This
excerpt was taken from the newly-circulated book about Crazy John, a
modern-day “Fool
of Christ”
"Foolishness
for Christ" was always appreciated as one of the most moving chapters
in the voluminous Book of Saints of our Orthodox Church. One more pebble
that was added to this chapter is the history that a humble levite of
the Gospel who lives in the blessed mountains of Agrafa in Northern
Greece narrated to us.
His
narration pertained to a contemporary "fool for Christ", who lived in
one of the many faceless, inaccessible and remote neighborhoods of Athens.
Crazy
John - who is the central character of his narration - lived in a tiny,
humble apartment that he had inherited from his mother; one of the 20
apartments that comprised the condominium building. He worked
at the neighborhood bakery and began work at daybreak. From that bakery
where he worked, he would customarily fill two bags with loaves of bread
and bread rolls every day, and would rush to distribute them to the
elderly men, women and students in his neighborhood.
"Here
you are - I thought I might give you some freshly-baked bread, a gift
from mister Apostoly the baker, so that you will commemorate him in
your prayers" he would say.
The
truth was that Crazy John would use up a large part of his wages to
provide bread to the poor of his neighborhood. He would tell mister
Apostoly that he was only helping out some sick friends, and that he
was being paid for his trouble...
But
how did he know who the poor in his neighborhood were?
Well,
he made it a habit to indiscriminately ring the doorbells, not only
in his own condominium, but also in neighboring apartment buildings.
He would introduce himself to everyone and would ask them if they needed
anything that he could help them with:
"And
how did you wake up this morning? Has any problem come up so I
can be of assistance to you? How are your children?"
At
first, some snubbed him. Others slammed their door in his face, refusing
to speak to him - obviously annoyed by his unexpected presence. But
there were others who actually waited for Crazy John to come, so that
they could hear a kind word from him. Eventually, he came to know all
of them; he came to know their peculiarities, but also the elements
of their characters.
In
the evenings, Crazy John would retire to his humble home and pray. He
liked to recite the book of Psalms, claiming to someone who asked him
why, that "they were intended to drive away
the little critters (demons) from the neighborhood..."
He
used to read it out so loud, that a newly-arrived tenant who didn't
know him that well called the Police, complaining about him disturbing
the peace! Also on a daily basis, the fool would cense all the apartments,
beginning from the top floor and working down. He would even go
out to the back yards and cense there also. And when someone was
sick, he would visit them and - after censing them and making the sign
of the Cross over them - he would read haltingly, with his limited education,
the words of James' Epistle...
"Pray
for each other, so that you may be healed", he would say to them.
He would urge them to go to confession, "to
get well by the greatest of doctors, our Christ..."
Quite
often, after coming home from the bakery, he would grab a broom and
sweep the entire apartment building, "to keep it clean", as he used
to say.
He
enjoyed intervening with a smile between those who quarreled about political
parties publicly, in cafes (in older times, there used to be heated
arguments over political parties):
--"Ah,
you guys, why do you count on and pin your hopes on tin cans and cymbals?
Instead of quarrelling, you should be praying to God to send us a David
for a king. He could solve problems, because his knees had bled from
prolonged supplications and prayers. But what do your wise guys do?
Their supplications are only for commission, and they become one with
corruption... They take you for idiots and they mock you", he
used to tell them.
--"Get
lost, Crazy John", they would reply and, to avoid him altogether, they
would send him off on an errand. But he would always say "Don't
pin your hopes on the rulers. Have your hopes in God only."
One
day, Crazy John didn't go to work. Mister Apostoly the baker was concerned.
He was never absent from work. So he sent someone to his apartment.
Before arriving at the apartment, he saw the fool holding a shovel,
cleaning out the storm drains in the street and emptying them of the
dirt and litter that was blocking them.
--"Hey
you! Have you really lost your mind?" he shouted. "Mister Apostoly is
waiting for you at the bakery and you're cleaning storm drains? Did
you think the City Council would hire you that way?"
To
which he replied:
--"I
have been trying to find two coins that I lost, since this morning.
But I can't remember which of the five drains they had fallen into,
so I opened all five of them. And, since I had opened them, I though
I might as well clean out the dirt while I'm at it" the fool said, laughing.
"So, go back to Mister Apostoly and tell him I will work extra tomorrow,
to make up for the hours I was absent today. Hey, they were two
whole coins... that's no small amount" he added.
One
can only imagine the baker's exasperation. As soon as he learnt of the
fool's prank, he threatened to fire him. Five hours later, John the
fool had completed his mission and returned home, very pleased.
--"Well,
did you find your coins?" The grocer asked him mockingly. "You should
go to the Mayor and ask for them, for having cleaned the storm drains"
he said, laughing at him.
But
later on that afternoon, the sky began to darken. Black clouds
gathered threateningly, followed by lightning and thunder and a heavy
downpour. The streets quickly turned into rivers, sweeping away
everything in their path - including cars on the street. Many catastrophes
were recorded in the largest Municipality: Houses, shops, warehouses
were flooded. Properties were lost. The Fire Department couldn't handle
all the emergency calls for rescues...
The
Mayor visited the stricken areas of his jurisdiction the next day, to
personally gauge the damages. All the citizens of his municipality
confronted him about the blocked storm drains. He eventually went
to Crazy John's neighborhood. There was no flood damage there.
The grocer who spotted the Mayor, went up to him and said:
--"Mister
Mayor, you should go and thank Crazy John who has been cleaning out
these storm drains from this morning. That fool's craziness saved us,
thanks to his persistent search for two lost coins!"
But
the baker also said the same things to the Mayor:
--"It's
fortunate Mister Mayor that the madman cleaned those storm drains, otherwise
we would have drowned after a rainfall like that. His madness saved
us from a worse fate."
--"It
looks like madmen can be a necessity too", the Mayor said with a smile.
John,
the fool for Christ, used to wear very worn-out clothes. Many
would feel sorry for him, seeing him in that state, and they would give
him money. "Here, take this you fool, and buy yourself some trousers
and a decent shirt to wear." He would thank them and take the
money. He would then place the money in an envelope, add some more from
his own wages, then would secretly go and toss the envelope under the
doors of those whom he knew were in need.
Whenever
he went to a supermarket, he would purchase very unusual things. He
would even place various women's items for example in the shopping cart,
and that would get the cashier girls giggling. The owner of the supermarket
would feel sorry for him, and had even given instructions to accept
only half of the total value of the items that he purchased.
One
day, someone's curiosity got the better of him, and he decided to find
out what the fool did with all that shopping. So he secretly followed
him one day. Crazy John went to a remote corner of the tiny square so
that he would not be watched by passers-by, and began to separate and
group the shopping items. He would then begin to ring doorbells
(as he was accustomed to doing) and would leave the bags with the shopping
items on the doorsteps.
The
women's articles that he used to purchase he would take to a poor student,
Katerina, one of a large family of many children; one who was in great
need.
On
the day of his death eight years ago, everyone in the neighborhood had
a story to tell about the fool's "pranks": Anastasy, the janitor of
the building where the fool lived, began to tell about the love he had
for the Church.
He
would go to church almost every day. On Sundays he would arrive even
before the Priest. He would light his candle, kneel before all the holy
icons and then go to his place at the entrance of the church, pretending
to be a beggar. Whatever money he collected - as the Priest revealed
to me - he would secretly go and deposit in the charity box for the
poor and the elderly.
One
day, the caretaker saw him at the charity box and thought he was trying
to steal the money. So she ran to notify the priest. "Father, Crazy
John has got his hands on the charity box!" she cried out. The
priest then went cautiously over and secretly observed what he was doing.
He saw the fool pulling money out of his pockets and depositing it the
charity box.
--"What
on earth are you doing there you fool?" the priest shouted. And
Crazy John replied "Well father, you see a hole opened in my pocket,
so to prevent the money from falling through the hole and losing it,
I put it in the box for the Panaghia to guard, and to give it to others
poorer than me!"
He
saved a woman from the deadly sin of adultery...
Nicoletta
then took a long sip of coffee and began to tell her story with Crazy
John...
"One
evening" she said "perhaps ten or more years ago, I saw a young man
wandering aimlessly in our neighborhood. I watched him purposely, because
I thought he was a burglar. Suddenly, I noticed Crazy John coming out
of his building in a hurry and quickly walking in the direction of the
only ground-floor house in the neighborhood, where a four-member family
was living as tenants.
The
fool sat himself squarely on the steps of the front yard, and began
to chant the hymns to the Panaghia out loud. He especially liked to
chant "O Virgin pure...."
Two
hours went by, but the fool continued to chant hymns. I went out and
told him to stop. Then I noticed the young man walk hurriedly away.
The fool got up and went inside the house. I followed him out of curiosity,
to see what was going on. I must admit that my mind went to something
sinister. I rang the doorbell and a young woman opened the door.
Crazy
John was seated at the kitchen table, eating something the young woman
had served him. Next to him stood her five year old son. Turning
to the boy, the fool began to tell him that one of God's ten commandments
is the one that says "Thou shalt not commit adultery".
--"You
know Georgie, adultery is not something that God likes. Adultery opens
a gate for Satan, who then enters the home and wreaks havoc. That's
when families break up, and sicknesses and pain and hatred come in through
the windows and drive out God's blessing that was given with the sacrament
of Marriage. Man and woman - like your daddy and mommy - become
one flesh with marriage dear Georgie; one body. With adultery, it's
like cutting off your arm."
I
have to admit that made me very angry....
--"What
on earth are you telling that poor child, you ungodly wretch?" I said.
The young woman burst into tears and said between sobs "He's saying
it about me; leave him alone - don't scold him...."
But
Crazy John quickly got up and left. The young woman then confessed that
she had planned to cheat on her husband with a young man she had met
in a cafeteria that she had been to with a friend of hers for coffee.
She told her that the young man was supposed to meet her at her place,
thus taking advantage of her husband's absence, as he was out of town
on business, but God protected her and the young man didn't come.
"I
narrowly escaped a huge disaster, dear Nicoletta. I would have
broken up my family and my marriage. When Crazy John knocked at
the door, I thought it was that young man, and I wouldn't have had the
strength to send him away. Fortunately God saved me from committing
a terrible sin...."
--"It
was the fool who saved you" I said to her, "because the young man had
indeed come this far, but the fool was sitting on your doorstep outside
for hours, chanting incessantly, while the young man was pacing outside
your door. Didn't you hear him?" I asked her.....
--"I
had heard" - the baker interposed - "that John wanted to become a priest,
ever since he was a child. But then came the German occupation, followed
by the civil war, so he never managed to finish his schooling. He only
managed to learn to read and write a little. Thus, while still relatively
young, when he went to the Bishop and asked him to ordain him a priest,
the Bishop had deterred him, and instead recommended that he first go
to school.
But
now, with all these things that are being said about John, and with
everything that I personally know about him, I can safely say that God
may not have made him a priest, but He surely anointed him a Bishop
in our neighborhood. These last words by Mister Apostoly were drowned
in his sobs and his tears....
The secret life of Crazy
John...
Tears
also began to fall in the eyes of many more who were present. Everyone
wanted to deposit their own testimony. Two girls were observing the
scene at a distance from the others, looking somewhat confused. You
could clearly discern admiration combined with a feeling of sadness,
from the expression on their faces. None of the people present knew
who the girls were, and they were curious to find out who they were...
Mister
Anastasy thought that they might have a family bond with the deceased
John, so, being the janitor of the building, he took the initiative
and asked them if they were related to the recently departed for the
Lord, brother John...
The
robust girl then began to say the following, after brushing away her
tears:
--"My
name is Arete, and my friend here, Calliope, works with me at the Children's
Hospital. Several years ago, we came to know mister John the Clown.
That's how we knew him - the one that you call Crazy John. He
would come almost every Sunday afternoon, always laden with toys. He
would share them amongst the children and he would play with them.
He loved them all, but showed special care and love for all the newly-born
babies that were growing up alone in the hospital, because they had
been abandoned by their parents. He used to bring them clothes
and toys and would always leave some money with the nurses on duty,
in case the children needed something else, for whenever he couldn't
go there. We didn't know him as a fool, like you do. To us, he
was the kindest clown, who entertained the children like no-one else
could..."
--"H
especially loved a little child whose parents had abandoned it because
it was born with Down's Syndrome", Calliope added.
"But
tell me, little Calliope, how could they leave behind this tiny angel?"
he would wonder. "If only they (the parents) knew that this angel was
for them a ticket to Paradise and eternity, they would never have abandoned
it. How on earth do you turn your back on such a treasure? Our
Lord - dear little Calliope - said that He is Love. And you know that
love contains sacrifice. Love without sacrifice is like an empty can
- an unvarnished one, as my dear mother used to say. Christ - dear little
Calliope - said that whoever doesn't have sacrificial love resembles
a zero. If we only knew dear girl what treasures God sends to
man continuously to save him, we would be jumping for joy. Here, take
a look at this angel here - this is one of those treasures...
In fact, I will tell you a secret. If we could find a good family today
who would adopt it, then not only would they receive innumerable heavenly
blessings, but also, with the sacrifice of their love, in embracing
a little angel with a wounded body, they would even cure it. Because
our Triadic God is merciful and caring..."
These
are the things that mister John would say as he looked at the sick and
abandoned little child asleep in its tiny hospital crib.
--"Isn't
it strange little Calliope how people nowadays care more about little
animals, and pay no attention to these little children? I'm not
saying we shouldn't love birds and animals. We should care about them
too, but how much more should we care about suffering mankind, who is
made in the likeness of God? We need to become Good Samaritans
nowadays, so that we might give up our lives also if necessary, to comfort
our fellow-man. Don't forget that - especially you nurses, whose
work is linked to human suffering..."
Holy
souls live among living humans...
"I
was under the impression that mister John was a theologian-professor.
I surmised that, from his profound theological but equally simplified
analyses. He knew the entire Holy Bible by heart, and he would
exhort me with faith to read one or two pages every day, from the Bible
that he himself had given me as a gift. He even counselled me
to kneel before the icon of the Holy Mother every day and describe in
detail the day's joys, sorrows and problems.
He
used to say "Dear little Calliope, ask our Holy Mother to become your
best friend and you will see everything changing around you. Our kind
Mother is the kindest Mother of all, the kindest sister, the kindest
friend. Talk to Her - She listens..."
Last
night, when I rang up mister John and a gentleman who picked up the
phone told me that mister John had died and informed me about the funeral,
I felt as though I had just lost my father...
Mister
Anastasy suddenly jumped up and asked:
--"When
did you ring up?"
--"Last
night, around 8pm. I wanted to ask him if he was going to come
this Sunday when it is my shift, because I have to confess that I trusted
mister John more than anyone else - even more than my own parents..."
--"But
the apartment was locked since the day before yesterday, and I'm the
only one who has keys to it", mister Anastasy said, mystified..
So
he turned to the others in the room and asked if anyone else had keys.
The replies were all negative...
--"But
the voice on the phone sounded so much like mister John's. I just assumed
it was a relative of his. But now that you mention it, I remember that
he called me "little Calliope" over the phone - and he was the only
one who called me by that name! Its just that at the time, I was so
upset by the news of his death, that I didn't pay special attention,
when I heard the following:
--"And
now little Calliope, you will be looking after the children on your
own, because your mister John has passed away, and can no longer visit
you as a clown..." he said to me over the phone!
I
assumed that his next of kin were aware of this activity of his, so
I didn't take any notice of those words... I am only now finding out
that he had no relatives, and I don't know what to say..."
Just
then, father Dimitri who was observing everything in silence while seated
at a nearby table, stood up and exclaimed:
"This
man is a Saint !!!"
"A
Saint! A Saint!" everyone instinctively repeated...
--"I
have been listening all this time to the narrations of the adventures
of our departed brother John. Everything that you said about Crazy John
- as you all call him - are miraculous events that characterize only
the saints of our Church. I am under the impression that this isn't
a commonplace funeral gathering; it rather resembles a festive occasion.
Calliope's
realization that he had spoken to her - albeit deceased - over the phone,
shook me to the core, and it reminded me of a similar incident that
relates to the life of the holy elder Porphyry the Hut-burner.."
--"Father,
young Dimitri wants to say something too", mister Apostoly said.
--"Come
on, say it, so that everyone can hear what you told me a while ago about
Crazy John."
Young
Dimitri was a boy in his early teens. He was going on 14 and was in
his second year at High School. He lived together with his brother Paul
who was three years younger than himself, and his parents, just two
apartment buildings down from where Crazy John lived. During the past
year, unlike the other children his age, he had turned to God.
His
friends couldn't explain that huge about-face. They all wondered what
had happened to make that high-spirited Dimitri abandon his pranks and
mischief and turn to studying and prudence. Even his parents had no
idea what the reason for his conversion was. At first, they actually
believed he had been brainwashed by a heretic organization. But later,
they realized that nothing of the sort was lurking behind their son's
change. They also noticed that ever since their son turned to
God, the problems in their family had begun to diminish. Quarrelling
stopped. Teachers' praises at school had replaced their complaints about
his mischief...
Dimitri's
about-face had changed the family's course. His parents became even
more surprised, when they saw their son going to church every Sunday
and reading the Holy Bible that Crazy John had given him as a gift.
Poor Panagiotis - Dimitri's father - who customarily went to church
every Christmas and Easter - became very upset. He discussed the matter
with his wife Polyxeni.
--"Say,
wife, do you think Dimitri is in trouble? How did he change so much?
Is there any chance he has suffered a romantic disappointment because
some girlie left him? I am afraid that the priests will destroy him.
Not to mention that he risks being taunted by his friends and mocked
by them. What do you think? Shouldn't we have a talk with him?" he would
say.
Poor
Polyxeni would listen to her husband carefully. She never spoke. When
the time came and she spoke up, she said:
--"I
don't know what to say, my Panagioti. You may be right. I can't hide
the fact that those same thoughts had crossed my mind too. But one thing
I do know: ever since Dimitri displayed this new behaviour, our family
has calmed down. His grades at school have shown a sharp improvement.
His teachers have only the best things to say about him. Even they are
amazed at Dimitri - they actually asked me if he was being tutored privately.
Even young Paul has become motivated, near Dimitri...
Have
you forgotten, my dear Panagioti, how much we worried when Dimitri would
come home after midnight? Have you forgotten the time we found a packet
of cigarettes under his bed and that magazine with indecent photos?
Have you forgotten the time we were called to the Police Station to
pick up our son who had been held there because he had caused damages
together with some others, in the episodes that took place after their
school's party? Have you forgotten our neighbors, who constantly
complained that Dimitri and his friends would beat Crazy John and make
fun of him?
Listen,
dear Panagioti: what I can see is that after Dimitri's change, I am
far more at ease, and so is this household. Our problems have
become fewer. Even our quarrels as husband and wife are minimal. Ever
since Dimitri brought God home, smiling and happiness has returned to
us. So I wonder, could we be the ones who are wrong? Could we
be the ones who were responsible for the path that our children had
taken?
Panagioti,
instead of worrying about Dimitri, I suggest that we follow him on his
path; that we begin as a family to go to church; to do what Crazy John
told us to do the other day, when you invited him over to eat with us...
In
other words, that we find a good spiritual father and go to confession.
That's what the fool meant, when he said that confession is the fuel
that drives man towards the heavens. Remember how he would ask us if
we would like to travel to Heaven and we laughed at him and regarded
his words to be foolishness?"
--"Look
wife, I understand what you're saying, but it occurs to me that our
friends will laugh at us if we do something like that", Panagiotis replied.
--"That
thought also crossed my mind, but then I remembered something else.
Remember the time Panagioti when we didn't have enough money to pay
the installment on our housing loan and you had asked your friends to
help out, and they all forgot us? They all disappeared, and they even
stopped calling. When did those friends stand by us? They come over,
only when we invite them to eat with us, or go to a tavern with us.
Weren't
you the one who told me that they gossiped about us, and that you discovered
that deep down, they were pleased whenever they heard us talking about
our problems with the children? We would have lost the house, if we
hadn't found that envelope with the 100.000 drachmas under our door
- which, by the way, we never discovered who had put it there, although
I suspect that the fool was behind that gesture" Polyxeni replied.
--"No...no...I
had asked the fool, but he flatly denied that he had done such a thing.
Besides, how could the fool have known about our financial worries?"
--"He
knows everything, since he makes his rounds in every part of the neighborhood.
Perhaps he saw us worried and asked Dimitri or Paul. Don't rule out
anything, because other families around here have also received envelopes
like that."
On
the Sunday after that discussion, the parents announced to Dimitri that
they would all go with him to church. In fact, they even woke up Paul,
who preferred to sleep in on Sundays. "We have only one day for sleeping"
he used to say. Dimitri was stunned at first, and he may have thought
they were aiming to monitor his moves. But when he saw that this routine
was repeated and that his parents acquired a spiritual father and began
to read spiritual books, he then began to speak of a miracle.
So,
with some coercion by mister Apostoly, young Dimitri began to present
his own testimony, Everyone had now turned their attention towards him.
Meantime, several other people had gathered around, from adjacent tables.
--"One
day" said young Dimitri, "my mother sent me to mister Apostoly's bakery
to buy bread. As I was buying the bread, I also did something bad -
something that I used to do often with my friends also. Well, I stole
a chocolate bar. Mister Apostoly didn't notice, and I was sure that
no-one had seen me take it.
But
from the next day on, as I left the house to go to school, I would find
two similar chocolate bars outside our door, like the ones I had stolen.
This went on for about 20 days. I asked my mother who kept putting the
chocolates there and she told me that every morning, Crazy John usually
rings the doorbells in the building.
--"That
guy does such crazy things" my mother said. That was when I realized
that the fool must have spotted me when I grabbed the chocolate, and
this was how he was taking his revenge. "I'll show that madman, who's
trying to make me feel bad for a measly chocolate that I stole" - that
was how I used to think, at the time...
The
next day, I found chocolates again - one for me and one for Paul, my
brother, along with a note that had the ten commandments written on
it, with the commandment of "thou shalt not steal" underlined.
I
became very angry....
So,
as soon as school was out, I went straight to Crazy John's apartment
building and rang his doorbell. He opened his door and said with a smile:
--"I'm
sorry, my Dimitri. I know you came here to give me a couple of punches
for the chocolates. I'm a fool; I deserve those punches. Come on, hit
me, as hard as you can. Let your anger out."
I
was at a loss, and was going to leave. I got scared. How did the fool
know that I had gone there to beat him, seeing that I hadn't told anyone?
As soon as this thought crossed my mind, he remarked:
--"My
dear boy, you must be wondering who told me you were coming here to
beat me, aren't you?"
I
nodded affirmatively.
--"Well,
you see, just before you came, Saint Dimitrios was here - who is your
guardian - and the Holy Mother also, and they told me. You know,
they love you very much, and they often talk about you. For example,
yesterday, with your schoolmate Helen - when you slapped her for disagreeing
with you - you made them very sad and they were crying here, along with
me. My dear Dimitri, I will tell you a big secret, under the condition
that as long as I am alive, you will not tell it to anyone. Do you accept?"
"Yes"
I replied, while I watched Crazy John radiant with joy.
--"Our
Lord Jesus dear Dimitri wants to come over to your place, but every
time He comes to visit you, He hears quarreling and He departs, very
sorrowed. So, He told me to give you His commandments to read, to learn
them well, and to observe them all, and only then will He return to
live with you continuously. Do you know what it means to live in the
same house, together with Him, Who created the entire world? Now
leave, go home, because your mother will be getting worried."
I
began to leave, but while walking me out, Crazy John said with a smile:
--"Hey,
little Dimitri, where are you going? You forgot to give me those punches!"
I
left for home as though flying on wings. As soon as my mother saw me,
she asked me why I was late, and I told her that "I was at the fool's
house, to tell him not to leave any more chocolates on the doorstep,
because I will get fat. Mum, give me 30 drachmas to give to mister
Apostoly the baker, because I bought something but didn't have enough
money on me to pay for it."
She
gave me the money, and I went running to the bakery and handed it to
mister Apostoly. He was surprised when I told him that I had taken a
chocolate bar along with the bread, but had forgotten to pay for it.
--"Well,
I was indeed surprised, because I knew you to be a mischievous brat,
dear Dimitri. But, as soon as you made that move, I told myself I shouldn't
condemn anyone, because you never know what kind of heart is inside
each person. From that moment on, I became very fond of you", the baker
explained.
The
fool's last letter...
He
then pulled young Dimitri towards him and gave him a kiss, while patting
him on the head. His mother Polyxeni and her husband Panagiotis
who were witnessing the scene were obviously emotionally charged.
Mrs Polyxeni then decided to say her part.
--"To
us, Crazy John was the support of our family. He was the one who contributed
towards us making the about-face towards Christ. Our life changed, and
he made us partakers of the miracle of salvation. He brought blessings
into our home...
To
me, Panagiotis and my children, he was a friend and a brother. As his
brothers therefore, we decided earlier on to suggest to you all that
we get together next Saturday at our parish to perform the 3rd day memorial
service and then you all come to our place to eat with us, to honour
his memory."
Mrs
Polyxeni's suggestion was welcomed by all of us. Mister Anastasy in
fact spoke up again, to add that it would be good to continue the impromptu
discussion that had begun in the Memorial Service Hall of the Cemetery,
so he proposed to all the people who were present to write down their
own experiences with Crazy John during their contacts with him.
Father
Dimitri who happened to find himself among the mourners, addressed Mrs
Polyxeni and said:
--"I
never got to meet the departed brother John - that fool for Christ -
however, I would like to ask you, if possible and if you have no objections,
if I could come to your house and listen to this blessed expose of miraculous
events."
--"It
would be a pleasure, father; it would in fact be an honour if
you could come", Panagiotis replied.
So,
everyone was looking eagerly forward to the following Saturday. Mister
Apostoly the baker had arranged for the ceremonial wheat grain offering
and all the other necessities for the memorial service. He had even
notified the priests of the Sacred Temple that after the Divine Liturgy,
there would be a memorial trisaghion for Crazy John. More than anyone
else, it was mister Apostoly who was looking forward to that day.
Besides,
he had every reason to look forward to this gathering, because on the
day after Crazy John's departure, he had received a registered letter.
He was very surprised to see that the sender was Crazy John himself,
who had arrange to send the letter on the eve of his death.
The
ever-curious grocer, mister Pandelis, was begging Anastasy in vain to
tell him what the contents of the letter were. He kept the contents
a doubly-locked secret and wouldn't divulge anything.
--"Ha!
Anastasy, I know why don't want to tell me what the letter says. The
poor deceased fool has probably written all sorts of silly things in
there and you are too embarrassed to read them" he said slyly, in the
hope of forcing him to speak.
Who
was the fool finally? Him, or us?
--"Pandeli,
I will tell you one thing: After I read the letter, I asked myself who
was crazy - him, or all of us? We'll talk about the rest in due course,
don't you worry", mister Anastasy said. But the news of the letter
spread from mouth to mouth, throughout the neighborhood. And as was
to be expected, it had stirred up everyone's curiosity.
Thus,
on Saturday morning the sacred temple of the parish filled up with such
a large congregation that the priest was puzzled. "This is the first
time that I've seen so many people at a memorial service" he whispered
to the sacristan. But he replied:
--"The
fool - Crazy John - mustered them father"
--"But
I can see strangers in the crowd also. They must have been his relatives"
he muttered to himself, as he walked towards the Holy Altar.
Father
Vassily had been serving at that parish for 28 years and he knew most
of the parishioners very well. Young Dimitri who was assisting in the
Holy Sanctum together with his brother Paul, said to father Vassily
that mister Anastasy was asking for his permission (albeit permissible)
to say a few words after the trisaghion.
--"Gladly,
gladly, my little Dimitri. Let mister Anastasy speak" he said and nodded
affirmatively, looking towards the podium where mister Anastasy was
standing. As he himself admitted later to mister Anastasy, he too was
curious to learn the reason that the Church filled up as though it were
a Sunday.
So,
towards the end, and before the closing prayers, father Vassily performed
the trisaghion. The entire congregation was crying at the reciting of
the words "My Lord, give rest to the soul of Your reposed servant John....."
that father Vassily was chanting. He then nodded to mister Anastasy
to approach and say what he wanted.
He
then in turn stood next to the Sanctum entrance and said:
--Reverend
father Vassily, you must be wondering what the reason is for this blessed
gathering. You must be wondering why the entire neighborhood -but also
other Christians, not from here- have come to honour the memory of our
brother John, who was known to all of us as "Crazy John". Even the shop
owners left their shops closed in order to come to the church from early
this morning, to participate in the divine service, and not just to
come for the trisaghion memorial service - as many people erroneously
are accustomed to doing...
Today,
father Vassily, we have gathered here to honour a saint, a humble man
whom the Lord had bounteously blessed with a holy spirit. A man just
like us, who concealed under the cloak of a fool all the virtues that
Christ had offered him. John was a "Fool for Christ", who cared
for his fellow-man day and night, selflessly. He approached every person
with love. He supervised the neighborhood like a Bishop and a guardian
of our Orthodoxy and would bring back souls - with his supposed madness
- to our almost entirely forgotten nowadays Lord - Jesus Christ.
There
are many of us who are lucky, because we were blessed enough -albeit
unworthily- to meet and get to know a saint of God in our everyday lives.
My words are too poor to adequately describe the life of our brother
John. In fact I regard myself as unworthy, after having read the letter
that I received the day after his death, which had been sent by the
deceased.
As
he mentioned in his letter, John had been advised of a miraculous event
by the Blessed Baptist a week before his passing away, that is, to prepare
himself for his exit from this world. As far as I knew, he was not suffering
from any sickness, nor had anyone suspected anything from his behaviour.
On the contrary, in the last days of his life he arranged to leave quite
a significant trust for our neighborhood. He made arrangements for all
of us.
In
his letter, John gives advice and exhortations to each and every one
of us by name, personally, that we must be hooked on our Christ and
to study the righteousness of God. I will read you the letter in detail",
said mister Anastasy, and pulled out the letter from his coat pocket.
However, he was overwhelmed by his tears and was unable to say a word.
Tears welled up in everyone else's eyes also.
Father
Vassily then intervened, saying:
--"Dear
Christians. I have known the deceased for more than forty years. But,
possibly because of my sinfulness, I was not able to diagnose John's
holiness. Listening to mister Anastasy earlier, certain events came
to mind, with Crazy John as the central character. It is only
now that I am made aware of those events and can perceive them as miraculous
acts.
I
remember how one Sunday morning at daybreak when I unlocked the temple
I found Crazy John kneeling in front of the icon of Christ.
--"How
did you get in, you fool?" I asked him.
--"Well,
dear father, yesterday evening during Vespers I completely lost track
of time and the sacristan locked me in."
--"And
what was the soliloquy you were muttering in front of Christ's icon?"
I asked him
--"I
was just singing a song father, to pass the time" he replied.
--"Just
be more careful, because next time I will call the police." I
have to confess that I reprimanded him very severely..."Dear God, forgive
me..." father Vassily murmured. "I am only just realizing why his face
was shining like the sun.... And he went and took his usual place next
to the main entrance of the church like he always did, and would sit
and beg."
He
begged for alms, to give them to others...
There
are poor and unemployed who ask for help every day, but nobody can ever
know what diamonds and holy souls are hidden behind every beggar that
we meet.
He
then went on to describe the incident with the money that he gathered
from begging and deposited inside the charity box, which we described
earlier on. I have many things to tell you, dear Christians, because
I believe that the riddle has now been solved, and for this, I must
thank mister Anastasy. I will narrate on ly one incident, and then I
will let mister Anastasy take over.
"One
afternoon, Crazy John was standing in front of the icon of the Holy
Mother. I was in the office. I could hear him talking and I could hear
-without seeing- that he was conversing with a woman, I paid no attention.
When I came out of the office, I could see only Crazy John, and there
was nobody else inside the church. The sacristan was away on an errand.
Crazy John approached me and, after prostrating himself before me as
he usually did, he said:
--'Father,
you should go to Mrs.Stamata after Vespers. She is waiting for you to
give her Holy Communion because her hours are numbered and she may not
make it through tonight."
--"And
how do you know this?" I asked him.
--"A
woman told me, a while ago", Crazy John replied.
--"And
why on earth didn't she come and inform me?"
--"Well,
she must have thought I was the sacristan" he said, and departed immediately
afterwards.
I
have a clear view of the main entrance of the church from my office,
and I didn't see any woman entering. But even so, I didn't give it much
thought...
After
Vespers, I went to Stamata's house. Her daughter was astounded when
she saw me, as she was planning to come and notify me the next day so
that her mother can receive Holy Communion, and not oblige me to go
there in the night. I entered Stamata's room and gave her Holy Communion.
She thanked me, and held my hand for a short while, then said to me,
breathing with difficulty:
--"Father,
please look after my daughter and my grandchildren."
Her
daughter was divorced and she was raising her two children on her own.
As I was leaving, she asked me who had notified me. I replied that it
was the woman whom she had sent to church, who told Crazy John. She
looked puzzled.
That
evening, two hours after receiving Holy Communion, a little before 10pm,
Stamata departed for the Lord. Next to her at that moment were her daughter,
her two grandchildren and Crazy John, who was reading Psalms from the
Book of Psalms. I was told this by the late Stamata's daughter,
who is here and can verify it.
Then
Maria (that was the name of the daughter of the deceased Stamata) sprang
up suddenly and said:
--"Tell
them father Vassily about the envelope with the money also, which I
thought you had left there and for which I had thanked you."
--"Yes"
said father Vassily, "Maria had indeed found an envelope on a chair
in the room, which contained 100.000 drachmas. She thought I had forgotten
it there and she came to give it back to me. But I had no idea about
the envelope."
--"But
father, you and Crazy John were the only ones who came into our house.
when I asked Crazy John, he said that the Holy Mother had sent the money
for the funeral expenses, because you are poor."
"The
Holy Mother does that sort of thing" he used to say.
--"I
didn't take him too seriously and I was convinced that you had sent
him and were trying to hide the truth" said Maria.
--"No,
child, I would have told you", said father Vassily.....
Translation:
K.N.
Source: www..oodegr.com