By Fr. George Dorbarakis
The Saints celebrated today are both spouses and monastics, who belong to that group of Christians who followed the so-called white marriage: which means that while they are spouses, they do not have carnal relations. The Hymnographer even expresses this double paradoxical relationship with a very beautiful phrase - and not only with this: the Saints are "renowned in marriage, a great wonder of the unmarried." Our Church does not promote white marriage as an example to be imitated. White marriage is a choice of certain spouses, who, appreciating their strengths and the entire purpose of their lives, decide that maintaining their virginity, even within marriage, constitutes a choice that facilitates the interests of their souls. The Hymnographer notes this: "Both interests being in harmony." Something similar perhaps happens with the gift of foolishness: while it is a gift from God, it is not proposed as a way of life by our Church. And this is something that shows how down-to-earth and sympathetic the Church is towards the faithful: each time it emphasizes the middle path, without however excluding those who wish for something different as a transcendence. Because what is sought by Her is not the path, any path, but the relationship with Christ. This constitutes the end and She does not interfere much with the means to achieve the end.
From this point of view, we understand that the white marriage of some married saints of the Church does not constitute a criticism of the blessed marriage of the rest of the faithful. This would constitute blasphemy, which would negate the very mystery of marriage, according to which the psychosomatic relationship of spouses functions as an image of the relationship of Christ with the Church. “This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the Church.” The Lord Himself, moreover, was the One who, by His presence at the wedding in Cana, blessed the normalcy of marriage and spoke about the nature of this relationship, concluding that "they are no longer two, but one flesh.” That is, by the grace of God, the man and the woman are joined together, united in such a way that they constitute one person, oriented towards Christ, which means that the couple’s relationships, both psychic and physical, are now reduced beyond the simple horizontal level to a spiritual level.
Nevertheless, the marriage of the holy couple Galaktion and Episteme functions as an example for both married people and monastics. How? By seeing the great desire they had for Christ, such that it made them deny the allurements of the sinful world and unite with the bond of the Holy Spirit. “Having renounced the world for your divine longing of Christ, you have been united with the Spirit, O Athletes.” Their spiritual connection was what constituted their vision and gave them the strength to move forward even in the midst of martyrdom. The verses of their synaxarion are revealing: “The unpaired couple are beheaded by the sword, having a coupling of their souls by love.” The sword killed the virgin spouses, because they loved their spiritual union. And elsewhere: “You desired abstinence from carnal relations because of the desire of purity and asceticism. However, united with a solid faith and united in soul, you were united again for the athletic competitions, Holy Martyrs." This is the vision of all believers: to be united among ourselves, something that is mainly a matter of the soul and less of the body. This constitutes the prerequisite for having oneness with the Lord as well. And for married people: the oneness of bodies, carnal relations, must lead to the oneness of souls. We say it again. Everything works reductively: with our unity, to be united with our God.
Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
