Conference of His Grace Atanasie of Bogdania

on the theme of St. John’s Ladder of the divine ascent

On the 4th Sunday of Great Lent, His Grace Atanasie of Bogdania, Vicar-Bishop of the Romanian Orthodox Diocese of Italy, at the invitation of His Grace Bishop Ioan Casian of Canada and with the blessing of His Grace Bishop Siluan of Italy, held an online conference on: From the storm of today's world to the contemplation of divine love – assuming in an actual spirit the thirty steps of St. John ‘Ladder of the divine ascent' in the context of the series of Great Lent Conferences - Through the doors of repentance to joy of the Resurrection.

Starting from the writing of St. John - The Ladder of the Divine Ascent or the Ladder of Heaven, the hierarch said that during the seven weeks of Lent we are called to the angelic life of monks, life of obedience and renunciation of the bodily pleasures by free will.

“We give up our own will, possessions and goods as possessive instincts of fallen nature.

On our ascent to the Holy Resurrection, after the Sunday of the Holy Cross, we are called to deepen the Orthodox faith through the ascetic experience guided by two spiritual stops or two ascetic Sundays: Sunday of St. John of the Laddert and Sunday of St. Mary of Egypt.”

Guided by the services of the Orthodox Church in the wonderful book of the Triodion and the wonderful work of St. John Climax, HG Bishop Atanasie emphasized that man can become a ladder of virtues in ascending from earth to heaven.

“Through fasting we realize that there can be no Church without the Cross, Grace and Divine Light, on the one hand, nor faith without dogma, because there is no Orthodoxy outside the Church, just as we cannot understand Orthodox Christianity without asceticism.”

“The work of St. John Climax, early translated into many languages, guides the life of every Christian to the Kingdom of Heaven. The ministers of the holy altars and the monks are called to be light for the laity. Holy Scripture and Psalms inspired St. John's writing. St. John gives us through this work the example of personal experience, directing our minds to become perfect believers which is the goal of us all.”

In the fight against sin, auxiliary-bishop Atanasie puts in antithesis two ascents, one in the spirit of the world (Tower of Babel), which is a temptation not only of the generation after Noah but also from generation to generation, versus the spiritual ladder (Heavenly Ladder) whose place is not in the outside world but inside man.

From an iconographic point of view, the hierarch indicated that the spiritual ascent has Christ as the Way and the Goal. Thus, we overcome ourselves by faith, hoping to come closer to God and see that love is what crowns all.

Finally, HG Atanasie de Bogdania answered questions, offering remedies during fasting and explained what it means to climb the Ladder of divine ascent during pandemics.

[notes by Fr. Emanuel Ionuț Țencaliuc]