By Fr. George Dorbarakis
“Sealed” by God from infancy, Venerable David follows a miraculous path that refers to the Christ-like state of all the great venerables and saints of our Church. Venerable Gerasimos Mikragiannanitis, the composer of the Venerable’s Canon, repeatedly emphasizes this truth and even traces his venerable path in detail. “Father David, all-blessed one, having entrusted yourself to God from childhood, in a way that God wills, you rejected every impassioned attachment to worldly things. And having taken up your cross, you appeared in your way of life equal to the angels” (Praises of Matins). “He (David) appeared to be a fellow zealot of the ancient venerables, the same in their way of life and a participant in their asceticism, and having equal glory with them as he shared their glory and graces” (Oikos of the Synaxarion).
It is worth emphasizing what the Holy Hymnographer repeatedly points out about the Venerable: the special supervision of Saint John the Forerunner while he was still a child and his subsequent complete dedication to the Lord, even without the knowledge of his parents. “When the Baptist of the Lord appeared to you with purity, calling you to the divine life, then with joy you took this path. And with a fervent soul you dwelt in that temple, setting an example of your brilliance to everyone” (Sticheron of Vespers). And what happened? His father began to search for him, and found him in the Temple of the Forerunner, kneeling before his holy icon. But he could not say anything, because he was amazed at the sight he saw: his son was shining with the light of God! “Your father found you, but he was amazed by the manifest energy of the heavenly calling” (Sticheron of Vespers). “When he saw you in the holy temple, shining completely before the icon of the great John, then his eyes were opened by the Holy Spirit to understand your future glory” (Ode 1). And it is understandable for the Holy Hymnographer, following the signs of the ascetic conduct of the Venerable David, that the Venerable tried to live the life of Christ authentically by imitating the life of the great Prophet and Baptist. “You were dedicated to the Savior Christ from a child and with your asceticism you followed Him, divinely-wiseDavid. For after you were deemed worthy to see the divine face of the Forerunner of grace, you envied his life, winged by divine love and adorned by the wealth of practical wisdom” (Liti).
The Venerable David, through his spiritual struggles, increased to the utmost the initial grace with which he was called by God - "the calling that was given to you became more brilliant by your works" (Doxastikon of Vespers) - but he achieved this increase because he contested lawfully. And the lawful contest is that which follows in the footsteps of patristic tradition, far from any one-sidedness and "willful" disposition. What do we mean? While his calling was miraculous through the Honorable Forerunner and the calling of his heart to God was equally more miraculous, yet he did not trust himself. Proving the authenticity of the divine energy, he submits to a discerning elder, Akakios, with indiscriminate obedience, which is to say that he strived to acquire the greatest of all virtues, humility. And yet: he throws himself into the study of the holy texts of the Church, as well as into the imitation of every other fighter for piety in order to enrich his existence.
The remarks of Venerable Gerasimos are very clear: “Following wholeheartedly, O Venerable, the heavenly divine calling, you found the wise Akakios, by the providence of God, to direct you correctly towards the path of the heavenly journey” (Ode 3). And also: “Possessed with divine desire, you joyfully submitted, blessed David, to the God-fearing Akakios, distinguished for your humility” (Ode 3). And what was the feeling of David who obeyed his elder? That he was obeying the divine will! “In everything you appeared to be a model of virtuous life, because you obeyed your teacher completely as a subject of divine will” (Ode 5). But equally, as we have said: he daily watered his soul from the divine words, the Scriptures and the Holy Fathers, even when he was very young – this was his food par excellence! – just as he always looked to the example of virtuous men. “You were watered by the streams of the Scriptures, O venerable one, and nourished by the divinely inspired words throughout your youth; therefore, your mind was divine, full, holy, and endowed with great wisdom” (Ode 3). “As a monk by inspiration of God, Father, you went to the Holy Mountain to gather from there from your divine eros what the saints there achieved” (Ode 4).
It is therefore not surprising that such a Venerable, of such great scope, becomes a priest who liturgizes in the uncreated light (Ode 5), establishes, by divine prompting, a sacred monastery so that those who thirst for God may be guided to the Kingdom of God (Ode 6) – in this monastery, of course, much later, following the Venerable’s struggles, the great contemporary, equally holy Iakovos (Tsalikes), also lived in asceticism with desire for God – and has left his sacred relics in the monastery, and even his holy skull, so that all the faithful who have recourse to him may be strengthened and graced throughout the centuries (Ode 9).
It is also a great blessing for us to know that we have such a supporter and intercessor before the Lord with such power of prayer. As the verses of his synaxarion note:
“David overcame Goliath with a stone,
David overcame passions through prayer."
David overcame passions through prayer."
Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
