* Photo-Relics of St. Nicholas Planas
One of the most inspiring righteous figures to come to our attention in recent years is Papa Nicholas Planas. The revelation of this saintly Greek Orthodox priest to English language readers [1] is truly providential, for his life contains virtually all the elements of the spiritual conflicts that beset 20th century Orthodoxy, and in his personality is to be found the antidote to the stifling complexities of our modern times.
"The mark of Orthodoxy is simplicity of heart which brings faith. -- Photios Kontoglou
Born in mid-nineteenth century Greece,
Papa-Nicholas was married and the father of one child, after which he
spent the rest of his life in celibacy. He was ordained deacon in 1879
and priest in 1884, and his entire life passed in the midst of the noisy
and bustling city of Athens
as though he were living in a cave in the desert; "his mind was a
stranger to everything." Ills inner state was of such purity, and the
intensity of his spiritual life was so great, that it is not surprising
to learn that saints often appeared to him, or that he was clairvoyant
and worked countless miracles. In his guilelessness and deep faith
Papa-Nicholas regarded these divine gifts and manifestations as being
quite natural; if, however, he chanced to relate some vision and saw
that his listeners were astounded, he was apt to say, "I didn't see
anything; I just make things up," so as to avoid any reputation of being
holy. He himself had no idea of his sanctity, "but rather tears for his
sins were never absent from his eyes."
Papa-Nicholas was a perfect modern example of Ft. Seraphim
of Sarov's instruction to "acquire the spirit of peace, and thousands
around you will be saved." He shunned all occasions of argument. Once,
when two wardens were quarrelling in his presence, he hid under a
table--not out of timidity, but as a wise strategist of spiritual
warfare. In advising one of his spiritual daughters on how to control
her temper, he said, "Do you think, my child, that I don't know how to
speak out? I know, but I think of the results, and so I keep quiet."
Throughout his life his spirit of peaceful meekness constantly amazed
everyone with whom he came in contact. Even when admonishment was called
for, Papa Nicholas had no need of many words: his life itself, his very
presence served to bring the erring soul to amendment, for he possessed
an abundance of the grace of the Holy Spirit.
The
indwelling of the Holy Spirit caused him to be cheerful even when he
met with bitterness or grief. Uneducated by worldly standards, extremely
simple both in speech and demeanor, he was often misunderstood and
ridiculed; those affected by modernist trends regarded him as something
of a fool. But throughout his life he was never slandered-that is, he
was never accused falsely. He believed that the reason he had been so
protected was because whenever he stepped out of the house he began to
pray the following from Psalm 118: "My steps do Thou direct according
to Thy saying, and let no in iniquity have dominion over me. Deliver me
from the false accusation of men, and I will keep Thy commandments. .
." etc. Many people today, as then, consider this kind of approach to
the problems of life to be simplistic, childish, old-fashioned, or even
superstitious. It simple, and it is child-like and old fashioned, but it
partakes of the simplicity of the Gospel and the divine power that
comes to those that consider themselves to be the least among men. As
one writing about Papa-Nicholas put it, today "calm and peace have been
brushed aside, and spiritual confusion is left with us ."
The
focus of Father Nicholas' entire life and indeed of all creation was
the traditional liturgical cycle of the Orthodox Church, culminating in
daily Divine Liturgy--in fifty years he never once missed daily Liturgy,
regardless of snowstorms or revolutions, "not even with the invasion of
the English and French!" His commemorations would last for hours.
Whenever he was given a slip with names, he would save it and
commemorate the names daily for several months until one of his helpers
'weeded it out' so as to keep the conscientious priest from being
entirely overwhelmed. "His love for prayer did not allow him to take his
physical powers into account." One who attended Papa-Nicholas' services
remembers: "When he commemorated the saints, he wished, if it were
possible, to commemorate every single saint--as many as were found in
the Synexarion, each
one separately by name. Since much time was consumed, some would begin
to cry out to him, 'Papa-Nicholas! say"...and of all Thy saints!" '; but
he, without becoming troubled in the least, would continue to the end."
So
intensely did he enter into the liturgical life of the Church that it
can be fairly said that his own individual personality ceased to exist
as he took on more and more of the "psychology" of the church services.
The spirit of prayer did not leave him even as he went about the
bustling streets of the city. Once he was so enrapt in prayer that when
an old man invited him to step inside a hut to take shelter from the
pouring rain, he confessed that he didn't even notice it was raining,
and in fact, the old man saw with astonishment that Father Nicholas'
cassock was perfectly dry although he had already been walking some
distance in the rain.
Such
a prayerful union with God inevitably came into conflict with the Enemy
of our salvation. But with all the temptations and blandishments of the
Evil One Papa-Nicholas always dealt firmly and with great confidence in
the Lord. As he told one of his spiritual daughters: "With patience, my
child, I overcame all the obstacles which appeared before me,"
Perhaps
the most serious of these obstacles was the forced change of the Church
Calendar from the old to the new observance. This allowed a demonic
spirit of confusion to enter the Greek Church soon after the same spirit
had entered the Orthodox Church in Russia
through the Revolution, causing both Churches to stumble in one way or
another, and admitting to both a craving for modern ideas and
innovations which ultimately shattered the harmony of Orthodoxy
throughout the world. How did Papa-Nicholas deal with these apocalyptic
events and influences?
When
one of his Readers asked him about the controversial Calendar reform,
Papa Nicholas replied, "From conviction, the Old, and from obligation,
the New!" In other
words,
he continued to serve according to the Old Calendar--even when this
necessitated serving secretly at night, but he did not leave the New
Calendar bishops who had enacted this unlawful change. To the
"ecclesiastical politics" of his day he reacted with his characteristic
patience, meekness, and with obedience wherever possible without
compromising the principles of traditional Orthodoxy.
When
his secret serving according to the Old Calendar was discovered he was
often reprimanded by the higher authorities in the Church. He always
appeared when summoned and took his dressing-down without
self-justification, disarming his accusers with his childlike simplicity
and forthrightness. His intent was to remain true to his conscience; he
did not try to build up a following or in any way stir up the faithful
over the issue of the Calendar, although he blessed others to follow his
example and to work for the formal reinstatement of the Old Calendar.
Over and ever he said to everyone, "Whatever has been done uncanonically
cannot stand--it will fall."
Sadly,
the Calendar question was never resolved. The harsh and quite
unchristian polemics that have become a hallmark of many in the Greek
Old Calendar Movement since then are far removed from the behavior of
Papa-Nicholas who is championed as the Movement’s founder. One cannot
help but wish that his stirring example of charity had been taken more
to heart by those that shared his love for the Traditions of the Church
in that otherwise worthy movement.
Photios
Kontoglou, the great 20th century iconographer of Greek Orthodoxy,
himself a lover of the Church's Traditions, wrote that "for Christians
there does not exist a more effective teaching than reading the life of a
saint--especially that of one who has lived in our own time and Who, by
his own life, was manifested as a saint without fanfare." Papa Nicholas
has been described as "a living sermon." In his life we find not only a
lesson in dealing with some of the unprecedented difficulties facing
the Church today, but also a criterion by which we may measure our own
behavior as Orthodox Christians, wherever we are, whatever our
circumstances, no matter what scandals, temptations, or trials come our
way.
[1] Material for this article comes from the book Papa-Nicholas Planas, by the Nun Martha; translated from the Greek and published by' Holy Transfiguration Monastery, 1981.
Fr. Alexey Young