Is there something like mount athos for women? A holy place?

[KisKatte]

Halo everybody,

I watched a lot of flims about the mount athos and still will continue. I remember darkly..... when I read something on the internet about a holy place for women, similar to mount athos, though surely there would be not only women. But now when I search on google there only appears always the same question in google search: why are women not allowed on mount athos.... boring!!! I really do not know if I dreamed it, was this a false remembering? Or is it dangerous for the women to step on the internet?

Not that I never visited a holy place. There was a time when God told me I will be on the island corfu, visiting the church of spyridon trimifunsky, his grave. I did not believe this vision. Soon my mother told us to buy tickets for Greece on the sea for holiday for me and my sister. We went to the shop and bought a five star hotel we thought was good, not regarding the place where the holiday will be. The vision I forgot(I remembered later how I led in bed and mocked myself about this vision, sure me unhealthy unwealthy person will visit such a place oh come on God do not make jokes of me, how will i ever get there?). But then something strange happened, we were unsure wether the hotel was good and so I started praying to Spyridon Trimifunsky who is known for helping with appartment problems. Soon my father told me that I will be only 30 km with bus away from the City Corfu and that I can visit Spyridon there and bring him an Icon. Under hard health circumstances I traveled really to the city corfu and brought him an Icon, wich I put on the body of Spyridon, like the people say to do so so the Icon will get his energy? Funny was that during my prayers in front of his icon in front of the church, the woman behind me wanted to stop my prayers. Not that I had written a long prayer, it was short for my family and everybody I know. But it seems like it is not usual on this particular island to ask the Holy Spyridon about anything, it is assumed he knows anyway? It was funny. Or was it just a wrong behaviour from her? Spyridon was seen to still go around the island. ....

 

[KisKatte]

Oh okay. Let me explain it to you how I perceive this. I was long time wondering why prayer to holy saints can help us. First of all maybe most common it the knowledge that if you do not think of any person more important than yourself, and only God is your ruler, you can easily get ill with proud. I mean the illness proud of the soul. And it is said somewhere proudness can lead to falling apart from the right way, even from God and can lead you to revolution against God, can lead you to sin and is itself a severe sin. There should always be somebody whom you take "more serious" than yourself, even if it is a holy deceased person you choose. Second these holy people are in heaven and to teach us humility we can pray to them. They are used to pray to God, maybe even talk to God directly in heaven there and God easily wants to see them happy and fullfill their will. Also there will be only ONE community of holy people someday in heaven. By honoring the holy saints we acknowledge this community, we want someday to be part of. There is no separation. If we want to be in heaven we have to join this community. To accept them all. We do not worship them like God, we honor them and ask for their guidance through their experience. We do not worship them like idols.

I hope a priest can answer better, this is really the first time I have to protect an orthodox behaviour. I am not sure if I do this well ). Priests, look into this thread

 

[ArmyMatt]

Halo everybody,

I watched a lot of flims about the mount athos and still will continue. I remember darkly..... when I read something on the internet about a holy place for women, similar to mount athos, though surely there would be not only women. But now when I search on google there only appears always the same question in google search: why are women not allowed on mount athos.... boring!!! I really do not know if I dreamed it, was this a false remembering? Or is it dangerous for the women to step on the internet?

Not that I never visited a holy place. There was a time when God told me I will be on the island corfu, visiting the church of spyridon trimifunsky, his grave. I did not believe this vision. Soon my mother told us to buy tickets for Greece on the sea for holiday for me and my sister. We went to the shop and bought a five star hotel we thought was good, not regarding the place where the holiday will be. The vision I forgot(I remembered later how I led in bed and mocked myself about this vision, sure me unhealthy unwealthy person will visit such a place oh come on God do not make jokes of me, how will i ever get there?). But then something strange happened, we were unsure wether the hotel was good and so I started praying to Spyridon Trimifunsky who is known for helping with appartment problems. Soon my father told me that I will be only 30 km with bus away from the City Corfu and that I can visit Spyridon there and bring him an Icon. Under hard health circumstances I traveled really to the city corfu and brought him an Icon, wich I put on the body of Spyridon, like the people say to do so so the Icon will get his energy? Funny was that during my prayers in front of his icon in front of the church, the woman behind me wanted to stop my prayers. Not that I had written a long prayer, it was short for my family and everybody I know. But it seems like it is not usual on this particular island to ask the Holy Spyridon about anything, it is assumed he knows anyway? It was funny. Or was it just a wrong behaviour from her? Spyridon was seen to still go around the island. ....

I believe there is one across the sea from Athos, which is for women.

 

[KisKatte]

Did I explain it well above why we pray to saints? Father?

 

[KisKatte]

Never heard of that a community can be led by elders? Or that christians pray for each other? If your sister can pray for you, why shouldn't a holy person pray for you? If your sister prays for you, does this mean you worship her? Think a little It is logic!

 

[KisKatte]

My strongest belief on this part is that God teaches us humility through letting us asking for help from this holy persons in heaven. If we do not accept their lifes they lived, we are not really accepting human ways with God.

 

[ChristServant]

My strongest belief on this part is that God teaches us humility through letting us asking for help from this holy persons in heaven. If we do not accept their lifes they lived, we are not really accepting human ways with God.

I believe all these things you're speaking of comes through Christ for He is the Way, the Truth and the Life.


Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him

We no longer look to be served. We look to serve and give our lives for others. No longer fight for privilege, influence and status. We esteem others better than ourselves and put their interests above our own.

Peace be with all those in the body of Christ

 

[Pavel Mosko]

If your EO it seems like their should be plenty of places to visit. My ex-wife when we were engaged and she lived in Northern Pennsylvania and seriously long distance dating, a Orthodox deacon in the Antiochian Church (Niagara Falls area) recommended a convent that was a reasonable drive away to a short little spiritual retreat (no more than a week, probably about 4-5 days). I seem to recall it was for nominal fee (assuming they had room), and any free donations a person might add to that. And the time we were not even EO, I joined the Coptic Church the previous year and she was starting to read Orthodox books and develop an interest in Sacraments and liturgy etc. So if their a few places that take in non-EO I'm sure their lots of places that do that for Communicant members or fellow EO. Even the Coptic Church has a number of places like that in the states for various kinds of retreats etc.

 

[All4Christ]

@ChristServant I came from a Pentecostal background, and I remember how strange it was to hear about praying to saints - even heretical. Others here have explained about it already, but I would like to point out that when we say pray to saints, it is more along the lines of Old English “Pray”, where it means ask, entreat, make a request, etc. We are asking for intercession - for prayer, similar to how I ask my family to intercede (pray) for me (like 1 Timothy 2:1-6).

After I understood to meaning, I realized that the biggest question is not whether it is or is not ok for us to ask fellow Christians to pray for us (which I did already with people here on Earth) - but rather is whether the saints could or could not hear us after they left this life. That is a separate question, but it was a much less “heretical” concept to me than praying (in the sense of worship / prayer to God) to saints. We are not worshipping saints or invoking their spirits, etc. All worship (latriea λατρεία) belongs to God alone.

For quite some time, I wouldn’t say “pray to [saint’s name], and would say request the intercession and prayers of [saint’s name]. It still sometimes helps for me to say it that way.

 

[ChristServant]

@ChristServant I came from a Pentecostal background, and I remember how strange it was to hear about praying to saints - even heretical. Others here have explained about it already, but I would like to point out that when we say pray to saints, it is more along the lines of Old English “Pray”, where it means ask, entreat, make a request, etc. We are asking for intercession - for prayer, similar to how I ask my family to intercede (pray) for me (like 1 Timothy 2:1-6).

After I understood to meaning, I realized that the biggest question is not whether it is or is not ok for us to ask fellow Christians to pray for us (which I did already with people here on Earth) - but rather is whether the saints could or could not hear us after they left this life. That is a separate question, but it was a much less “heretical” concept to me than praying (in the sense of worship / prayer to God) to saints. We are not worshipping saints or invoking their spirits, etc. All worship (latriea λατρεία) belongs to God alone.

For quite some time, I wouldn’t say “pray to [saint’s name], and would say request the intercession and prayers of [saint’s name]. It still sometimes helps for me to say it that way.

Thank you for your input and explaination. We are always learning.




Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him

We no longer look to be served. We look to serve and give our lives for others. No longer fight for privilege, influence and status. We esteem others better than ourselves and put their interests above our own.

Peace be with all those in the body of Christ

 

[All4Christ]

Thank you for your input and explaination. We are always learning.




Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him

We no longer look to be served. We look to serve and give our lives for others. No longer fight for privilege, influence and status. We esteem others better than ourselves and put their interests above our own.

Peace be with all those in the body of Christ

Happy to share.

I just wanted to clarify since it was confusing to me and since I didn’t understand for a long time.

Peace and blessings to you as well.

 

[WanderedHome]

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him

We no longer look to be served. We look to serve and give our lives for others. No longer fight for privilege, influence and status. We esteem others better than ourselves and put their interests above our own.

Amen. This from Holy Scripture. We wholeheartedly agree.... unless you are hinting or trying to say something more? If that is the case, be direct... come out with it.

 

[ChristServant]

Amen. This from Holy Scripture. We wholeheartedly agree.... unless you are hinting or trying to say something more? If that is the case, be direct... come out with it.

No, there is no alternative motive in these words, just GOD's truth which I try to live by as much as I can in this world. My walk with GOD continues with all the trials, tribulations and hardships encountered.

Peace be with you

 

[Justin-H.S.]

I don’t know. I’ve never heard of a female equivalent to Mt. Athos. Have you tried looking for convents in your area?

 

[KisKatte]

I don’t know. I’ve never heard of a female equivalent to Mt. Athos. Have you tried looking for convents in your area?

We have a female monastery near our town. Just do not want to say something wrong about it. But I was once there and something disturbed me really. I got really nearly no food to eat and a female neighbour of the monastery gave me all I need during the two weeks. It was God's grace she picked me up on the street, hungry. Funny, heh? The chief of the monastery told the other nuns that I am ill and I am here for holiday but they seemed to have problems to accept that and got easly maybe disturbed that I only worked and the end of the two weeks of my stay there. I lost trust besides among other things to be there. I more often visit the man monks monastery. Also I am not healthy and living in the female monastery, you get not an own room, there are visitors coming and going and the rules are very severe. I did not feel comfortable there and this is not a classical holy place, I just wondered because I feel attached to athos, peace came in my soul after looking those films, if there is a holy place I can visit for women.

 

[KisKatte]

Once in my life I had nothing to eat. And in the man monks monastery I could eat EVERYTHING they had during a whole week, come every day, and every time a different monk treated me like a guest and gave me all I need, the bishop ordained that. And sit by me during me eating and talked to me. It was through their prayers of these monks that I have nice times in life, too. The temple is always open (not like in the female monastery) and so on. I am really ill and because of medicine I am always hungry and need food and often tired and really "broken". But in the female monastery there seemed to be problems to simply accept that. Like if the nuns, speculation(!) were not strong enough in their faith to be not disturbed by me. It is completely different in tha man monks monastery, where a monk(!) lives a MONK LIFE DESPITE he has THE SAME illness as me. Grace be upon him for this is a hard cross! Even the bishop said to me, when I once asked him to receive, to try monastery out again, to live in obeing for some days, how do you want to be in the female monastery? How will you be doing there? Stay here! LOL

 

[Justin-H.S.]

There is a film on Vimeo called “New Men.” It is about the monastery three hours from where I live. It’s peaceful there, too.

They have women over for liturgy. They also have a convent nearby for the wives of pilgrims.

 

[KisKatte]

Thanks. I will have a look at it. But united states is really far away. I more search for something in europe )

 

[Justin-H.S.]

Thanks. I will have a look at it. But united states is really far away. I more search for something in europe )

Oops. My apologies. I can’t see your location from my phone. Well, I hope you find what you’re looking for closer to you.

 

[OrthodoxWanderer]

I've never been to Greece, but a friend who lives in Thessaloniki told me about this place

SAINT JOHN THE THEOLOGIAN AND SAINT PAISIOS MONASTERY – SOUROTI, THESSALONIKI - Μοναστήρια της Ελλάδος

It is no Mt. Athos, but you'll be near the grave and grace of an Athonite saint. Worth a look, maybe?