Авва Аполлос Великий

1. Abba Apollos the Great taught all the monks under his jurisdiction to immediately repel the mental sowings of the devil, at their very first appearance. “When the head of the serpent is broken,” he said, “then his whole body becomes dead. The Lord commanded us to guard the head of the serpent (Gen. 3:15). This means: we must reject and erase from the mind evil and obscene thoughts and nasty dreams, at the very beginning of them.” 2. He said: “Let it be a sign of success in virtue for you when you acquire a dispassionate and pure thought. This is the firstfruits of the gifts of God" 211. 3. He greatly disapproved of those who wore chains and assumed the appearance of a special, constructed reverence. “These,” he said, “do it for show to people and fall into hypocrisy. It is better to tire the body with fasting, and perform virtues in secret. If we don’t have any heroic deeds, then at least we’ll avoid hypocrisy” 212. In Russia, many saints wore chains. Despite its particular simplicity and the predominance of physical feat in Russian monasticism, wearing chains did not have the meaning that it should have had in ancient monasticism. This monasticism labored primarily as a feat of the soul - and the most dangerous to this monasticism were the most spiritual passions, especially arrogance. The child of arrogance is heresy, this terrible illness of the mind that has shaken the Eastern Church and its monasticism for a whole millennium. Ignorant schism is the form in which the religious delusion of Russian people has taken on, based on mental religious development. With the passing of times of simplicity and with a general desire for people-pleasing and hypocrisy, the opinion of the Monk Apollos acquires particular importance. 4. Under the leadership of Abba Apollos there was a monastic community in upper Egypt, consisting of five thousand brethren. Of these, five hundred men achieved Christian perfection and were able to perform signs. It was a wonderful sight to see in this brotherhood. While in the wild desert, they were in such joy as can never be seen among other inhabitants of the earth. This joy cannot be compared with any earthly joy. No one between them was sad. Abba Apollos, when he noticed someone embarrassed, immediately asked him about the reason for the embarrassment and exposed the secrets of his heart to everyone. He said: “The one who is destined to receive the kingdom of heaven should not be sad (embarrassed). Let the Greeks be confused! let the Jews cry! let sinners weep! and let the righteous rejoice! Those who reflect on success in earthly affairs are amused by these reflections: how can we, who have been rewarded with the hope of receiving heavenly blessings, not constantly rejoice? The Apostle commands us: “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in everything” (1 Thess. 5:16-18) 213. Saint Apollos condemns the confusion caused by fallen spirits, that confusion which serves as a sure sign of the action of these spirits on the soul; The sadness of this world is condemned, born from carnal wisdom and unbelief, giving rise to despondency, and with prolonged and constant action even despair, this spiritual death. Soul-harmful and soul-destroying sadness should in no way be confused with soul-beneficial sadness for the sake of God, which serves as the cause of unrepentant (permanent) repentance for salvation (2 Cor. 7:10), which serves as the reason for God to bestow spiritual joy, and is combined with this joy. The Holy Fathers call this state of our spirit joyful sorrow or joyful crying 214. Tears shed from this state bring indescribable peace and consolation to the heart. 5. Abba Apollos said: “Monks should, if possible, partake of the holy mysteries of Christ daily. He who removes himself from them moves away from God; Often, the one who approaches them often receives Christ the Savior into himself. Christ the Savior Himself said: “He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him” (John 6:56). It is useful for monks to remember daily the sufferings of Christ by which we were redeemed, and to constantly be ready and worthy to receive heavenly and holy mysteries. At the same time, we are granted remission of sins” 215. 6. Abba Apollos often told his brethren that they should bow at the feet of strange monks who come to their monastery. “When we worship the brethren, we worship not men, but God. Have you seen your brother? you have seen the Lord your God. We learned to worship the brethren from Abraham (Gen. 18:2), and we learned to give peace to the brethren from Lot, who forced the Angels” (Gen. 19:3) 216. You might be interested in: