By Monk Moses the Athonite
- The Freemason
A spiritual child of the Elder, in the first days after her marriage, was sadly informed that her husband was a Freemason. She immediately went to the Elder to tell him about it. He convinced her to bring him to the Ascension Monastery at the first opportunity. As soon as her spiritual father saw them coming one day, he welcomed them with fatherly affection and great joy. He embraced them both and, taking them by the hand, said to the husband: “From this moment on, you are also my own child and I will give an answer before God for you.” And he gave him permission to receive communion. He objected that he could not fast, and the Elder said to him: “Today eat meat, tomorrow fish, the day after tomorrow oil, and the next day receive communion.” When the couple wanted to leave for America, the husband went with tears to bid farewell to the Elder and wanted to kiss his feet, because with the love he showed him he found his salvation. They had correspondence from America, and in one of his letters the Elder wrote to them: “Keep it as my legacy, because it is my last letter, because I will not be around for another.” As he said, so it happened.
- The Deluded
For the deluded, the best way to approach them on behalf of the right faith is the discerning demonstration of leniency and love.
- The Jehovah's Witness
The Elder returned a Jehovah's Witness to Orthodoxy and made him make a written confession of faith, which he kept in the pocket of his belt. He often said: "I have Constantius here," showing the place where he kept his confession, but also his heart.
- The Evangelical
An Evangelical, who was bothering someone in his service with questions he asked and the answers he expected to be only from the Holy Bible, was left amazed by the accuracy of the answers he received from him. This helper would go to the Elder, get the answers and the next day he would take them back to the inquiring Evangelical. Thus, in a short time, defeated, the Evangelical left him alone and looked for other ignorant and naive people.
- The Priest Who Was a Professor
And to a current professor priest, the Elder once said, “The boundaries between Orthodoxy and heresy are written in blood!”
- The Arrogant Intellectual
Once, an intellectual went to his cell, who boasted of his own wisdom and imagined that the Elder was not up to his standards. But when he heard him explain some issues that concerned him, he said humbly: “Simpler, simpler, Father,” because he did not understand.
- The Lawyer
A certain lawyer who approached him with a proud mind was greatly puzzled when the Elder asked him a question about his science. “Seriously," he wondered, "where does he know all this? Not even my professor asked me such a question.”
He had the ability to treat people with the same simplicity whether they were lay people or the worldly wise.
With these simple and at the same time rich words, he nurtured the souls of his children and gave them the good education that he found most suitable to their abilities.
Source: From the book Ιερώνυμος Σιμωνοπετρίτης, ο Γέρων της Αναλήψεως, published by the Monastery of Simonopetra, Mount Athos. Translation by John Sanidopoulos.
