The Fruit of Pentecost: The Holy Spirit and Healing
By Fr. George Morelli
The
Gospels of the Sundays after Pascha in the Eastern Church deal with brokenness,
hope and healing. Illnesses first appear to be physical ailments, such as of
the paralytic and the blind man, yet Our Lord, God and Savior Jesus Christ when
healing always focused on the healing of the soul. Yes, He did cure some who
had physical ailments, but His overriding concern was the spiritual infirmity
and disease of sin. This is so clearly seen in his message to the paralytic:
“See, you are well! Sin no more, that nothing worse befalls you.” (Jn 5:15) The
meaning of the great Feast of Pentecost, the Descent of the Holy Spirit on the
Apostles and Disciples in the upper room 50 days after Pascha, may give us some
insight into our Lord’s focus on spiritual healing.
To
understand the meaning of Pentecost and healing we have to go back to St.
Luke’s recording of the Last Supper, and the Priestly prayer of Jesus at that
supper, told to us by St. John that we read as part of the Twelve Passion
Gospels on Holy Thursday evening of Holy Week. This was the Passover meal in
which Our Lord, God and Savior would change ordinary bread and wine into his
Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity and in which He ordained, that is, commissioned
His Apostles, and in turn their successors, to “do this in memory of me” [Him].
Remember His Divine words as St. Luke records (22): “And he took bread, and
when he had given thanks he broke it and gave it to them, saying, "This is
my body which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me." And
likewise the cup after supper, saying, "This cup which is poured out for
you is the new covenant in my blood.”
We will
note from the Gospel of St. John the Evangelist, the Beloved Apostle, that the
Apostles had no understanding of the significance of what Jesus had just done.
Jesus tells them He will send a Comforter, the Holy Spirit, but until the Holy
Spirit’s coming the apostles and disciples would remain blind. St. John records
the words of Jesus: "If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I
will pray the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, to be with you
for ever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it
neither sees him nor knows him; you know him, for he dwells with you, and will
be in you. "I will not leave you desolate; I will come to you. But the
Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach
you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” (Jn
14: 15-18, 26).
The
account of the Descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, is given in the Feast’s
epistle, as described by St. Luke in the Acts of the Apostles; “When the day of
Pentecost had come, the Disciples were all together in one place. And suddenly
a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled all the
house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire,
distributed and resting on each one of them. And they were all filled with the
Holy Spirit” (Acts 2: 1-4). And where did this flame rest? In the heart of
those who love Christ. Jesus Himself told us: "Blessed are the pure in
heart, for they shall see God.” (Mt 5: 8).. If God comes and indwells in us, He
rests in our hearts.
Barrier to the vision of God from our heart
"He
who believes in me, as the scripture has said, 'Out of his heart shall flow
rivers of living water'.” Sometimes when we hear a word so frequently we take
the word for granted. In modern research psychology this process is called
habituation. Habituation may be considered a progressive attenuation of a
response with repeated stimulus presentation. As a stimulus, “a word” that is
repeated becomes in a practical way “less meaningful.” One word we hear
frequently in the teachings of our Church Fathers and in various sermons and
homilies is “heart.” In the secular world “heart” and its companion ”love” are
probably some of the most frequently used in words in verse and song: they
become so common, so trivial. After a while we take such utterances for granted
and these words become so meaningless. Consider Our Lord’s counsel to the
assembled crowd: “And in praying do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles
do; for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like
them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him." (Mt 6: 7,8)
Repetition by itself yields “empty phrases.”
Guarding the heart
This is
not so for our holy spiritual fathers. They call heart: the center of the human
person (St. Symeon the New Theologian), the source of life for the body (St.
Nikephorous the Monk), the innermost body within the body and the source of
[both] good and evil thoughts (St Gregory Palamas, Philokalia IV), the inner
shrine of the heart. (St. John of Karpathos, Philokalia I) Christ dwells in the
heart (St Hesychios the Priest, Philokalia I), descending into the heart (St
Symeon the New Theologian, Philokalia IV), and the greatest of prayer is prayer
of the heart. (St Gregory of Sinai, Philokalia IV) It is our needs in the heart
that the Father knows of before we ask Him. Concerning our needs Jesus Himself
said: “And your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.” (Mt 6:4)
It might
be said that the spiritual fathers of the church considered that the heart is
healed by guarding its center. St. Hesychos the priest tells us about what he
calls the "circumcision of the heart”: “the guarding of the intellect is a
watchtower commanding a view over our whole spiritual life.” The good saint
also asks us to reflect on the importance of a spiritual watchtower to look out
and protect the city of our souls (its heart). Samuel recounts: “Now David was
sitting between the two gates; and the watchman went up to the roof of the gate
by the wall, and when he lifted up his eyes and looked...." (2 Sam. 18:
24) We have to look, to watch, see and discern what will harm or cure our
souls. (Philokalia I)
These few
phrases chosen from myriad teachings of our Holy Fathers contain the essence of
our Lord’s message: that the guarding of our hearts leads to our theosis or
sanctification. Does this happen by itself? Is what it takes to heal the heart
and the healing itself a product of mere natural human effort? On Pentecost the
Holy Spirit descended on the apostles and disciples, making clear to them the
meaning of Our Lord’s teachings. How fitting it is on Pentecost Sunday that the
Church gives to us a gospel reading dealing with the essence of our salvation:
the heart and how it has to be perceived--not in some superficial human way,
but as a focused watchfulness.
Understanding the heart
To help
us understand in some meaningful way what the heart is in this human way, let
us consider a homily by St. John Chrysostom. He describes a man who praises
another for his good looks, stately manner, wealth, lovely house, fine clothes,
and so on. Later the saint said to the speaker: “Why did you not tell me
anything about the man himself? Nothing you told me is about the man himself.”
What would God see in us? Our acts of charity or those things which make us
look good? Does He see us helping others in His Name, or doing it for show or
prestige? Do we perform for fame? Would He see us giving of ourselves to others
or exploiting or maneuvering others to enhance our own power or satisfy our
lust? It is not charity, helping others, good performance or attaining titles
that makes us holy: it is what is in our hearts. Dead water can flow from our
heart too. Did not Jesus tell us: “A good man out of the good treasure of his
heart bringeth forth that which is good: and an evil man out of the evil
treasure bringeth forth that which is evil. For out of the abundance of the
heart the mouth speaketh.” (Lk 6:45) However, Jesus gives us the key to what is
“living water": “For whosoever shall give you to drink a cup of water in
my name, because you belong to Christ: amen I say to you, he shall not lose his
reward.” (Mk 9:40) So what we do in the name of Jesus is what will be sanctified
and be living water, what we do in our names, for our motives, will be damned
and be dead water. As Jesus promised at Pentecost, those present, and the
entire church right down to us today: “But the Paraclete, the Holy Spirit, whom
the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring all
things to your mind, whatsoever I shall have said to you.” (Jn 14: 26) “Blessed
are the pure of heart….” (Mt 5:8)
The Holy Spirit the Giver of the heart’s life
True
healing involves the Holy Spirit, and this Holy Spirit was made known to us at
Pentecost. Of course, the work of the Spirit is everywhere and at all times
present. Remember Jesus’ words: "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is
born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” (Jn 3:5) St.
John Chrysostom tells us: “For the grace of the Spirit, when it has entered
into the mind and has been established, springs up more than any fountain,
fails not, becomes not empty, stays not. To signify therefore at once its unfailing
supply and unlimited operation, He has called it "a well" and
"rivers," not one river but numberless.
Consider
also the words of St. Gregory the Theologian: "If indeed anything is to be
considered great and worthy of the Majesty of God, which was either promised or
taught...Look at these facts: Christ is born; the Spirit is His Forerunner. He
is baptized; the Spirit bears witness. He is tempted; the Spirit leads Him up.
He works miracles; the Spirit accompanies them. He ascends; the Spirit takes
His place. (St. Gregory the Theologian, 5th Theological Oration;
http://www.bulletin.goarch.org/quotes/index.asp) The Holy Spirit accompanies
all that Christ does, in fact the Holy Trinity is one in unity, substance and
action, although a great mystery--while three in person while always acting in
unity. Where the healing Christ, begotten of the Father is, there as we have
come to know, is the Spirit who heals. As St. Gregory Nazianzus (2002) tells
us: “All that God actively performs He [the Holy Spirit] performs.” And the
saint reminds us: “He reveals, illumines, gives life—or, rather is absolutely
Light and life.”
The Holy Spirit: The Spirit of healing
Recall
St. Paul’s words to Titus: “But when the goodness and loving kindness of God
our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of deeds done by us in
righteousness, but in virtue of his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration
and renewal in the Holy Spirit, which he poured out upon us richly through
Jesus Christ our Savior, so that we might be justified by his grace and become
heirs in hope of eternal life.” (Tit 3:4-7)
The Mystery of Holy Unction
The
epistle of St. James tells us of Christ’s commission to the presbyters to heal
the sick: “Is any one among you suffering? Let him pray. Is any cheerful? Let
him sing praise. Is any among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the
church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the
Lord; and the prayer of faith will save the sick man, and the Lord will raise
him up; and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.” (Jas 5: 13-15)
In the
Mystery of Holy Unction this is accomplished by anointing with the Holy Oil by
the Holy Spirit. One of the unction prayers reads: “That this oil may be
blessed by the power, and operation and indwelling of the Holy Spirit....”
Healing: using all our Godly gifts
The gift
of healing is not limited to prayer, alone but can be by the gift of physical
healing as well. All healing is accomplished by the action of the Holy Spirit.
Recall St. Paul’s letter to the Corinthians, the Holy Spirit gives various
gifts: "...to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the
working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish
between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the
interpretation of tongues. All these are inspired by one and the same Spirit,
who apportions to each one individually as he wills.” (1Cor 2)
The Church as hospital
St. John
Chrysostom presented us with the idea that the entire Church of Christ is a
hospital, thereby expressing in clearer theological terms the relationship
between the healing of body and soul practiced by the early healers. The
Parable of the Good Samaritan is the model St. John used (also Luke 1:33ff)
where the Good Samaritan exemplifies Christ who, as the Great Physician, comes
to broken mankind (the man beaten by robbers and lying on the road) in order to
bring healing. The inn into which the Good Samaritan delivered the suffering
man is the Church. (Vlachos, 1994, 1994)
Monastery hospitals
In the
fourth century various healing centers were opened and administrated by the
Orthodox Church, including homes for the poor, orphans, the aged and hospitals.
(Demakis, 2004) Many of these centers were associated with monasteries. The
health care workers, the physicians, nurses, and psychologists of the day were
often the monks themselves. St. Basil of Caesarea (370-379) was trained in
medicine and was reported to have worked with the monks in ministering to the ill
and infirm. (Morelli, 2006b)
St. John
Chrysostom, as Patriarch of Constantinople (390), used the wealth of the Church
to open hospitals and other philanthropic institutions, which earned him great
love from the people. Within two centuries the rapid growth of these centers
necessitated state funding although the Church retained the active
administration and care-giving in the arrangement. Emperor Justinian moved the
most important physicians into the hospitals, which enhanced the reputation of
these centers. (Demakis 2004)
Healing on a false foundation
Some
physicians, psychologists, and other health and mental health healers have
built the intellectual foundation of their healing practice on philosophical
sand. Remember the words of Jesus told to us by St. Matthew (7: 24-27):
"Every one then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a
wise man who built his house upon the rock; and the rain fell, and the floods
came, and the winds blew and beat upon that house, but it did not fall, because
it had been founded on the rock. And every one who hears these words of mine
and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house upon the
sand; and the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat
against that house, and it fell; and great was the fall of it."
I am
choosing to use the personality model of Abraham Maslow (1970) as he
specifically considers what he labels “people's religious experiences” as
perfectly explainable by natural means alone. Abraham Maslow’s view of
religious experiences is at complete variance with the teachings of Christ and
His Church. Maslow considers that spiritual reality does not exist. His premise
is the sand which the Church Spiritual Fathers would say, could come from God,
is the basis of our delusions. This premise of sand blinds us to the reality of
the Divine reality of the spiritual vision and is the cause of our blindness.
God’s truth cannot be seen because of our
spiritual blindness
For
Maslow, St. Basil’s beautiful Anaphora prayer in his Liturgy would be myth and
a figment of man’s imagination. Consider the rock of spiritual vision of St.
Basil’s inspired words describing salvation history:
O God,
from Paradise into this present world, and didst turn him [mankind] again to
the earth from which he was taken, providing for him the salvation of
regeneration, which is in thy Christ himself…thou didst visit him in diverse
manners, through the tender compassion of thy mercy.... Thou didst send forth
Prophets, thou didst perform mighty works by the Saints...thou didst appoint
guardian angels. And when the fullness of time had come, thou didst speak unto
us through thy Son himself...and being purified with water and sanctified by
the Holy Spirit, he gave himself a ransom to death...through the Cross, that he
might fill all things with himself...and rose again from the dead...making a
way for all flesh...the Resurrection from the dead...in which he gave himself up
for the life of the world….”
What
Maslow calls “peak experiences,” labeled by him as ”transcendence,” are merely
psychological events that can be simply and thoroughly understood by what he
calls science alone. Paradoxically, there is a hint of truth in Maslow’s ideas:
it is not science, it is poor armchair philosophy and worse understanding of
spiritual vision. (cf. Morelli 2006a)
For
without the Holy Spirit, no human person can engage in the spiritual
contemplation of God. St. Maximus the Confessor tells us, “Just as it is
impossible for the eye to perceive sensible objects without the light of the
sun, so the human intellect cannot engage in spiritual contemplation without
the light of the Spirit. For physical light naturally illuminates the senses so
that they may perceive physical bodies; while spiritual light illumines the
intellect so that it may engage in contemplation and thus grasp what lies beyond
the senses.” (Philokalia II)
The
church fathers have warned us that we are subject to delusions, and may mistake
them as coming from God, or are inclined to deny God in the world altogether.
Maslow does not have the spiritual vision or insight to see that God is Spirit.
God not only sustains and governs the world but brings about all healing if He
so wills. And God, His only begotten Son and His Spirit and his healing, can
only be perceived if we are not overcome by pride and arrogance and hence
deluded.
This is
so beautifully described by St. Gregory of Sinai: “Delusion manifests
itself...in the form of mental images and fantasies…though its sole cause and
origin is always arrogance. The first form, illusory visions, is caused by self-conceit;
for this leads us to invest the divine with some illusory shape, thus deceiving
us through mental images and fantasies. This deception in its turn produces
blasphemy....” (Philokalia IV)
It is
only the humble, like the prophets, apostles, and church fathers, and those up
to the present day who are inspired by the Holy Spirit, who are able to sense
the indwelling of God at the center of their hearts and His wondrous effects on
them and the world surrounding them. Only those who have spiritual vision can
pray from their hearts the Kneeling Prayer of the Vespers of Pentecost: “Who is
so great a God like our God. Thou art the God who does wonders, the art the God
who does wonders.”
Thus, the
foundation of all healing, built of rock, is the spiritual vision only made
possible by the Holy Spirit.
Source: http://antiochian.org/node/17834
