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| 'Starets' |
A starets is defined as an
elder of a Russian Orthodox monastery whose role is to act as an adviser and
teacher to others...elders or spiritual fathers are charismatic spiritual individuals
whose holy wisdom comes from God as obtained from an ascetic experience...it is
believed that through this difficult ascetic struggle, which includes prayer
and often includes seclusion or withdrawal, the Holy Spirit as it is known bestows
special gifts onto the elder…these gifts include the ability to heal, the
ability to perform prophesy, and most importantly, to give spiritual guidance
and direction to those who seek it...elders should be an inspiration to
believers and an example of saintly virtue, a steadfast faith, and an example
of spiritual peace…Grigori Rasputin claimed to be a starets…one who was a mere
pilgrim from Siberia…he claimed to have visions and his powerful personality
and charisma often overcame any doubt that a person might have had prior to
speaking to him…in fact, the tsar Nicholas II wrote down the event in his personal
diary, stating that he and his wife Alexandra had "made the acquaintance
of a man of God, Grigory, from Tobolsk province”…later with the help of reports
compiled by the police, Nicholas began to see through Rasputin’s façade but his
wife was steadfast in her belief in him to a fault…and all say that it
contributed to the Tsar’s downfall…it is said by some that he did have the
power to heal…others doubt this ability…Rasputin gave spiritual guidance but it
was often done with Rasputin’s own benefit in mind…it has been documented that
he was no man of saintly virtue or an example of someone with spiritual
peace…his life, particularly in later years was one of turmoil.
