Spotlight on Eastern Orthodoxy I: The Way of a Pilgrim

On Dec. 25th I visited the Holy Resurrection Orthodox Church and on this day they were celebrating a feast day of St. Herman of Alaska. They celebrate Christmas on Jan. 7 which is Dec. 25 on the Julian calendar (most of us use the Gregorian calendar).


(I will discuss the structure of Eastern Orthodoxy in a later post)


They were very kind and told me that I should read The Way of the Pilgrim to better understand Eastern Orthodoxy. The copy they gave me also included The Pilgrim Continues His Way. 


The Way of a Pilgrim and The Pilgrim Continues His Way were written sometime between 1853 and 1861 by an unnamed devout Eastern Orthodox man traveling throughout Russia. It was printed by an abbot in 1884.


This book does not contain an argument that can be put down in premises and conclusions. Instead it urges the reader to contemplate and pray internally. Thus, I will not provide a bullet point summary.


At the beginning of the book the pilgrim, the narrator and subject of the book, is confused about a question: How can one pray unceasingly as in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18?


The answer he first receives from his starets (a monk distinguished for his piety) is essentially just do it. Say the prayer: "Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me." At first he was required to say it 3000 times in one day, then 6000, then 12000, and finally as many times as possible.


Eventually the prayer became something he did out of habit, such that he was continuously saying the prayer. This is part of the hesychast tradition in Eastern Orthodoxy. As Huston Smith notes in the introduction the prayer of this pilgrim is akin to a mantra, that gets repeated continuously.


He is also was told to read the Philokalia a book about internal prayer, what it is and how to do it written by various saints of Eastern Orthodoxy. 


The Way of the Pilgrim, and The Pilgrim Continues His Way is almost solely about that prayer and the Philokalia in the development of the pilgrim's spiritual life.



One commentary about this prayer in The Pilgrim Continues His Way struck me. Someone the pilgrim was speaking to told him that "have mercy on me," was an impressively economical use of words. 



The prayer can be a plea for forgiveness of debt and at the same time a request for alms. It can be a plea for forgiveness of sin and a plea to arouse in oneself holy feelings. And etc... 



Of course, this is because a plea for mercy is a vague plea, but sometimes you do not know what you require mercy for.


Throughout most of The Way of the Pilgrim, I was convinced that the pilgrim was very reverent. That he understood devoutness from experience. When he received mystical calmness and visions (such as being able to see the interior of his body), I believed that he was devout and a true believer in his religion.


However, the last part of The Way of the Pilgrim, did give me some pause. In this part, the pilgrim was rejoicing in the misfortune of a sinner because the misfortune helped bring the sinner closer to God. 


If I was that particular sinner, I would have contemplated hitting him. To make matters worse the pilgrim encouraged his companion to tell another story about misfortune befalling a sinner.


Up until this point I identified with the character, since he was visiting various Orthodox Churches and collecting stories. But for this brief moment I was hesitating. 


The story would give him his needed chastisement. At the very beginning of The Pilgrim Continues His Way, the pilgrim goes to confession and gets a harsher review than I could have ever given him.


A starets gave him the notes that he uses for his own confessions which in part reads:

...I listen to curious, unhappy stories about my neighbor, and I am not distressed; I remain quite undisturbed or, what is still worse, I find a sort of pleasure in them. - pg. 129.

Structurally The Pilgrim Continues His Way is simpler to read, because the person speaking is always identified in italics and it is written as a Socratic-style dialogue in defense of the ascetic lifestyle and internal prayer.


Despite promoting the internal life, ironically The Pilgrim Continues His Way convinced me that you need others around you to guide you, as the pilgrim realizes his flaws through confession and his travels to the Solovetsky monastery. 


Though, I would guess that even devout hermits would attend matins, confession, and communion, meeting this potential critique of the book.


The devout in this book are not holier than thou, they all recognize that they are imperfect humans. Thus, once their flaws have been pointed out work at it. And after reading it, there is simply no doubt that to be a good Orthodox Christian you have to read the Bible and pray daily. 

Bottom Line:

So far, from what I have witnessed and read followers of Eastern Orthodoxy are very devout, perhaps the most devout sect of Christianity in existence. 


In addition they seem to stress humility, in such a way that mitigates the problems that often come with such devoutness (i.e. judgments and in general a holier than thou attitude). 


The Way of the Pilgrim is a good quick read and should be read by anyone trying to understand prayer in the Christian tradition.