* The text, entitled in Greek Δεκατέσσερα ὑπαρξιακὰ ἐρωτήματα. Ἡ θεολογικὴ ἀπάντησή τους, was published as a booklet by the Orthodox Missionary Association of Saints Cyril and Methodius, the Thessalonian Enlighteners of the Slavs (Ὀρθόδοξος Ἱεραποστολικὸς Συνδεσμὸς Ἁγίων Κυρίλλου καὶ Μεθοδίου τῶν Θεσσαλονικέων Φωτιστῶν τῶν Σλάβων), which is distributed free of charge to support the social work of the group of volunteers and doctors, with a view to providing free assistance to their fellow human beings. The author personally entrusted me with the booklet to be translated into Romanian on 5 June 2018, when we met in Thessaloniki (translator’s note).
** Professor Dimitrie Țelenghidis, whom I had the great joy of meeting through the providence of our Saviour Christ, taught Dogmatic Theology at the Faculty of Orthodox Theology at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and is now retired. Born in 1949, married and the father of four children, Professor Țelenghidis is regarded as one of Greece’s greatest contemporary dogmatists, with a rich and varied body of work comprising numerous articles, studies and books, some of which have been translated into Romanian over the years. It is worth noting that, from his youth, he had the blessing of knowing Saint Paisios the Athonite, renowned for the charisms with which God had endowed him, to spend many years in his company and to receive his spiritual guidance, which strengthened him in his endeavours to follow the way of life and thinking of the Holy Fathers of the Orthodox Church. However, Professor Țelenghidis’s father, Father John, is also honoured for his holy and spiritual life (translator’s note).
1. What is the purpose for which God created us in this life; where did we come from, why did we come, and where are we going?
We all originate from the love of the Triune God, so that, even in this life, we may share in the future and eternal blessings, which are, in essence and in practice, one and the same as the very life of God. This present life on earth is for us a gift from God, enabling us to freely exercise our self-governing will (αὐτεξούσια θέληση 1) in a2 manner, so that it may be in accordance with the will (θέλημα 3) of God, which will is absolutely in accordance with the norms of our existence. And this is because God is our Creator. He created us in His image (κατ' εἰκόνα Του 4), so that we might fulfil the purpose of our existence.
This purpose is the well-known state of likeness (καθ’ ὁμοίωσιν 5), that is, to become, through grace, participants in the uncreated life of God. And the way in which we fulfil this purpose is by keeping His commandments, which are in accordance with the norms of our existence. However, if we feel that God’s commandments are incompatible with our will and our desires, we ought to realise that this is not due to our nature, but to the abuse of our freedom and our sins.
Consequently, we have come into this present world so that our love for God and our neighbour may be tested through our free response to God’s commandments, so that we may become partakers of the life of the Triune God, to the extent of our receptivity to this self-giving of God. This receptivity is perceived as our expanded existential space, which depends on our keeping God’s commandments on earth 6 out of love.
2. Can a person be saved without God and His Church, relying solely on their own goodness and good deeds, as many of our fellow human beings believe? What is the importance of the Church in a person’s life?
Absolutely not! If man could have been saved by his own goodness and good deeds alone, then the Son of God would not have become Man, and there would have been no reason for Him to establish His Church, through the Holy Spirit, on the day of Pentecost. Indeed, if man could have been saved without God, solely through his own efforts, then man would have been his own saviour. However, Holy Scripture informs us, through the Holy Spirit, that apart from Jesus Christ there is no other name ‘in which we must be saved’7). In other words, the sole Saviour of all people throughout the ages is our Lord Jesus Christ.
Christ, as the one and only God-Man, saves people in a clear and concrete way. This way is the incorporation of people into His mystical Body, that is, into His Church. This incorporation takes place through the Holy Sacrament of Baptism.
The Holy Sacrament of Baptism makes a person a member of the mystical Body of Christ—in other words, of His Church. As a member of the Church, the believer is not saved in some mechanical or magical way. Within the Body of the Church, the believer is saved when he remains alive within it. And he remains alive, and grows in grace, when he observes the rules of this Body, that is to say, of the Church. Christ made these norms known to us during His historical appearance on earth.
When the believer lovingly keeps Christ’s commandments—which are the spiritual norms of the Church—then he remains as a living branch of Christ, the vine, and grows and bears fruit. This fruit is expressed in the believer’s daily life as a holy and spiritual life.
This life is infused or transmitted into the psycho-somatic being of the believer, a member of the Church, by the divine-human Head of the Church, Who is Christ.
In conclusion, the Church is the Body that saves humanity, diachronically, a Body whose Head is Jesus Christ, the God-Man. Christ is the One Who, through His Holy Spirit, gives life to, nourishes and guides this His mystical Body—in other words, His Church. For this reason, He is, of course, the sole Saviour of mankind.
3. Why is blasphemy against the Divine Persons 8 a grave sin?
If blasphemy against any human person is, as is universally recognised, an indecency of speech, indicating a passionate state of mind and a lack of civic education on the part of the blasphemer, then blasphemy against the Divine Persons expresses the highest degree of impiety in speech. Being a very great impiety, it is, by its very nature, also a grave sin. And even though every person is free to believe whatever they wish, or to believe nothing at all, nevertheless, they have no right to insult or blaspheme the Divine Persons, Who constitute the essence of other people’s faith, whether they be many or few, or even just one.
4. Why does death exist? How can we overcome it, and why are the Holy Sacraments of the Church—such as Baptism, Chrismation, Repentance, Confession and Holy Communion—necessary for the salvation of mankind?
Death was not included amongst the specific aspects of God’s creation of man. This means that death is not a constituent element of human nature. It does not belong to man’s natural state (κατὰ φύσιν 9). Death, which is understood as a lack of participation in life, is the result of man’s disobedience to God’s clear commandment; God had previously warned the first couple that they would face death if they disobeyed His command. Christ has abolished eschatological death. This means that, within the Church, the believer, by keeping the commandments and partaking of the Holy Mysteries through which God works (τὰ θεουργὰ μυστήρια10), experience only biological death, which serves as a reminder of the punishment for the disobedience of our first parents and, at the same time, brings a natural end to the sin of those who sin. But for believers, death, as a severing of God’s life-giving bond with humankind, has been conquered and overcome in Christ.
For believers, death—as a severing of God’s life-giving bond with humankind—has been conquered and overcome in Christ.
This means that, in practical terms, believers, in their present life, have overcome the cause of death, which is sin. Thus, they participate in true life—that is, eternal life—during their historical presence on earth and continue this life after their biological death, which serves as a transition into the eternal life to come, which life will reach its fullness after the general resurrection of the bodies, at the Second Coming of the Lord and the Last Judgement.
The Holy Sacraments of the Church function as windows through which the future, eternal life passes and is transmitted to the faithful, always in accordance with their receptivity, which receptivity is due to their active response to the will of God.
Specifically, through the Holy Sacrament of Baptism, a person dies to sin and its consequences, is reborn in grace and is incorporated into the mystical Body of Christ—that is, into the Church—ontologically freed from the devil and from sin. In other words, from that moment onwards, he is able to live without sinning. Through the Holy Sacrament of Chrismation, the believer is enriched with the grace of the Holy Spirit. In this way, he attains a holy and spiritual life, that is to say, the life of the Triune God.
However, since these Holy Mysteries do not operate in a mechanical or magical manner, the believer retains his freedom of will and, if he so desires, may break the divine commandments and sin. But when he sins, he severs, as Adam did of old, his life-giving connection with God and becomes spiritually dead. God, in His love, nevertheless grants believers the opportunity to be revitalised when they truly repent and sincerely confess their sins to the ordained ministers of the Church. Thus, through these two Holy Mysteries 11, believers are restored to their former state of spiritual health and are able to ascend spiritually, in accordance with the degree of their desire and endeavour, to fulfil their new ontological calling as living members of the mystical Body of Christ.
The believer retains the freedom of his free will and, if he so wishes, may transgress the divine commandments and sin. But when he sins, he severs, as Adam did in the past, his life-giving connection with God and becomes spiritually dead.
Nevertheless, the preservation of the faithful as living members of the mystical Body of Christ, their spiritual growth and fruitfulness in Christ, as well as their unity with the Triune God and amongst themselves, would be unattainable without their frequent reception of the Divine Eucharist. Whether or not the faithful partake of the Divine Eucharist is a matter of (spiritual) life or (spiritual) death.
This truth is biblical. Christ Himself assures us that He is truly the bread of life and indeed that, unless we partake of Him in the Divine Eucharist, we shall not have holy and spiritual life—in other words, eternal life—here and now. And if we do not have it here, in the form of a foretaste and a betrothal, we will not have it there, in the future reality, in the form of fullness, which, however, will endlessly expand, deepen and grow. This is how the experience of human salvation is perceived within the Church: as a personal, empirical reality that concerns the individual existentially, as a psycho-somatic 12 existence.
5. Why does God allow young people and small children to die? Will there be a resurrection of the dead?
God is the sole Lord of life and death. In other words, God gives life [to humankind on earth]13, but He also sets its limits. He alone knows all the facts, as well as all the conditions of rational beings, before they come into existence. At the same time, God loves all people in an inconceivable way. That is why Saint John Chrysostom regards Christ as the most passionate of those who love the salvation of mankind. According to Holy Scripture, moreover, God desires that all people be saved and come to know Him as the Hypostatic Truth (Christ the Saviour desires that all people be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth 14).
Given the above premises, it is easy to understand that it is not possible for God—who, par excellence and in the truest sense of the word, is good and gentle—to will the premature death of any human being. This is because God’s principal attribute is love. In this way, God determines the death of every person on the basis of His omniscience and love. From a practical point of view, this means that every person dies at the best possible time for them. Consequently, any extension of our lives beyond the limit set by God’s love for each of us would have a negative impact on the quality of our eternal life. We must therefore accept God’s decision regarding the limitation of all human life with a spirit of gratitude and contentment.
God determines the death of every person on the basis of His omniscience and love. In practical terms, this means that every person dies at the best possible time for them.
The Resurrection of the dead is a fundamental truth of the Church, which was formulated as a dogma and included in our Creed at the Second Ecumenical Council15 Moreover, the Resurrection of Christ is the surest guarantee of our own resurrection. The resurrection of dead bodies and their union with their corresponding souls is the prerequisite for the Last Judgement, after we have lived and done good or evil as psycho-somatic unity 16. It therefore goes without saying that we shall also possess the future quality of our lives as unified psycho-somatic beings.
6. Which person is truly free and happy? What does real freedom mean, and how is it attained?
A person is truly free when they free themselves from the fear of death, from the influence of the deceiver, and from their passions. Only then can they live and fulfil the purpose for which God created them, for only then can they realise all the potential they were endowed with through their creation in the image and likeness of God. That is why, and only then, can he be truly and wholly happy.
However, man’s true freedom is bestowed mysteriously, as a gift, only within the Church, where it is experienced empirically and existentially in every 17 sense. And this is because it is only within the Church that death—as man’s separation from the source of life, that is, from God—is overcome, and the fear of death is destroyed; a fear which decisively determines all of man’s actions in which it reigns. Christ, through His death on the cross, has abolished the devil’s dominion over man who becomes part of His mystical Body, that is, His Church, whilst through His Resurrection He conquered death, bestowing resurrected life upon His mystical members—that is to say, the faithful—both in this present life and in the eternal life to come.
…it is only within the Church that death—as the separation of man from the source of life, that is, from God—is overcome, and the fear of death is destroyed; a fear which decisively determines all the actions of the man over whom it reigns.
When the believer breaks God’s commandments, he enters the existential realm of death and the sphere of influence of the Evil One. It is then that the passions arise and take root. All this, however, is definitively abolished through the believer’s repentance and sincere confession, and through Holy Communion he is spiritually nourished and is united by grace with God Himself. Moreover, by submitting his will to the will of Christ, he also attains his charismatic freedom. Charismatic freedom is the very human freedom of the individual believer, which is enriched by the uncreated, deifying grace of Christ, so that he too attains, in a charismatic manner, perspectives of uncreated freedom.
7. When do life, virtues and passions begin in a person? Where do they come from and how are they effectively healed?
Human life begins at the moment of conception in the mother’s womb. It is precisely then that the virtues with which the state of being created in the image of God is enriched are also instilled. In other words, virtues represent the natural endowment of every human being. However, passions do not have a natural ontological existence. They are not natural traits, but rather the perversion of virtues; this perversion is due to the premeditation and free will of each individual, who abuses (that is, misuses and employs negatively) their freedom.
Consequently, reprehensible passions (τὰ διαβλητὰ πάθη 18) do not originate in human nature, but in human premeditation. That is to say, they are added elements and, naturally, parasitic, which, like a disease, erode the psycho-somatic nature of man. In other words, the truly healthy person is virtuous, whilst the person in the grip of passion is, by their very nature and in spite of it, sick and powerless to fulfil the purpose of their existence.
The effective healing of the passionate person takes place only in God’s spiritual hospital, which is the Church. In this hospital, healing is certain and guaranteed by God, when the believer consistently follows the therapeutic care of the spiritual doctors 19 and takes the necessary spiritual medicines. The spiritual doctors are the priests of the Most High, and the spiritual medicines are the divine commandments of the Church and its Holy Sacraments through which God works. Therapeutic care is provided by specialised spiritual doctors, who possess the charism of discerning spirits. These doctors are also characterised as spiritual guides. In the spiritual hospital, with the spiritual instructions outlined above, there are no incurable passions, for the medicines it possesses are bearers of uncreated and deifying grace. That is to say, they are bearers of the very Divinity of our Triune God.
8. Is there such a thing as fate, as Muslims and many of our fellow human beings believe?
According to the Christian faith, nothing in the world, whether in the irrational order of nature or amongst human beings, happens by chance. All things are ordered by the Creator of the entire universe, through His beneficent providence. Christ Himself confirms this, saying that God provides for and cares for even the most insignificant things, such as birds, grass, flowers, the hairs on our heads, and so on. (Matthew 6:26–30; 10:29–31; Luke 12:6–7).
Of course, God intervenes, more often than not, spontaneously and unexpectedly throughout the world, but also in our personal and social lives. God’s intervention is constantly for the good of the world and of humankind, even if this good is not always clear or perceptible to all people. And this is because God Himself is good and holds all our data—that is, the data of all people—so that His intervention, through the all-wisdom and love that are His own, always represents righteousness, justice and beauty, whereas human beings, whether individually or collectively, with their limited understanding and, more often than not, because of their self-centred love, are unable to perceive and interpret the works of God’s love.
However, when a person possesses inner purity, they are able to see and authentically interpret the manifestations of God’s love. This is a privilege enjoyed by the Saints of all ages.
…when a person possesses inner purity, they are able to see and authentically interpret the manifestations of God’s love. This is a privilege enjoyed by the Saints of all ages.
9. Why is salvation found only in the Orthodox Church and not in other religions, philosophical systems or various heresies?
Human salvation is offered only by the one true God, in the way He has chosen to offer it. The Son of God Himself has revealed to us that God so loved the world that He sacrificed His Son for the salvation of those who believe in Him. Specifically, the Son of God became Man and founded the Church as His mystical Body, so that every person might be saved, provided, however, that they have been incorporated into the Church through the Holy Sacrament of Baptism. This is how God willed that humankind should be saved—that is to say, not in an arbitrary or mechanistic-magical way. In other words, He willed that man should remain within the mystical Body of Christ, free, keeping the divine commandments out of love and through participation in the Holy Mysteries through which God works. And this is because, through the Holy Sacraments of the Church, the divine life of the Head of the divine-human Body of the Church is transmitted to its members. This participation in true life—in other words, in eternal life—brings about man’s salvation, not only in the future reality but also in the present historical reality, as a foretaste.
However, anyone who does not accept the faith and life of the Orthodox Church cannot become a recipient of salvation, for God does not grant salvation—as His own life—outside the mystical Body of Christ.
10. Does God exist, and is there a life other than the one we live, or do we end up like animals, in nothingness and non-existence, as atheists and nihilists believe?
God possesses the majesty—inconceivable to the human mind—of a nobility that does not compel any of His creatures to accept His boundless, selfless love, to accept His providential care, nor to acknowledge His almighty sovereignty over all creation. And He achieves this through the apparent absence of His omnipresence. This [second fact] reveals, amongst other things, the inconceivable extent of His true humility. However, as long as man purifies himself of the noetic residues of sin, which have self-love as their source, he begins to see the works of God in creation and history; that is, he begins to see the reasons behind things. Within the Church, a person deepens their knowledge of God to the extent that they keep the divine commandments out of love and participate, consciously and with the appropriate disposition, in the Holy Mysteries through which God works. Then, with his senses spiritually transformed, he sees Him in an unseen way and perceives Him in an incomprehensible manner 20—the God Who reveals Himself as uncreated Divine Light.
Our existence after death, in the reality to come—perceived as eternal life or eternal damnation—is confirmed by God Himself in Holy Scripture. Our belief in the existence of the life to come is set out, in the clearest terms, in the Creed, as follows: ‘I look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come.’
Therefore, theories—whatever they may be—regarding the non-existence of God and the afterlife serve the author of all error, that is, the devil, and his victims of every kind.
11. Why are intimate relationships before marriage, civil marriage and any other form of cohabitation mortal sins?
Every sin, as a violation of God’s commandments, separates us, in terms of our way of life, from God. And this is because sin hinders the transmission of divine life into our own biological and spiritual lives. Sins are ranked according to the degree to which they distance us from our vital and loving union with God. In particular, intimate relationships before marriage, civil marriage 21 and cohabitation 22 constitute mortal sins, as they are, in fact, tantamount to fornication.
Fornication is not merely a private matter for the believer, but has a distinct social character. This social dimension of fornication is not limited merely to the person committing fornication with another person, but, within the Church, it relates to Christ Himself, for Christ is the Head of the Church. The believer, as a member of the mystical Body of Christ, has a duty to remain faithful to the spiritual marriage they have entered into with Christ through the Holy Sacrament of Baptism. And this fidelity is ensured by keeping Christ’s commandments, He being the divine Head and Bridegroom of the Church.
Moreover, the physical bonds within marriage are not merely legalised by the Church’s Holy Sacrament. Within the Church, through the celebration of the Holy Sacrament of Marriage, physical bonds do not become autonomous nor are they confined to their biological nature, but rather, together with the spiritual bonds, point to the spiritual union between Christ and the Church. Through the power of the Holy Sacrament [of Marriage], they 23 are enriched with selfless and sacrificial love, thereby avoiding any form of selfish physical or spiritual bond.
Through the power of the Holy Sacrament [of Marriage], physical bonds are enriched with selfless and sacrificial love, thereby avoiding any form of selfish physical or spiritual bond.
12. Why does the Church condemn abortion?
The Church, by the decision of an Ecumenical Council (the Quinisext Council 24), condemns abortion, because abortion constitutes murder. And it is, indeed, the killing of a human being who is in an embryonic state within his mother’s womb. According to the Church’s dogmatic teaching, a human being exists from the moment of conception, that is, from the very first moment of conception. A human being consists of body and soul. And these two elements of human nature begin their existence together at the moment of conception. In other words, the human soul neither pre-exists nor appears at a later stage of pregnancy, but coexists with the body from the very first moment of conception. Naturally, the human soul is complete from the very first moment of conception, irrespective of the progress of the embryo’s physical development. Put simply, the workings of the soul manifest themselves in accordance with the degree of the embryo’s physical development. It is the soul that contains the body; it is present throughout the body and gives it life, without itself being contained by the body. On the contrary, it encompasses the body, and it is the soul that bears the image of God.
Consequently, the embryo is not some limb or organ of the mother, nor is it a biological possession that belongs to her and with which she may do as she pleases. It is a fully-fledged human being who, due to special circumstances, is temporarily housed in her womb.
It follows from the above teaching of our Church that any intervention resulting in the death of fertilised eggs, even in the case of exosomatic fertilisation 25, is condemned as premeditated murder. The same applies both to experimental procedures involving fertilised eggs and to the preservation or destruction of frozen embryos. It follows naturally from the above that exosomatic fertilisation 26 is also condemned on account of the inevitable killing of unwanted fertilised eggs.
13. Why is suicide a mortal sin?
Suicide is understood as the deliberate ending of one’s life, arising from despair (despair) stemming from a real or perceived failure. It represents the most extreme act of selfishness, devoid of any trace of faith in God and showing no sign of love for one’s neighbour. In other words, it is an extremely selfish act.
Consequently, the Church’s condemnation of suicide is self-evident. Of course, owing to its extreme nature, it is also the only irreconcilable mortal sin. This is because, within the Church, a person can not only be cleansed of other mortal sins through repentance, but can also rise to the heights of holiness. However, this state is impossible to attain for the believer who takes their own life, because suicide is their final deliberate act in this life. It [that is, suicide] represents an act which, in effect, denies God as the sole Lord of life and death. Likewise, it challenges, through this act, God’s love and providence for every human being.
14. What are the reasons that lead contemporary couples to break up their families?
There are many reasons that lead contemporary couples to break up their families. However, the most important, from an axiological point of view, are the following: in principle, the primary cause lies in a failure to recognise and live out marriage as a sacrament of love, which consists in the sacrament of the union between Christ and the Church. The couple and the family [formed] continue, according to St John Chrysostom, to represent the image of the union between Christ and the Church.
Therefore, the love between spouses 27, within the Church, can and must transcend the physical and psychological levels of union and rise to the spiritual level of unity. This, however, requires spiritual effort and a life lived in the mystery 28. Contemporary couples generally ignore the purpose of marriage within the Church. In other words, they neglect the fact that the purpose of marriage is for the two—the man and the woman—to become, spiritually, one 29. And this state is achieved only when they purify themselves of the passions that divide their unity and the dormant grace of the Holy Spirit, which they received at the Holy Sacrament of Chrismation, is activated.
Contemporary couples have not been carefully informed that marriage is a battlefield of virtue. That is why they have not been properly prepared for the difficulties and trials permitted by God, together with His grace, for the couple’s spiritual discipline through endeavour, prayer, humility, mutual submission and, above all, patience—a patience which is intrinsically linked from the outset to marital fidelity and enduring love. In this way, as is easily understood, the humble mutual offering of service, mutual understanding, self-giving and sacrifice have been neglected, so that the worldly spirit of self-righteousness has prevailed, with the couple’s rights being mutually asserted.
The humble mutual offering of service, mutual understanding, self-giving and sacrifice were neglected, so that a worldly spirit of self-righteousness came to dominate, with the couple’s rights being claimed by each other.
This same spirit has led to mutual antagonism and demands for equality. It goes without saying, then, that conjugal love has been reduced to the satisfaction of biological needs and has ended up serving the mutual and destructive interests of the couple’s unity. For this reason, both love and mutual submission were severed from their experience [that is, that of the spouses], as an inalienable spiritual obligation between them.
Finally, a lack of trust in God, the pursuit of selfish goals, the desire for worldly prosperity, and a consumerist mindset—combined with greed and the hectic pace of life—constitute the prevailing atmosphere that fosters the breakdown of the contemporary family, when it lacks the spiritual defences that only the Church bestows, in a sacramental manner, upon its members.
- 1
The terms given in brackets are either in Ancient Greek or Modern Greek, as appropriate. For the convenience of the Romanian reader, I shall provide a transliteration of each term into Latin script, indicating the stressed syllables as they would be pronounced in Greek. Thus, the quoted expression is read asaftexúsia thélisi (translator’s note).
- 2
That is to say, the will as a manifestation of free will (translator’s note).
- 3
To be read as thélima (translator’s note).
- 4
To be read as ‘kat’ ikóna Tu’ (translator’s note).
- 5
To be read as kath’ omíosin (translator’s note).
- 6
In other words, obeying God’s commandments out of love whilst we are still alive, before each of us passes into the life beyond the grave (translator’s note).
- 7
Acts of the Apostles IV, 12 (translator’s note).
- 8
That is to say, swear words that include the names of the Persons of the Holy Trinity (translator’s note).
- 9
To be read as katàfísin (translator’s note).
- 10
To be read as ‘ta theurgà mistíria’ (translator’s note).
- 11
That is to say, Repentance and Confession. The author divides the Holy Sacrament of Repentance or Confession into two parts, to indicate its two stages, each with its specific acts, namely repentance, which signifies the believer’s inner, existential transformation, precedes the confession of sins to the spiritual father whom every believer is obliged to have, in order to walk the path of their salvation (translator’s note).
- 12
In other words, consisting of soul and body (translator’s note).
- 13
The use of square brackets indicates an addition by the translator to aid understanding of the text (translator’s note).
- 14
1 Timothy 2:4 (translator’s note).
- 15
Held in Constantinople in 381 (translator’s note).
- 16
That is to say, soul and body (translator’s note).
- 17
Or wisdom, according to Philippians 1:9 (translator’s note).
- 18
Read: ‘the devil’s parts’ (translator’s note).
- 19
Or ‘spiritualised’ (translator’s note).
- 20
That is to say, in a way that is incomprehensible; in other words, beyond human understanding (translator’s note).
- 21
In Greece, in accordance with the Orthodox Christian tradition cultivated over many centuries, the celebration of the Holy Sacrament of Marriage in church has not only sacramental significance, but also the status of a civil act in the eyes of the state authorities. However, under pressure from certain organisations and minority groups, civil marriage was also recognised in Greece in 1982, which promotes, amongst other things, a lax attitude towards the Orthodox Christian conscience and, by implication, the alienation of some people from the Orthodox Church, an increase in religious indifference and even atheism, as well as the revival of certain pagan practices from the times of ancient Greece. According to data compiled by the Hellenic Statistical Authority (ΕΛΣΤΑΤ), which were published on 1 August 2013, for the first time in Greece, on that date, the number of civil marriages exceeded that of religious marriages, at 51.8 per cent compared with 48.2 per cent (https://www.sansimera.gr/articles/214, accessed on 3 October 2018, translator’s note).
- 22
The term ‘carnal cohabitation’ refers not only to adultery committed by a breach of fidelity within a couple consisting of a man and a woman, but also to any form of sexual licentiousness. It should come as no surprise that in the present day the Church promotes, in accordance with its apostolic and patristic teaching—based on the two sources of divine Revelation, Holy Scripture and Holy Tradition, that both the man and the woman should maintain bodily purity prior to receiving the Holy Sacrament of Marriage, in order to remain within the defining parameters of the traditional family. This is the state which the Orthodox Church has recommended for two millennia, and the nuances of any deviation from this state are a matter for each individual’s relationship with their spiritual father (translator’s note).
- 23
That is to say, carnal ties (translator’s note).
- 24
Or the Fifth-Sixth Ecumenical Council, because it supplemented, through the canons it enacted, the Fifth Ecumenical Council (Constantinople, 553) and the Sixth Ecumenical Council (Constantinople, 680–681), or the Trullan Council, as it was held in the Trullo or vaulted hall in Constantinople in 692. At this Council, 102 canons were ratified, and canon 91 stipulates the following: Those who administer abortifacients (substances that induce abortion) and those who receive poisons that kill infants shall be subject to the punishment reserved for murderers (translator’s note).
- 25
In other words, outside the body of the expectant mother (translator’s note).
- 26
That is, in vitro fertilisation, hence the abbreviation IVF (translator’s note).
- 27
According to the Holy Tradition of the Church and its liturgical practice, the two spouses in a marriage are understood to be a man and a woman (translator’s note).
- 28
Not in the sense of being hidden or secret, but carried out in and through the Holy Sacraments of the Church, that is, through active participation in them (translator’s note).
- 29
That is to say, one body, according to the words of our Saviour Christ (Mark 10:6–9: ‘But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female. For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife. And the two shall become one flesh; so they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, let no man put asunder), with a single mind and a single heart, whilst remaining, at the same time, two distinct persons. Therefore, it is not a question of the annihilation of one’s personality, but of the constant transformation of one towards the love of the other, who, in turn, also transforms themselves in order to receive love from their husband or wife; in other words, it is a matter of mutual transformation coming from both the man and the woman, who together form that family (translator’s note).