When the
Holy Spirit wants you to write something, you better listen. The Holy Spirit is
important as He will guide you and work in your life to bring about salvation
in your heart and desire for God. I as I normally do I have been watching a lot
of YouTube videos and been heavily involved in Orthodox Miracles and
Prophecies. In one of the videos, he discussed the twelve invisible monks of Mount
Athos. According to tradition they will perform
the last divine liturgy on Mount Athos. These naked hermits live with no
clothes and pray for the entire world at the top of the Mountain. These are men
who have completely rejected all earthly glory, their names forgotten, their
faces not well known, they go to the peak of Mount Athos are rarely even seen unless
they want to be. These men are the epitome of what it means to be an Orthodox Christian.
Though their earthly bodies will die, and they will be replaced, the monks at
the end will not taste death and will usher in the Second Coming of Jesus
Christ. Let’s take a look at what information we have on these twelve monks of
Mount Athos and what we can glean from their holy wisdom.
From
what we understand of these monks, they are the twelve invisible, naked monks,
secret elders gather at the top of Mount Athos. There is a sacred area that is
set off from the rest of Mount Athos. It is called the Desert of Athos. These
monks do not wear material garments and appear to whoever they wish. Sometimes they
appear to monks, other times with pilgrims, but always to those who have lived
a pure Christian life. Those who know the names of these monks, will always
keep it a secret. They consider themselves to be the unimportant and feeble
among themselves. They have mastered fasting and are fed through the Lord Jesus
Christ. They are give special grace through the Theotokos. Hieromonk Athanasios has met with St. Paisios
and had many conversations with the beloved saint. Of course, the topic of
these monks was brought up at some point during their extensive conversations.
When one dies, they know that their numbers must remain the same, so they call
from below to an elder and he ascends to the peak and becomes one of their
number. They pray without ceasing and do not sleep for they pray for the whole
world as I said day and night. One the
most amazing things about these monks, is that living at the top of Mount Athos
under the snow they require no shelter. These men do not sleep in huts, or houses,
but they are so full of the grace from God they sleep in the open. These are anchorites
that have become living saints. Devoid of all earthly passions they seek only
to glorify God at the peak of Mount Athos.
Here is a quote I found from a Father Ephraim it says, ““That the
invisible elders exist is a fact. A few years ago, a revered elder, Fr. Gerasim
of Little St. Anne’s Skete, reposed on Mt. Athos. He told us that some people
would come into his cell at midnight, and then leave. One of these men would
approach the elder to take Communion, and silently leave” He also said this in
regard to the monks of Mount Athos, but I believe it can be applied here to the
invisible elders of the Holy Mountain. He says, “There
is no greater blessing in this world, than to experientially live and
experience grace,” Abbot Ephraim said. “We have known virtuous people on Athos
who lived by grace, because they loved Christ. We often saw them in the
Uncreated Light, and we were often witnesses to how they saw the future,” he
added. The Uncreated Light is the Light of Mount Tabor, or the Tabor
Light, we associate this as Orthodox Christians with the transfiguration of our
Lord on Mount Tabor on August 6th. It is not uncommon for those who
have become living saints, such as the elders of Mount Athos to experience this
Divine Light and joy in their lifetime. So beyond the normal monks, one might
meet on Mount Athos, these invisible monks are like the special forces of
monks, they have had more extensive training and more in tune with central
command as it is aka God and are able to complete the work of God more fully
than those who live within the confines of a skete or monastery. They radiate
joy and love, and as I have said do not seek earthly glory. Why then are they
so important?
I
believe they are important because of a few things. One, is that they show that
God is always watching over us. He never leaves us without a witness to follow
and examples to give us of how our lives should be. Secondly, these monks praying
for the whole world, are living saints, examples of men who have gone to Mount
Athos seeking nothing but their own salvation and have come away with the light
of God flowing through them with the special divine grace given to them. Thirdly
these men are intercessors for the world and are granted the grace to intercede
at the footstool of God for the salvation of the world. Holding back the demons
by their prayers, keeping the devil at bay for just a while longer, allowing
the plan of salvation to come to completion. As I said they will perform the
last divine liturgy ever on Mount Athos and then the trumpets will sound and
Jesus will come. The world will be renewed. It is this renewal that we see in
them. They have already experienced what those of us living in the world have
not yet seen, the transformation of our souls and bodies into the incorruptible
and transfigured bodies of heaven. They are given to us as a sign of what is to
come, of what will be. We may not see them, they may not reveal themselves to
us, but they are there. They are watching over the world and protecting it
until their final breath. I pray that I may be prayed for by these holy ascetic
monks on the peak of Mount Athos and I pray that God will continue to use them
for a little while longer, though I do not know the hour of the Second Coming.
May God have mercy on us through their prayers. Amen.
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