Sfânta Scriptură în teologia și viața Părintelui Sofronie Saharov

Abstract

Starting from the assertion of Father Ioannis Romanidis, according to which the true interpreters of the Holy Scriptures are the seers of God, the main aim of this study is to demonstrate how two events from the Holy Scriptures were understood in the theology and life of Father Sophrony Sakharov. The central moment of his life is the meeting with Saint Silouan the Athonite in 1930, an event that will mark his entire spiritual life and will crown his later work at the monastery he founded in Essex, England. In 1993 Archimandrite Sophrony went to the eternal life, remaining known in the Orthodox Theology especially as the biographer and disciple of Saint Silouan. In order to understand the way of thinking of staretz Sophrony, I consider representatives the interpretation of two events from the Holy Scripture, the Sinaitic revelation and the prayer of the Saviour from the Gethsemane Garden. In his writings, Father Sophrony pays a special attention to the revelation of God to Moses because he personally lives in his life the meaning of the name I am who I am. This name shows that God is Threepersonal and nothing can exist without His will. In the garden of Gethsemane, the Savior prays for all mankind, which shows that such a prayer should be the model of human prayer. Therefore, every man is called to assemble into himself and into his prayers all the human nature, the entire Adam. Father Sophrony received as heritage from St. Silouan the hypostatic prayer that himself lived, making it known to the world through his life and writings.