes from God in any of the believers, and this is extreme wickedness, more than heresy. Heresy occurs when someone deviates from any dogma of the Orthodox faith, but whoever says that now there are no people who love God and are worthy to receive the Holy Spirit and be baptized by Him, that is, to be reborn by the grace of the Holy Spirit and become sons of God, with consciousness, experienced tasting and seeing - he subverts the entire incarnate economy of the Lord and God and our Savior Jesus Christ and clearly rejects the renewal of the image of God or human nature, corrupted and killed by sin. I call renewal the re-creation of our nature, which Christ the Lord accomplished, transforming it from corruption to incorruption and from mortality to immortality. We confess that just as it is impossible for anyone to be saved who is not baptized with water and the Spirit, so for anyone who sins by Baptism, unless he repents and again receives the grace of the Holy Spirit and is recreated and renewed from above, it is impossible to be saved, as the Lord affirms this, saying to Nicodemus: unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God (John 3:3), and again, to the Apostles: For John baptized is water, but you are to be baptized in the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:5). So, whoever did not know (tangibly) the grace of the Holy Spirit, which he received through holy Baptism when he was a small baby, and, having been baptized by faith, desecrated himself with countless sins and then turns away from the second baptism - repentance - that, I say, which is given from above, by the love of God, by the grace of the Holy Spirit, to those who seek it through repentance; How is it possible to somehow find your salvation? He will never find it. Why am I telling you, and will never stop saying this: those who profaned the first Baptism by transgressing the commandments of God, imitate the repentance of David and all the saints, and show true repentance with all zeal and all good deeds, so that the grace of the Holy Spirit may come again to your soul. For if the grace of the Holy Spirit descends upon you, then it will be for you a kind of font of light, which, as soon as it receives you into its bosom mysteriously and revives you with grace, will make you incorruptible and immortal from the corruptible and mortal that you are, and from the sons of men will make you sons of God and gods by grace, that you may be kinsmen of the saints and joint heirs, and together with them you will enter the kingdom of heaven, which is what our venerable father Simeon the Studite, the Reverent One, did, through whose prayers some of his disciples were honored to receive the Holy Spirit, by the great and ineffable grace of God. I say this for no other reason than to preach the goodness of God that is ready for all of you and to encourage you to strive to receive the same good. For the sign of love according to God is not to hide the good, but to announce it to one’s brothers and move them to seek, find and acquire the same. Why, as you see, I cry out to you, appealing in the words of the Prophet David: come to Him, and be enlightened, and the faces of your conscience will not be ashamed (Ps. 33:6). Why, my beloved brethren, have you fallen completely into negligence and laziness, into carnal sweetness and lust, and say that you cannot cleanse yourself of sins through repentance, draw closer to God, receive the grace of the Holy Spirit and through it be reborn, become God-like and sons of God by grace? No, it's not impossible. This was impossible before the incarnate economy of Christ, but after the Lord of all and God deigned to become man, like us in everything except sin, he made all this possible and convenient for us and gave us the power to be the sons of God and joint heirs with Him, to Whom belongs all glory, honor and worship forever. Amen. You might be interested in: