Introduction to Apostle to Zaire
The Life and Legacy of Blessed Father Cosmas of Grigoriou
In every generation there are those few exceptional souls who rise out of the
conventionality of social life to become pathfinders to the catholicity and
otherworldliness of Christianity. Heroic and uncompromising, they imitate
Abraham and become exiles and martyrs for Christ, following Him with loving
exactness and mountain-moving faith. They "hate their life in this world" in
order to keep it—and that of their neighbor's—for eternity; and to
successive generations they become models to imitate, witnessing, long after
their departure, to the honour the Father bestows on those who serve Him.
Such a one was blessed Father Cosmas of Grigoriou, enlightener of Zaire.
A Model of Mission Work in this Age of Antichrist
From as early as eighteen years of age he received from God the call to work
in His mission field. Possessed of a dynamic personality that "was inspired by a
burning love for Christ, he did not want to live a conventional Christian life
nor to be limited to some usual ecclesiastical career and service. He longed to
offer himself entirely to God and his fellow man." He sought not honors, for
"his chief concern was with the salvation of men and the upbuilding of Orthodoxy
in Zaire." The beloved Cosmas was, in the words of the former Metropolitan
Avgoustinos of Florina, "the trailblazer of a beautiful journey for our race."
He made Christ's departing directive to "teach all nations" his point of
departure from a life of compromise and port of entry for Orthodoxy in the
sub-Saharan and the hearts of countless souls. Unlike the missionaries of
heterodox confessions, he laid stress on both the first and second part of the
Great Commission: "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the
name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit; teaching them to
observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you." His success, or rather
faithfulness, in carrying out the first half of the Great Commission, was a
direct result of his faithfulness and resolute determination to observe the
second half, that is, to be exact in teaching them "to observe all things" that
Christ has commanded us. It could not be otherwise, for the African is
neither as the contemporary European, worn out by centuries of dizzying
ideologies and spent on a myriad of humanistic philosophies, nor as the typical
American, quick to compromise and moderate things in order to achieve outward
success. His noble, humble soul still inclines toward the other world and his
simple, intuitive mind still has a healthy disposition for the noetic realm. A
few months before his departure from this life, Father Cosmas visited the
monastery of his repentance and spoke to the pilgrims there of this African
nobility and their desire for authentic, ascetic Orthodoxy. Bishop Athanasios
Yievtich, a close disciple of the great contemporary Church Father,
Archimandrite Justin Popovich, was present and relates what Fr. Cosmas had to
say:
"They are people with a sensitivity and awareness of the inner
world. Europeans usually underestimate them, but they are very mistaken. The
soul of the African inclines toward mysticism and for this reason Orthodoxy has
something to say to them and something to offer, but only authentic Orthodoxy—
monastic, hagiorite Orthodoxy. For among the brethren of Africa, witchcraft and
magic holds great sway, a real demonocracy. In Africa, I saw how true the Gospel
of Christ is! Everything that He said about the possession of men by the demons,
I saw first hand. However, the Living and True God is more powerful than Satan
and all his servants. Let it be understood, however, that true
missionary-apostolic work cannot be carried out in Africa if one does not decide
to leave his bones there."
And so in teaching the native
Africans the entire Gospel of Christ and revealing to them the undistorted Image
of the God-man and His Church, it was only to be expected that his self-offering
would likewise be complete and unqualified. In his "unique, genuine and very
useful" study on mission work, entitled Thoughts about Missionary Work from
Experience, he lays out the cornerstone principle for all who would follow his
example:
"The missionary's beginning is significant, however it is not the
sum of the matter . . . The outset might be blessed or might become blessed at
the end. What's important is that the giving be true and total, without holding
back, with a disposition to self-sacrifice and self-denial, and with the aim of
leaving our bones among the natives . . ."
Long before one leaves his bones on the mission field, however, he must have
discarded his pride and vainglory first, if he wants the final offering to be
fruitful. Thus, for Fr. Cosmas the true missionary, in order to attain the
blessed end, must leave no room for jealousy or vainglory, but rather must
understand all to be shared: "common the struggle, common the pain, and common
the glory of the Church." He must "offer an open heart, love and communicate
with others, concern himself with his own problems without adding more, being
attentive to what others are doing, without turning to the devil and causing
division." And carrying out his duty in humility, "the true missionary does not
seek recognition for his work, neither from the natives nor from those abroad,
for the testimony of his sound conscience and the witness of his spiritual
father and co-workers is sufficient for him."
An Ascetic First
Father Cosmas left no room to doubt that he followed his principles, his
words were based on experience and his beginning and end were blessed. And all
of this is based on the fact that he "was first of all an ascetic and afterwards
a missionary," as Archimandrite Ioanikios has written elsewhere in this book. He
knew from experience what asceticism, spiritual warfare, fasting, vigil and
prayer mean for the Church. "We thank the Lord," writes his Abbot George, "for,
even if he was a man like us, he nevertheless disdained the earthly, the fleshly
comforts, the human pleasures, all for the love of Christ, and chose a road that
was harsh, combative, extremely tiring and humanly punishing. He did all of this
for the love of God, his brothers and fellow men." Elder George further
certifies all this with a story from Father Cosmas' early days at the monastery:
"I once passed by Fr. Cosmas' little cell and saw his bed: wooden boards and on
top of the boards, a little thin sheet. He didn't even have a blanket. Having
seen that, and other things, I thought that the brother had the grace of God and
ought to become a monk." His asceticism, however, was not reserved to
sleeping on wooden boards or even to fasting, vigil and prayer. Father Cosmas
was above all unrelenting in his work of building up the Church in Zaire. Father
Michael Christodoulidis of Cyprus writes of his visit to the Kolwezi mission and
Father Cosmas' asceticism in work:
"That which distinguished him most was his industry and diligence in
work, his method and organization of labor, his intelligence, speed and facility
in confronting difficulties, his ingenuity, and his unshakeable faith, spirit of
love and sacrifice . . . Untiring in work, he would labor long hours in every
kind of task. We didn't know what midday was and what lunch means. The table of
the Mission center is set from noon until late in the evening. Work 'from the
morning watch until night' on roads that are non-existent, with vehicles and
machines that were always breaking down, with bloody sacrifices, 'in
afflictions, in necessities, in distresses, in wounds . . . in labors, in
vigils' (2 Cor. 6: 4-5)."
The above description not only finds repeated confirmation in a number of
similar testimonies, but from the words of Father Cosmas himself, who at the
same time points us to another aspect of his giving of priority to asceticism.
He writes the following:
"It is well known that we all work here on a twenty four hour basis,
under poor conditions, with the consequence being bodily strain and spiritual
slackening. Consequently, toward the realization of spiritual and bodily
replenishment, the existence of two monasteries, one men's and one women's, at
some distance from the mission base, is deemed most appropriate . . . The
monastery would work strictly as a monastery or, with the blessing of the local
Metropolitan, as a metochian of Mount Athos, without any entangling with the
mission."
It was because Father Cosmas believed that a local Church could not stand
without monasticism that he gave priority to the founding of a monastery and
towards the end of his life he finally saw the realization of his plans with the
establishment of the holy women's Monastery of St. Nektarios.
Exactness in OrthodoxyShortly after Fr. Cosmas' repose, upon
seeing the spiritual labor he had accomplished, his successor Father Meletios
said: "Father Cosmas' work in Africa is quite extensive. I found the whole
Athonite typikon in place in Zaire. The Christians with prayer ropes in their
hands. In church they chant all together lead by the choir of boys. No one
communes without first having confessed. They keep strictly the fasts of
Wednesday and Friday. They celebrate daily the Divine Services of Matins,
Vespers and Small Compline. And on Sundays the congregation exceeds four
hundred."
Many have commented: "How is it that the Africans, being only recently
baptized, can maintain such an intensity and exactness in their Orthodoxy, while
many of us in parishes in Greece, America and elsewhere are much more lax?" The
answer, I believe, lies partly in that Father Cosmas, their father, guide, and
example was himself strict and precise in his living and imparting of Orthodoxy.
He was a monk in the long tradition of Athonite monasticism, and he hailed from
the city of Ss. Cyril and Methodios, Thessaloniki, known for its rich
ecclesiastical tradition. He kept with exactness, as well as discernment, the
canons and standards of the Church, not out of some kind of reactionary
conservatism or unfeeling zeal, but out of humility and because they provide
what is best for man's soul, derived as they are from the experience and wisdom
of the Saints and Fathers of the Church. One such issue in which he
consciously chose the blessing of God's Saints over the transient benefits of
our ecumenical age was baptism. "When baptizing," he says, "I implement the
Athonite order of things. We've done 250 baptisms, and not only with idol
worshippers, but also with Catholics who become Orthodox, we baptize them in
deep rivers. My actions will have consequences when news reaches the
Patriarchate of Alexandria, which holds that the Protestants are only in need of
chrism. Until then, however, we will only do baptisms so as to have St.
Nicodemos' blessing." Father Cosmas, as is clear further down, was not
one to fly in the face of ecclesiastical authority. His decision to baptize
those coming from heterodox confessions was done purely out of love for their
souls and their eternal salvation, as well as love for God and His Saints, not
suffering his conscience to disobey their sacred teachings. He acted not only
out of respect for the Saints of ages past, but out of obedience and humility
before the wise counsels of living saints: "I remember the words of Father
Paisios, who told me that most of the time the baptism that the heretics perform
only passes over their skin." Having this in mind, his love for the catechumens
dictated that he provide them with the complete and saving initiation into the
eternal life of the Church. This had consequences, of course, but not only for
his relationship with the Patriarchate. Primarily it had consequences for the
establishment of a spiritually healthy, powerful and faithful Orthodox Church,
before which the Orthodox world now stands in admiration. Similarly,
Father Cosmas' success in establishing a strong, stable and healthy Orthodox way
of life among the natives is also due to his refusal to adopt non-Orthodox
methods and style. Father Cosmas writes: "It is wrong to have recourse to the
means and methods of the heterodox. Let us leave to Orthodoxy her own color, in
faith, in teaching, and in her arts. Let it not fade in the mission field." This
should be applied not only to clear-cut mission fields, of course, but also to
Orthodoxy in the Diaspora, as today many Orthodox often assimilate aspects of
foreign cultures indiscriminately. For, if Father Cosmas' words hold true, then
we must not expect the kind of results we see in Kolwezi in our part of the
world if we are busy appropriating "the means and methods" of the heterodox. One
may have to work very hard to avoid this compromise, yet we have Father Cosmas
and the Church in Zaire as testimony that the struggler will have his reward.
Father Cosmas did not stop at simply avoiding the influence of heterodox
culture within Zaire. He extended this principle to protect those young souls he
sent abroad to study and be formed in the Orthodox way. He writes: "It is almost
assured that the young native is destroyed when sent to study in Europe,
returning as a theologian only in terms of his diploma, not his heart . . . In
Kolwezi, we send the pious young man to the monastery of our repentance . . .
where he learns the Greek language, theological matters, dogmatics, ethics,
worship, the typikon, iconography, and Byzantine music both in practice and
theory. He studies Orthodoxy in the "university of the desert," keeping company
with sanctified elders and spiritually-gifted fathers and learning from them the
'according to likeness.' Purified and forming Christ within him, the young
candidate becomes a good co-worker and our ideal successor." Father
Cosmas' care for the young native soul sent to study abroad arose out of his
deep pastoral sensitivity and not out of any alleged ecclesiastical chauvinism.
It was this sensitivity and a blessed single-mindedness and constant focus on
bringing his disciples to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ,
and not any misguided idealism, that made it hard for him to countenance
disregard of the canons. With respect to the canons governing ordination, this
was particularly difficult because suitable candidates were few and the
observance of the canons demanded much faith and patience. But, Father Cosmas,
together with his Bishop, observed the canons, for they knew that there was a
spiritual law at work and a punishment that the violators of the canons cannot
escape. He writes: "The canons of the Church, of course, must be observed with
respect to ordinations. Otherwise, the canons will avenge themselves and we will
pay for our concessions (1 Tim. 3: 2-13)." And elsewhere he writes: "In areas
where excessive tolerance is shown, the situation continually deteriorates and I
am very concerned that at one point it will become incurable."
Basic Presupposition: Working under the Authority of the Local Bishop
Father Cosmas set out from the beginning to carry out a work that was
ecclesiastical, without reference to his person but rather centered on Christ
and His Church. Thus, he came to Africa not as an individual performing a
personal work, but as a monk of a specific monastery sent to enlist in the
service of the Church under the local Bishop. He would often say, "If my work is
my own, it will disintegrate as soon as I leave. If, however, it rests on an
ecclesiastical base, the Church will assume it and it will continue."
Father Cosmas wanted everything to be in harmony with the canonical
order of the Church. He advanced to the planning and realization of each work he
undertook only after securing the blessing of his Bishop. He would not tire of
emphasizing, "I offer my services with my Metropolitan, His Eminence Timothy
Kontomerko." Even when pressed by his own (according to the flesh)
father's fear that financial support would dry up due to certain problems that
had arisen, Father Cosmas remained unwavering in his faithfulness to the
ecclesiology of the Church:
"I set out from my monastery with the blessings of my Geronda and
the other fathers and the explicit command of Father Paisios, who is also my
spiritual guide, to work together with the heads of the Church for the good of
the Mission. The Church exists wherever there is a Bishop and faithful flock.
Without the Bishop the faithful do not constitute the Church, but a Protestant
heresy. Consequently, the line that I follow, working together with the local
Bishop, is the most advisable, and yet even if I wanted to do something
different, you know that I don't have such a blessing from my
monastery."
In cases where the Bishop is a source of problems, Father Cosmas counseled
against creating open rifts with him, as they would "harm rather than help." He
saw that taking "recourse to a worldly model of contemporary form . . . toward
the finding of justice, produces no results." In such cases, where solutions
cannot be found, "then it is preferable that we prudently withdrawal with our
co-workers, handing over the work to a new contingent, so as not to scandalize
innocent souls (Mat. 18:7)." In response to the opinion of some that one
should not support missionary work in an area where the Bishop is not "beyond
reproach," Father Cosmas was not sympathetic. "This position is shown to be
baseless and utopian, for humanly judging the situation we consider a
purification of ecclesiastical leadership as practically impossible and thus we
tread from bad to worse, and this in the very age of the Antichrist. All the
same, what should be done? Should we stop the evangelization of the nations? Of
course not. On the contrary, we will devote ourselves even more to the work of
missions and, with the grace of God and our own stability and love, the mission
will continue and advance, and the "blameworthy" bishop along with it. The most
important point of all, however, is this: we mustn't trust in our own
spirituality, sincerity and holiness, if we, in fact, have something of these.
'Let him that thinks he stands take heed lest he fall' (1 Cor. 10:12)."
A Visionary who took One Step at a Time
As a result of conversations with illumined Fathers on Mount Athos and
indications he received from his own conscience while in the mission field,
Father Cosmas knew to be patient, that the work was just beginning and that he
would not see its full flowering in this life. "Continue on," Fr. Paisios of the
Holy Mountain told him, "however, the struggle will be a long one, for the
people there will be slow in coming to accept Christianity." With this
in mind, then, and being a true Orthodox missionary, Father Cosmas was not
anxious or persuaded to adopt short-range solutions. Unlike the missionaries of
heterodox groups, Father Cosmas made a point of avoiding a predetermined
programmatic approach. You won't find references to five-year programs or slick
slogans in the writings of Father Cosmas. He believed that missionary work "is a
linkage of one's own temperament, knowledge, possibilities and local conditions.
It is not necessary to follow certain molds . . . The missionary is free and
when he is open to the grace of God, the Holy Spirit will speak riches in his
heart and indicate to him what to do, gradually and in correspondence to the
development of the work. Let us leave room for prayer to act without rushing the
situation with narrow logic, absolute measures or the assessments of critics at
each stage." Father Cosmas was a visionary who took one step at a time.
He understood early on that he must see things in terms of generations not
years. Thus it was that he laid great stress on the upbringing and training of
the young men and women under his care, for the future leadership of the Church.
It was for this reason that, in addition to the founding of a monastery, he
undertook the establishment of boarding houses at the Mission Center, where
young men and women came to stay, study, pray, learn and grow into mature
Orthodox Christians. Today, twenty-two years later, the children that first took
up residence at the Mission center have become the clerical, monastic and lay
leaders of the Church in Zaire, just as Father Cosmas foresaw.
A Fruit-bearing Tree for Generations to Come
Father Cosmas was an exemplification of the Gospel saying of the Lord:
"Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if
it die, it bringeth forth much fruit" (John 12: 24). His life was a series of
"precious deaths" to the "old man" which made his bodily death "fruit-bearing."
These fruits are now offered not just to those who knew him while he lived, but
also to all those who have since and will in the future come to know Christ and
follow Him into the mission field through Father Cosmas' example. "The seed has
fallen into the earth," writes Abbot George. "It dies, for if it does not die,
it will not sprout forth a beautiful tree, with the sweetest of fruits, under
which many souls will find rest." Already Abbot George's words have
found bountiful fulfillment, not just in Kolwezi, but also throughout the
Orthodox world. The greatness of Father Cosmas' work and example lies, as he
himself has said, in that it has not died with him but continues, on an even
greater scale. And not only the work he began in Kolwezi, but also the work of
Orthodox mission worldwide. Today, this namesake of Holy Cosmas Aitolos, that
regenerator of the race of Hellenes, stands as torchbearer for missionaries to
the races of men the world over, in Africa, Latin America and Asia. They cite
him as their inspiration and the archetype for their own work. In
Madagascar, in the span of six short years, the Orthodox Church has been
established through the grace of God and under the leadership of the
missionary-Bishop Nektarios. Since 1994 over 12,000 souls have been baptized, 62
parishes founded and 26 churches built. His Grace Bishop Nektarios had the
blessed Father Cosmas as his model. He looked to his example when starting out,
in the erecting of church temples, the providing of philanthropy, in prisons,
hospitals, with the feeding of the hungry and, in general, in the whole work of
the mission. On the other side of the world, in Taiwan, there is another
"disciple" of Father Cosmas, the Hieromonk Jonah. He too looks up to heaven at
the flaming example of Father Cosmas for inspiration and guidance in his newly
founded mission. He has only just begun (2001), and the obstacles and challenges
facing him are enormous, yet, as with Father Cosmas, his "disposition to
self-sacrifice and self-denial," and "aim of leaving his bones among the
natives" has already made it possible for God to act mightily. Who will
be the next to follow in Blessed Father Cosmas' footsteps? The Lord alone, Who
knows every soul before its coming into the world, speaks and reveals which monk
or layman should enter next into His vineyard for the reaping of the harvest.
When it came time for Father Cosmas to depart this life, the Lord revealed to
him his successor in Kolwezi. His abbot George tells us that, "shortly before
his final departure [from Mount Athos] for Africa and his death, he visited
Father Meletios in his cell and told him that he would continue his work." And,
indeed, a few months later, days after Father Cosmas departed this life, Abbot
George called Father Meletios in to suggest that he succeed Father Cosmas,
without, however, knowing anything of what Father Cosmas had predicted.
So, the work of the Church will by no means cease, for He "who desires
that all be saved and come to the knowledge of the Truth" is constantly raising
up workers for His Vineyard. It is sufficient only that we imitate such blessed
ones as Father Cosmas and "hate our life in this world" and "die to it," so as
to "keep it for eternity." Then, perhaps, we too may be counted worthy of
treading that path which guides one on the beautiful journey of our Christian
race, which Father Cosmas blazed so resolutely.
—Peter Alban Heers
Feast of Saint Cosmas Aitolos, Equal to the Apostles
August 24, 2001
Apostle to Zaire is published by Uncut
Mountain Press and available from
St. Anthony's Monastery Bookstore.
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