Orthodox Christian Spiritual Anatomy
The Physical and the Spiritual are tied together in Orthodoxy. In fact, we each have a set of Physical eyes AND Spiritual eyes; Physical ears AND Spiritual ears...
There's an old saying that is a misquote attributed to Francis of Assisi that goes, "Wherever you go, preach the Gospel, and, if necessary, use words." While the sentiment in the quote does have merit, it actually wasn't said by Francis, and it isn't really all that correct.
But it does point out a truth that should be embraced by those of us who follow Jesus Christ: Actions speak louder than words. My grandmother used to say, "Your actions are so loud, I can't hear what your words are saying."
This is why the Faith teaches us to integrate our physical and spiritual lives. If you reduce the Faith to mere thoughts and intentions, you will always only be “half” Christian. Your Faith, Normal Faith, is meant to be so transformative that it changes your actions, choices, and behaviors so that your Outside PROVES what’s inside is real!
St. Peter will say as much in today's Lesson in 1 Peter 3:10-22:
BELOVED, "He that would love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking guile; let him turn away from evil and do right; let him seek peace and pursue it. For the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those that do evil."
Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is right? But even if you do suffer for righteousness' sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your hearts reverence Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to make a defense to any one who calls you to account for the hope that is in you, yet do it with gentleness and reverence; and keep your conscience clear, so that, when you are abused, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. For it is better to suffer for doing right, if that should be God's will, than for doing wrong. For Christ also died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit; in which he went and preached to the spirits in prison, who formerly did not obey, when God's patience waited in the days of Noah, during the building of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were saved through water. Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a clear conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers subject to him.
St. Peter writes to his spiritual children and teaches them about Christian anatomy: If you will "see" good days, keep your "tongue" and "lips" from evil and guile. Because the "eyes" of the Lord and the "ears" of the Lord see the righteous and hear their prayer. Isn't that cool how the Holy Spirit keeps us remembering that we are the Body of Christ and that the Orthodox faith integrates the physical and the spiritual? But I digress.
Notice St. Peter's teaching that we should always be prepared to make a defense to anyone who "calls you to account for the hope that is in you." It seems Peter assumes (rightly so) that a believer in Christ can endure suffering and persecution because of hope and not merely information! And look how St. Peter describes how to defend your hope. He never mentions fancy words or deep philosophy at all. He describes the peaceful heart of one who is in love with God. He uses words like "gentleness" and "reverence." He says the best way to defend your hope is to keep your conscience clear, and if you do that when you are abused, your abuser will be shamed by your clear conscience!
Suffice it to say that defending our faith certainly means knowing our faith, studying our faith, and not allowing ignorance to steal the treasures of our faith from us, but it can never be merely the gathering of religious information. We must allow the truth of the Faith to grant us what the Lord has always granted His disciples: Peace. It is the internal rest and confidence, the lack of internal torment or disturbance, that sets me free not to allow my outward situation to invade my heart and make me fearful. It is in the embrace of the rhythm of the faith (I know I say that a lot!) that creates peace within my own soul. But that is precisely what defends the faith. Not fancy or brilliant arguments, but a peaceful life!
When you allow your Faith to be more than words, more than good intentions, but actual choices and behaviors, you display the resurrected life of Jesus to the world through your peaceful practice of the Faith. And you insulate your heart from being invaded by the external chaos of a world that doesn’t know God’s peace. That’s what a Normal Orthodox life truly is!
St. Leo, bishop of Catania, served the Church during the reign of Leo the Wise and his son Constantine in the late 9th and early 10th century AD. St. Leo served in the regions around Ravenna, Italy. And during this time there was still much paganism and sorcery in the area. St. Leo struggled to wake the people up from this delusion of magic and false teaching. Much like today, these people wanted to live in the fantasy world of their own narcissistic desires by depending on potions and spells and their own strength rather than submit to the Lord Jesus and live in the freedom of reality. But Leo called these deluded people to the Light of Christ and spent his whole ministry turning them from their self-centered slavery to their desires and delusions to the love of God in Christ Jesus.
Today, are you ready to give a defense of your faith to anyone who calls you to account for the confidence you have in the Faith? Better yet, does your peaceful life display that defense to all who watch you live? Defending your Orthodox faith is never just about what you know but how you live a Normal Orthodox life!
P.S. A model of faith and the image of gentleness, the example of your life has shown you forth to your sheep-fold to be a master of temperance. You obtained thus through being lowly, gifts from on high, and riches through poverty. Leo, our father and priest of priests, intercede with Christ our God that He may save our souls.
