Fr. Gavril Galev: On the Faith
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Faith is the basic virtue through which salvation is obtained. It elevates and transfers man from the material/physical sphere into the spiritual. Faith is a natural attribute of the soul. Since man is a psychophysical being, created in the image and likeness of God, he is therefore naturally related to the invisible God.
That is why Saint Apostle Paul says that:
“Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen…”
Without faith it is impossible to please God, for those who come to God must believe that He exists, and that He rewards those who diligently seek Him … God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us. (Heb. 11:1-40).
Every person on earth has faith. There is no person who does not have faith, even those who most vehemently deny that they believe in God, in fact they also believe in something or someone. However, it is very important in what (Who) we believe as well as how we believe. Because the faith is God-revealed truth, and there is only one truth, thus there is only one true faith. Faith in the true God makes us similar to Him. That faith has its own way of expression (manifestation), which is the testimony, that is the confession of faith, and it should always originate from and unite us with God.
Our faith is the Orthodox faith, which is based on the Holy Scripture and the Holy Tradition. Christ revealed it to us, the Apostles preached it, the holy martyrs confessed it, the venerable fathers confirmed it, and the holy fathers defined it as a scientific system and way of worship.
So, we have the only true faith and we are obliged to confess it and pass it on to future generations. Children are our greatest gift from God and we are responsible to raise them properly and shape them as individuals. Without the true faith, children are like a building without foundations and supporting pillars. Such a building is unstable, breaks and falls easily. That is why the parents and the godparents are responsible to pass on the true faith to the children from young age and to make them better people.
We see that today, society is going down a slippery slope and falling apart. Believe me, this is because faith is being squeezed out of all spheres of human life. When God is not our criterion, then everything else is unstable and relative.
The purpose of this school and these educational videos is for children to learn the correct confession and practice of our faith. So they may learn our true and holy Orthodox faith in the correct manner, which is untainted by foreign and erroneous teachings and uncorrupted by false superstitions and stories of folk-lore.
This started with learning about the faith in the true God, the Holy Trinity, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, then teaching about creation of the world, angels and people, the original sin, the falling of the first people away from God and the beginning of the suffering.
Then, about the faith in God, Jesus Christ, the Word of God, who for our sake and our salvation was incarnated and became Man, took our human nature, while not losing His Divine nature, in order to restore and elevate man. Who with His blood on the Cross redeemed our sins and with His Resurrection and Ascension into the heaven enabled our ascension to the heights, up to the foot of God’s throne in the Heavens.
After which we learned about the Church. What the Church is, how It was established and why, About the internal organisation and rules of the Church and Its correct confession, as well as the practice of the faith. About the fast and the prayer, as the two wings of the soul. About the ten commandments of God, and the greatest commandment of all – love. About the Cross, what Its meaning is and how to make the sign of the cross correctly. About the clergy and the spiritual father, what his role and meaning is.
We also learned about the saints, and we explained the lives (hagiographies) of some of the most important saints of the Orthodox Church. We studied the most important feasts and events from the Holy Scripture and the Holy Tradition about the life of the Church.
The essence of the faith is to live in accordance with the faith, which is why the apostle says that faith without deeds is dead (James; 2:17). For that reason, it was inevitably necessary to teach the children about the holy virtues, to get to love those virtues and to be encouraged to fulfil them. Love, mercy, humility, patience, forgiveness and asking for forgiveness etc., are the basic virtues, which were highlighted in a colourful and interesting way for the children, in order to make an impression on them and so that, they may learn them.
Going through this school, children receive the base, the extract of our faith and righteous living, for later on in life, if they continue, (which depends above all on the parents and how much they care about their children), they acquire knowledge, strength of character and firm faith. That, later on, will make them healthy people and good Christians and they also will be able to pass on their knowledge to their children and grandchildren. This is the only way we can ensure our survival, existence and salvation.
It was not an easy process to find the right words and explanations, and to make them understandable for the children, while not detracting from the truth and the sublime meaning of our faith. A lot of attention and dedication was applied to the creation of the videos, which had to be short, interesting and attractive, in order to keep the attention of the children. Those who reviewed the children’s “homework” and gave comments and grades, also carried a great responsibility. Attention was also paid to the tone and narrative of the reading.
Finally, I would like to express my big gratitude to the entire team that worked on this school. Although they were not many, but with sincere desire and love, they zealously and selflessly worked, stimulated by the fact that everything we do, we do for the glory of God, for common good and salvation of the most important to us, the children.
Fr. Gavril Galev
Abbot of the monastery “St. Clement of Ohrid”,
Kinglake, Melbourne, Australia
21 / 12 / 2022
