Saint Païsios Gave him a Knife to Take Revenge With!

There was a man from Halkidiki whose son was killed on an air training mission. The co-pilot survived.

The father was inconsolable and, in his pain, decided that the co-pilot was responsible. He planned revenge. He learned the man’s address, his movements and made plans to kill him.

Some acquaintances of his persuaded him to go and see the Elder [Saint Païsios the Athonite] and to tell him about his pain.

As soon as they arrived at the ‘Panagouda’ [the saint’s kelli], in about 1991 it was, the Elder had the man sit down next to him and said: ‘Don’t worry. Your son’s fine where he is’.

These words and the Elder’s gift of perception which reinforced them acted like balm for the father’s heart. His pain melted and the Elder gained his confidence.

But revenge is revenge. So he took the Elder to one side and confessed his plan. In the end, he declared emphatically: ‘There’s no way round it, Elder. I’m definitely going to kill him’.

‘That’s fine, son. But don’t kill him; slaughter him’.

He went inside his kelli and soon returned with a large, serrated knife.

‘Here you are. Take this. Slaughter him with this’, he said, giving the man the knife.

That was it. As soon as the man took hold of the knife, something happened inside him and the absurd passion vanished.

He calmed down. He realized how foolish he’d been, thanked the Elder and left, in tears.