By Protopresbyter Fr. George Papavarnavas
Saint Gerasimos the Mikragiannanitis was born in Droviani of Epirus in 1903 to pious parents. He was diligent, intelligent, and possessed a strong memory, which helped him progress in his studies and develop his gift for hymnography. He received his basic education in Piraeus and Athens, where he also met Saint Nektarios, Bishop of Pentapolis.
On August 15, 1923, he went to the Holy Mountain, specifically to the Cell of the Honorable Forerunner (Timiou Prodromou) in Little Saint Anna’s, where he submitted himself to Elder Meletios Ioannidis. On October 20, 1924, he was tonsured a monk. However, after five years his Elder left the Holy Mountain, and he remained alone. At that time, the presence of God became more palpable in his life. His only consolation was prayer and study. After about twenty years, he gained a small brotherhood of good fathers. Of course, during all the years he lived alone, he visited and sought counsel from experienced Elders, especially Elder Kallinikos the Spiritual Father, who lived in Katounakia. To him he showed the first Canon he had composed, and the Elder told him: “The Canon is excellent, but I tell you one thing: humility, humble-mindedness. Be careful, lest the devil wage war against you.”
The ever-memorable Father Theoklitos Dionysiatis described him as “a modest and excellent hymnographer, a rare personality, and a true man of God.”
The late Archimandrite Father George Kapsanis, Abbot of the Sacred Monastery of Venerable Gregory on Mount Athos, wrote of him that “he was a humble monk, eagerly striving for the Kingdom of Heaven, one who despised the flesh and its desires, prayerful, meek, gentle, gracious, God-loving and man-loving, instructive, forgiving, easily moved to compunction, keeping ever-wakeful the eye of his soul, strict with himself and accommodating toward others.”
Saint Gerasimos loved silence deeply, which he considered “the mother of the wisest thoughts.” He also taught through his wise speech, to benefit those who requested a word from him. According to the testimony of his spiritual children, his speech was exceedingly sweet, comforting, always careful, beautiful, instructive, and soul-profiting. “Visitors were enchanted by conversing with him.” He emphasized greatly the importance of inner purity, citing a saying of Saint Gregory Palamas: “Saint Gregory Palamas says that the only thing the Almighty God is unable to do is to unite Himself with an impure person. In this He is powerless.”
His monastic brotherhood wrote the following about the manner of his repose: “He had begged the Panagia to preserve his reason until the end so that he would not trouble anyone. Indeed, he had clarity of mind until his final breath. He said three times, ‘Saint Nektarios, help me,’ and he expired. A sweetness was painted upon his face; you would think he was peacefully asleep.”
His life and conduct give us the opportunity to emphasize the following:
First, God gives each person various gifts, according to their abilities and receptivity. A person is called to make use of these gifts with love and zeal, for the glory of God and the benefit of others. This means that one must not appropriate these gifts for selfish purposes or to satisfy passions, nor should one “bury his talent in the earth” — that is, leave unused any gift he has received from God.
The use of God’s gifts must be undertaken diligently and, above all, with humility and prayer so that God may bless them, because, as Saint Gerasimos emphasized, without God’s blessing no good thing is accomplished. Describing the way he himself worked in using his hymnographic gift, he said: “Whatever I do, I owe to prayer. Before beginning work, I make a fervent prayer — improvised, yes, but very warm — which acts and works and brings forth whatever beautiful result it brings.” “Prayer is everything. Let us not rely on external wisdom —on ‘technique.’ It is a cold word. This cold word must become alive. And it becomes alive only through prayer.”
What applies to hymnography also applies to chanting in church during the holy services, especially the Divine Liturgy. That is, the celebrant (bishop or priest) and the chanters should prepare beforehand with ascetic effort and prayer, and during the service they must chant humbly and prayerfully. Adapting the words of Saint Gerasimos, we may say that during the chanting we must not rely on “notes.” Notes produce a cold hymn. This cold hymn must become living, for only then will it touch the heart and bring consolation, compunction, calm, and spiritual joy. And “it becomes living only through prayer.”
Of course, it is good for priests and chanters to know the “notes,” that is, ecclesiastical music; however, above all, all of us — clergy, monastics, and laity, married and unmarried — must learn to pray with the heart, according to the words of the Apostle Paul: “Speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and chanting in your hearts to the Lord.” In other words, when the celebrant prays “with mind and heart,” and the chanters sing humbly and prayerfully, then the faithful are helped to participate actively and pray with their hearts.
Second, the saints love silence very much, because they know from experience that it helps to gather the mind and to offer pure prayer, which “unites with God” and brings to the soul peace, serenity, and spiritual sweetness. Saint Isaac the Syrian teaches love for silence and even urges us to love it more than anything else. He says: “Above all, love silence.” This is because he knows by experience that through silence prayer grows, as does the zeal for a more intense living of the gospel life, which leads to the purification from passions, the illumination of the nous, and communion with God. Excessive talking gives birth to sin and strengthens the passions, while attention to one’s speech reveals a prudent person.
Silence, which is the language of the age to come, when joined with prayer, leads to the proper use of our gifts and communion with the living God.
Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
