MEMORY OF SAINT ARCHBISHOP OF G.O.C. OF GREECE GREGORIOS OF MESSINIA (1923-2009) FUNERAL'S SPEECH OF FATHER IAKOVOS KITSANTAS, NOW METROPOLITAN G.O.C. OF MESSINIA
Saint Hierarches, Fathers and brothers, dear brothers in Christ. I do not know if I will be able to say why. I will try. I am not good in speeches. Our spiritual father is ahead of us and he is not talking anymore. Not only Father of the monastery and Messenia, but our entire Church, clergy and people. Now he does not answer to give us advice, to solve our problems with a few words to give us a little spiritual food. Brothers ask me now that we are alone “What do we do, now, that our left orphans?”. What to say? Where to ask? I have to answer, me a sinner: “Please observe the instructions that he gave us, the wise teaching and especially we have to remember the example of his life”.
I remember one of the many commands that my Father gave us. He said when you pronounce, be careful your speech not to be wordy and too theology. You should speak in a simple manner that can benefit souls. So I will try to speak a few words about the life of our Father, who can benefit all us.
The Holy Father had three great virtues. First great virtue was his zeal for the monastic life. Second it was his love for the world and the people. And thirdly it was the accurate observance of Orthodoxy. The zeal which he had for monastic life began with a spark. And what was this spark? He then goes as a cosmic layman with a friend in Keratea. And his friend was an Orthodox and he said him “Come here to see George the monastery”. And as they walked there in the monastery, they see in balcony Saint Father Matthew. And his friend says: “Look up there is the Holy Father Matthew”. He put up his eyes, he was watching the Holy Father and he throws down one little komposchini (“Rosario”). This was in his hands, and Metropolitan of Messenia told us, “Since Saint father Matthew threw this komposchoini, I sense a flame in my soul, a flame to become a monk, a flame to leave the Mother and my Father, to leave my job, all the cosmic care and then nothing could stop me”.
This torch was a great fire that burned trees and intact forests. In the monastic life, which he was inherited from the Holy Father, hear everything and he told us his teachings. When I was entering in the cell, I was seeing him to read the Bible and other books and say: “Your Eminence, what are you doing?” “Oh Father Jacob, he said, the Saint Father had put as my rule to read these things when I was a priest and I do so until today, as a Metropololitan” And so he was! Always he was getting up at 2 o'clock alone, to make the canon (monastic obligations) and the spiritual tasks. And then he was coming at 3 o’ clock am to start the Liturgy. Many times, we monks were asleep, we were forgetting to strike the bell, but our Elder has always light when he raised in his cell. I was always looking him doing his komposchoinia (pray with Rosario), reading his prayer books. Even he was ill and he was doing so. Always he was rising up to do what he was received from the Saint Father.
Once I came to the cell abruptly, he scared and he sat in the chair. His breaths were short and steep. He could not speak and I understand it that the older Gregory, while he was too old, was doing genuflection (“metanihes” in greek) and I did not know it my brothers. He did it secretly, and he sat in the chair to avoid (that I will understand his holy activity, but I see that he could not breathe but he had not stopped ever what he received, the zeal of monastic life.
[...] The komposchoini (Rosario) always, he had in his hand, my brothers, was something like a third hand, he never lacked from his hand. We went to his cell, he was doing komposchoini. He walked outside he had a komposchoini in his hands. And finally, his last complaint was, when we were in the hospital, was: «Ah the heck! I cannot do my komposchoini. Oh Father Jacob, bring me the komposchoini”. I went to Kalamata and I brought the komposchini to the hospital. I Put in his hands, he was trying, trying, but he could hot because he was too ill ... His cell was a Paradise. It was the sky. He was not coming often outside. He was indeed a monk, yes, monk and more than a monk. He was seating inside, in the cell to read and to make the prayers.
[...] He was a simple monk, as all the monks, and our despot had handiwork. We stopped and admired. We sometimes were tired and did nothing. Despot each day will make a sampler. He would hagiographies, or wrote, or did wood sculptures. Not only he had handiwork, but subsequently, brothers, he wrote books, he copied by the Holy Fathers various passages, to give the benefits to the world. And he continued until the deep old age, and he did not ever let the commitment. And he left two endless projects. One contains an index for the “Holy Rudder” (book of Saint Nicodemus, the canon law, work for us Priests and Hierarches that will help us in our tasks. Another includes excerpts from various sources and it is intended as a dictionary to write a device from A to Z for the mentally and physically diseased.
As a monk, who was, he had always the memory of death, my brothers. Always he remembered the death. We were looking at these last years him walking at the cemetery. When he was coming out from the cell, first he was going to the cemetery, he was looking at the memory and he said: “Oh, this one old lady, this old one, we will go there”. And any time he said: “Where will you put me (in which grave)?” I stood and left, I did not let him finish.
A book that he loved and he put it in his soul is the “scale” (“Klimaka”) of ascetic Saint John the Klimakos). He read the book that he followed, it helps us to rule all fathers here and we read every day, as a guide for the monks. How many times have he read it, it is unknown. The last step of “Scale”, as you know, is love. And brothers there, we read in the “Scale” and we try to do all what it says, and he reached the last step of love.
The second was the virtue of love, it could not be hidden. When somebody came into him and only he saw his face, was saying: What is he? They saw a holy person. His smile wins you. By the sweet way that he was talking, like a magnet he was pulling you that you cannot be separated. By his love, he had great respect for all faithful, even from the New-calendarists, even from atheists. All the region of Messenia, everyone, old, young, said the best words for our Despot, and all loved him.
Although, brothers, despite the smile that had the sweetest in his speech, where the matter was on faith, then he put out sword and fire. Then, brothers, he spoke afterwards. Not for Orthodoxy, but the exact Orthodoxy. Which had its roots in the Holy Father (Matthew), they continued, the Holy Father's roots, he continued the exact Orthodoxy until his end, despite the persecution that he suffered at times, which dragged him to court and forced him to leave Athens. In his speech on matters of Orthodoxy, was always in mind this; Minutes of the Seventh Ecumenical Council: "If somebody fails any written or unwritten tradition (oral) of Church, (to be in) anathema, anathema, anathema"
[...] All these virtues, that he had as a monk, love, exact Orthodoxy, and others had but they lost. But our despot had one last virtue, without which, the first three it is nothing. He had humiliation, brothers. He had a real humiliation. In the Hospital that he was, he said the last words to his deacon. What were the last words? What were his last words? «Humiliation, humiliation, humiliation!». As humble Hierarch, he did not want to wear a luxury. The nuns made him clothes, good clothes and he did not wear it. He worked as a sample monk, the buttons were elsewhere, lime was here, colors were there, he had not care of clothing. He put always his Egolpio inside his clothes because he did not want to know that he was despot. He walked outside and everyone wondering who this monk is“. I was saying, he is not a monk, he is despot”. The nuns and other people had given him as gift various uniforms (vestments). There were at least 12-15 uniforms. He did not wear them. “What to do them?” he said. And he was wearing only a uniform below and a second suit which was “good”. The first uniform is “melted” (because it was too old). The nuns sew, darn but he wore this one, brothers.
The same humble, he was in front of Priests and Bishops who visited our monastery. «Tell you the sermon” he urged them. He did not want to be first, or to show. And another, the last that you have to know, brothers is that this humility was that made him stubbornly refuse the office of the Archbishop, although many appreciate him: «Despota, come to Athens to be our Archbishop, as Holy Father Matthew was. But he answered: “No, I am good in my cell, in the exercise here, here in my lovely Monastery».
This humiliation, brothers raised him. He did not like many things, but he was raised. As you know, here in the parish is (a faithful sister) Panayota who says various words in church and shouting; “Patriarch Gregory”. Other laugh at her, others told her to close her mouth, (but) she never closed it. Indeed, he was Patriarch brothers. He deputizes all Patriarchates, brothers. He was raised (by God) too much, brothers, despite the humiliation that he wanted no publicity and no visibility he was receiving letters from around the world and dozens of people communicated with him by phone. He was known throughout the world. He always wanted peace, brothers. And finally we as children, when he reposed, did not mincing any, we called only our three Metropolitans and all the priests and the sad news was learned throughout Greece. They came from all parts of Cyprus, Crete and from America. Not only Orthodox, but subsequently New Calendar priests, nuns and secular came from Kalamata (in hospital an in Holy Monastery). Until we have reached the point to say them to go. All local, four channels come (for the Gregory’s repose in monastery). How they found it? We did not invited them, but man who always humiliated, will raise. Newspapers’ journalists came to write for our Despot. They put his repose in the first page. Buses came from everywhere, the Mayor of Kalamata’s City, which is next to us. We did not call, but he came, brothers, because late Metropolitan Gregory’s grace had spread throughout the Messenia.
I would like to say, brothers, that our despot who came through the humiliation of being a small child died after having finished his work on earth. He supported Orthodoxy, overtook the schism, fighting the sects, ordainment Hierarches, and now it was the fullness of time and the Lord called him. Two logisms always come to my mind; “What a gaud we have! What a prostate! What a driver have! What joy we have!” But always, when I read the Gospel, passage I remember this passage in which Pharisees asked Christ, why your Apostles do not you fast?” And Christ said: “Because is even here the Nymfios” (Bridegroom- Christ). And I thought when our Nymfios leave us we will need prayer and fasting. Indeed, the Nymfios left us our brothers. And when he left? He has gone on Thursday, finishing the first three days of Holy Fest. He left us in the fasting. The Nymfios our brothers, left the entire city of Kalamata sank on Thursday in dense fog and heavy atmosphere. The sun is dark. It did not happen an earthquake when he died, but the next day, on Friday, began to rain and strong wind blows. The stones are not broke, but broke our hearts.
We will continue with the wishes of his work and everything that he left incomplete, we will finish. We will follow his example. We observe his teachings and instructions. And we will keep the line of the Holy Apostles, Holy Fathers, the Holy Father Matthew’s line, the line that followed our despot untill the end. And if we observe these brothers, he will not leave us and his grace will cover us. Our Saint Father, we ask your forgiveness for what we did, we are asking to pray for us, we ask your blessing on us, always to cover and never leave us. I thank everyone who helped Hierarches, priests, monks, and the relatives in the world.
Holy Father, we are asking for the last time your grace!