It is also miraculous as it is indicated in the first edition of the book which circulated in Greece[1] how different, even contradictory his response was to the same questions depending on who asked them. I cannot but bring up, finishing up this witness of mine, my experiences on certain subjects which are touched upon. These are subjects about which I was given completely different advice from Pappouli. And I believe that this is indispensible so that the impression will not be created that whatever the Elder said to one of his spiritual children also applies to everyone the same way.

Those issues are women’s dressing and certain other things. Therefore, in this way the Elder did not give priority to the proper dress of women and especially to pants that women wear which is so prevalent in our time and is repeatedly discussed by us. He would say to us that the vesting of the soul is that which measures our being and not our outward appearance. In fact, he fixed his attention on certain fanatic view points and with gentleness censored people, either priests or other lay people who insisted on an exaggerated conservative dress code that applied to women[2] and to all people of another age.

Let it be noted that as much as my wife and other women in my circle of friends are concerned they came very often dressed in pants, Pappouli never made any remarks about this and in relevant questions we received the previous answers.[3]

I do not know in all the things that I have put forth if I have added something worthwhile in all the precious testimonies of so many others which are included in the first edition of the book circulating in Greece. I hope the answer is yes. But in every way it is an impossible task for someone to hear conversations over many years and to print them in a few pages. This is more difficult when one is called upon to deliver pieces of wisdom from these conversations. I hope that I have selected some representative examples of the greatness of the Elder. [4]

PUBLISHER’S NOTES

[1] He means the book by Klitos Ioannides, Elder Porphyrios, Testi­monies and Experiences which is circulating in the 9th edition. On page 11 it is emphasized that every opinion of the Elder encountered a specific person for a specific situation. If he had a headache and the Elder said to him to take an aspirin, this does not mean that everyone who has a headache must take and aspirin.

[2] A note from the producer of this edition. Both Deuteronomy (a book of the Old Testament) and the 62nd Canon of the 6th Ecumenical Council, which are mentioned on the 108th page, footnote 1, of the book by Klitos Ioannidis, forbid men from wearing women’s clothing and women from wearing men’s clothing. They do not indicate though which is men’s clothing and which is women’s clothing in specific locations and eras. The Scottish men wear the well-known quilts and the mountain Greeks wore the well-known Greek quilts. In Lapland and in other areas women wore pantaloons (large trousers). In India men wore (some still do) the ancient Greek garment (Himation)- and the Bedouins the kelempia (a long robe) which are like whatever women wore and still wear. The issue therefore is not whether or not women are allowed to wear pants but if in their era and in their country what they wear is considered female dress or manly dress. That is determined by the prevalent practice.

It is a completely different issue if pants are a proper dress for women. This is because there are pants which are proper (healthfully designed) and others that are not proper. As there could be proper pants (and proper skirts) and provocative pants or improper and provocative skirts or and also indecent skirts.

If then in one society and a specific era, like ours, where the pants are thought of (acceptable) as a manly dress then it is good for girls not to wear pants. This is so in order not to change their character so they become tomboys, as Elder Porphyrios recommended (see Klitos Ioannidis, “Elder Porphyrios, Testimonies and Experiences,” page 109). But on the other hand, when women pick olives or cherries, they wear pants for reasons of modesty. From there on it is one’s personal responsibility what to wear. My personal opinion is that pants tend to be understood equally as manly or female clothing by contemporary young people but it has not been accepted as female clothing by various levels of society. The greatest majority of society consider it male clothing. It is something else when tight pants are unhealthy for the boys and even more so for the girls. (G. P. A.)

[3] A note from the producer of this edition. Confronting those visitors does not mean that the Elder laid down a rule that their clothing was proper. The Elder was proper in overseeing their salvation and not in the keeping a local code of law.

[4] A note from the producer of this edition. An analytical explanation for the reasons for which the Elder gave many times different or antithetical directives on the same question when he was asked by another person who functioned in different circumstances from the previous one, is given at the end of this book. (See the Section: Different circumstances justify different advice and especially in the chapter, The Truth is Alive, page 344). From this development it is clearly shown that it is a mistake for us to separate the answer from the circumstances on which it was given and for us to make it a rule for other circumstances which function in different instances. It is for this reason that it is a big mistake which is said by some mothers without thinking, that the Elder said four children or the Elder said five children, etc. It is evident that the Elder could have said to one woman four children and to another five or ten, etc because that is all that she could endure psychosomatically. But he did not say neither could he say that this is for all women. He was not so inconsiderate to say such a meaningless thing.

A characteristic denial of the above wrong understanding makes up the following text with the title “Remembrances of a Mother” which testifies that the Elder told her that she would have many children and she had eight. She writes how the Elder rejoiced when he saw families with many children. It is not right for them who decided to have fewer children to claim that the Elder recommended the number of children that they had. And even if he had said this, this was the proper response for their personal solution and not as a general rule.

From the book “Miraculous Occurences and Counsels of Elder Porphyrios“

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Πληροφορίες γιὰ τοὺς τίτλους τῶν Ἐκδόσεων τοῦ Ἱεροῦ Ἡσυχαστηρίου μπορεῖτε νὰ βρεῖτε ἐδῶ