Часто мы можем слышать такое знакомое понятие, as "Holy Father." But not everyone understands its meaning and the place that these “guides” of God have in the Orthodox Church. Their writings are an integral part of the Christian tradition, but they differ from ordinary theologians. Many interesting and surprising facts find out further from the article.
Отец Святой – это почётный титул, который appeared at the end of the fourth century. In the Orthodox faith, from those very times, the liberal interpreters of the divine rules began to be called that way, making a significant contribution to the formulation of dogma, writing the canon of the Holy Scripture, as well as to the teachings on the Church and liturgy. It is believed that such servants of the Lord are still distinguished by the orthodoxy of their faith and holiness throughout their lives. Also, such medieval terms may be called by some medieval figures. For example, such as Patriarch Photius, Gregory Palamas, Theophanes the Recluse, Paisius Velichkovsky and many others. At the present time, the official appeal "Holy Father" can only be addressed to a monk. Informally so called priests and deacons.
The first mention in church terminology of suchconcepts like “Holy Father” can be seen in the letter of Athanasius the Great, addressed to African clergy, where he calls Dionysius of Rome and Dionysius of Alexandria for their testimonies and teachings. After that, they began to accuse all church writers and teachers, but mostly bishops. Then such an appeal could be heard much more often. In this way they pointed to the true servants of the Tradition of the Church in the field of its dogma. In this form, the concept of "Holy Father" has come to our times. That is, when these servants of God are mentioned somewhere, it is meant that they speak precisely of those predecessors who testified and represented the religion of the Church, and were also legitimate bearers of the sacred teaching.
But it is not enough to understand the meaning of suchAppeals as “Holy Father” also need to know by what criteria this God’s messenger can be defined. He must be orthodox in his teachings, use authority in matters relating to faith, and his writings can give an exact answer as to what the significance of Christian teachings should be in people's lives. Therefore, the church often refused to various writers the right to be called Holy Fathers, because in their writings they deviated from the true faith. They also gave reason to doubt their constancy with respect to Christianity, even despite their services to the church and the degree of scholarship.
In addition, these theologians should possessholiness of life, that is, to be an example for believers, pushing them towards spiritual understanding and development. The most significant sign of the Holy Fathers is the veneration of their church. It can be expressed in many forms. For example, clergy may point out some illustrious men as witnesses to the true faith of the apostles and base their own creeds on their writings. Another form of recognition may be that the creations of other theologians are appointed to be read in liturgical texts.
Unlike the factors determining the illustrioushusbands, it is not entirely clear what importance is attached to their creations at the church in the modern world. It is known that in ancient times they enjoyed great respect, as evidenced by those epithets that they were denounced. For example, in their address, they could hear such appeals as "multi-colored stars", "fertile organs", "fed churches" and others.
But in the current Christian teachings they are nothave such an absolute authority, as in the old days. Their view on Orthodoxy cannot be more meaningful than the personal opinion of every believer. The creations of these theologians are not placed on par with the teachings of various prophets and apostles, but are viewed simply as human works and reflections of authoritative church writers.
Many people, not knowing the true meaning of thisecclesiastical concepts, they think that priests should also be called Holy Fathers. But this judgment is absolutely unacceptable. So you can only blame canonized husbands. To the priests, including the monastics, can be addressed only as follows: "Father is such and such." Bishops, archbishops, metropolitans and patriarchs are unofficially called “masters”.
Who are these Orthodox theologians, we alreadyunderstandably. But what they look like? In one old painting of iconographic art, the Holy Father is depicted. Photos of this icon show that it has no equal in all the visual arts in the world. It is about the famous “Trinity” of the artist A. Rublev, where the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are drawn. But about who is one of them, there are several opinions. The first hypothesis is the one according to which Jesus Christ is depicted on a canvas accompanied by two angels. It received the greatest distribution in the fifteenth century.
The second opinion is:The “Father, Son, and Holy Spirit” icon directly depicts God in three images. But it was refuted by a disciple of Theophanes the Greek, brought up in the strictest traditions of worship. The third hypothesis is most prevalent. Many are convinced that the personification of the three angels in the image and likeness of the Holy Trinity is the icon "Father, Son, and Holy Spirit." The photo presented above shows that the figures on it are depicted with haloes and wings. And this serves as an argument in favor of this opinion. The fourth hypothesis, which is not confirmed, is that the icon depicts three ordinary mortals, representing the image of the Holy Trinity.
Although we often hear about the Holy Fathers inChristianity, but the church is strongly opposed to any kind of worship and ordering of services in their honor. Orthodox believe that such respect can only be rendered to our Lord, and not to his faithful servants.
