Protocol Number 2/00
Feast of the Three Hierarchs and The Day of Greek Letters
To the Most Reverend Hierarchs, the Reverend Priests and Deacons,
the Monks and Nuns, the Presidents and Members of the Parish Councils
of the Greek Orthodox Communities, the Day and Afternoon Schools,
the Philoptochos Sisterhoods, the Youth, the Hellenic Organizations,
and the entire Greek Orthodox Family in America
Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
On the occasion of the Feast of the Three Hierarchs and the Day of
Greek Letters, we have an opportunity to reflect on the unparalleled
legacy of learning that is ours as Greek Orthodox Christians. Borrowing
an expression from Homer's Odyssey, Saint Basil the Great once wrote
that it is important as a proof of education to have seen the cities
of many men and to have learned their minds (Epistle 74).
Méga pròs martyrían paidéfseos tò pollôn anthrópon ideîn ástea
kaì nóon gnônai . . .
In these few words Saint Basil captures a particular understanding
of the nature of education that is at once thoroughly Hellenic and
truly Patristic.
For in the Hellenic understanding there is first of all an appreciation
for the immensity of knowledge. To be a literate person, a person
of understanding, is not the achievement of a few years; it is rather
the work of a lifetime of study in a spirit of continual interest
and curiosity, humility, and patience. Education is like a vast and
varied pilgrimage. Both the ancient Greek philosophers and the Fathers
of the Church had an absorbing interest in all fields of inquiry:
cosmology, anthropology, philology, literature, music and the arts,
medicine, zoology, to name but a few. Of course, in the case of the
Three Hierarchs, the immensity of knowledge is ultimately referred
to the truly fathomless, limitless, and ineffable knowledge of God.
In the face of the immensity of knowledge, whether of things seen
or unseen, our intellectual and spiritual forebears also approached
their inquiries with a second characteristic, namely, a sense of real
joy: the joy of thinking, discovering, creating, and comprehending.
Whether one reads the works of Plato or Aristotle, or even more, the
works of Saint Basil, Saint John Chrysostom, and Saint Gregory the
Theologian, one readily detects a constant spirit of delight bound
up with the seriousness of their writing. At times this intellectual
joy in the writings of the Fathers rises even to the level of amazement
at the wonders of God and His world. This is a quality that is basic
to the Hellenic outlook on learning: in order to have real progress
in knowledge, a person must be able to admire, to be surprised and,
on occasion, to be thrilled by the vastness of the world of thought.
The quotation above from Saint Basil also expresses another aspect
of learning that is fundamental to the Hellenic and especially the
Patristic mind: an appreciation for knowledge as a matter of human
concern. Paideia is intimately related to philanthropia. We study
so that we may better understand both ourselves and our fellow human
beings and thereby improve the condition of all people. As Hellenes
and Philhellenes, and as inheritors of the Orthodox ethos, we value
learning as a means of drawing ourselves closer in love to the rest
of humanity, and not as a tool for asserting ourselves over and against
our fellow man. We value the achievements of scholarship and erudition,
but we prize equally the virtue of love and concern for others.
For this reason both the Fathers and the philosophers of old spoke
of goodness by means of the same set phrase—kalòs k'agathós—an
expression that combines the ideas of goodness and beauty into a single
notion. Learning is a matter of the greatest moral relevance. This
is a third characteristic that is basic to the Hellenic outlook on
learning: true knowledge is that which advances us morally as well
as intellectually.
How then do we fulfill Saint Basil's criterion of education for ourselves?
Though we all cannot travel the world like Odysseus or make pilgrimages
throughout the Near East like Saint Basil, we are all able to glean
the wealth of knowledge that awaits us in the world of Greek Letters.
This literary legacy is our birthright, and we honor the Feast of
the Three Hierarchs best by entering into the joyful and humane spirit
of inquiry that they exhibited. We do this by reading their works
for ourselves, by striving to grow in knowledge and goodness as they
did, and by applying ourselves with zeal and perseverance to learning
and teaching the marvelous Greek language which embodies some of the
finest ideas ever conceived by the mind of man.
We also honor this feast by strongly supporting the work of our daytime
and afternoon Greek schools. These schools are the primary means by
which our Greek-American community passes on the gift of Greek Letters
to the next generation. As we appreciate the value of our intellectual
heritage this day, we cannot but recognize that our Greek Schools
are worthy of our highest support.
Through the intercessions of the Three Holy Hierarchs and Ecumenical
Teachers, may the Lord our God grant us to grow in the knowledge that
is full of joy and wonder and virtue, to the praise of His glorious
wisdom and grace. And may God bless the students, the teachers, and
the supporters and benefactors of Greek Letters in our communities
and around the world this day.
With paternal love in Christ,
DEMETRIOS
Archbishop of America
