5 Great Questions: Opening to Saint Gavrilia

Gathering Together Builds Intimacy and Faith

{ Saint Gavrilia’s reliquary, much loved and venerated on Leros Island, Greece }

Walking your Dog

When we begin to love a saint, as with a favorite teacher, a lover or a friend, there are certain aspects that our hearts recognize and pull us toward.

It’s kind of like taking your dog on a walk, and meeting another friendly dog on the trail, you are pulled strongly by the leash toward this new friend. In the case of saints, the leash is invisible, but reliable.

Holy Influencers

As a former protestant, it has taken me years to build personal relationships with Orthodox saints. Over time, I have grown to know and love some of the incredible personalities in our panoply of holy ‘Influencers’.

Saint John, Saint Anna, Saint Seraphim, Saint Amphilochios, Eldress Macrina, and of course, the Panagia (Theotokos) Mother of God. But it is Saint Gavrilia who has pierced my heart in a way that has been life changing.

Saint Gavrilia lived her wild life as a holy adventure! Traveling throughout India, Palestine, Europe, the Middle East and North America ministering to people’s minds, bodies and souls along the way, with no money or hesitation.

Saint Gavrilia approached each person she met with pure Love and no judgement. To her, everyone was 100%: a precious Child of God, beloved.

I travel to Leros a couple times a year now, a day’s boat trip from Patmos, to honor Saint Gavrilia. My heart is drawn to visit her, and her spiritual daughter, Aspasia. Both are now dears friends, just on different sides of that fine illusory line of life … death …. and life eternal.

Sharing our spiritual lives

This Sunday I will be speaking on The Language of God is Silence, with a Regional gathering of Axia women who are based in the Pacific Northwest. I love inviting women to share their spiritual lives with their sisters in conversation.

Speaking with a close group of like-minded seekers is a rare and wonderful occasion. How often does someone ask you to share what is percolating deep in your soul? What can we glean from hearing tidbits of our sisters’ and brothers’ prayer lives? Why is it so uncommon to delve into the sanctuary of personal, spiritual growth?

As part of my own preparation to lead contemplative prayer pilgrimages to Greece and here in the United States, I realized that I should talk less and allow more time for each pilgrim to talk more. This, in line with Saint John the Baptist’s wise words: “He must increase, but I must decrease.”

Ask questions like Jesus

One day I did a little research, then bought 3 books about leading group discussions. My favorite of these, How to Ask Great Questions¹, showed me how to really dig in to the heart level, by guiding discussions, building relationships, and deepening faith. Author Karen Lee-Thorp spoke of how Jesus could propel people into new ways of thinking, with simple, powerful questions, like:

“Who do you say that I am?”

“Do you want to get well?”

“What do you want me to do for you?”

Saint Gavrilia must have been like that too. People, young and old, would pour into her days, taking turns to tell her their serious problems, ask her advice on what to do next, or simply sit with her and absorb the joy and acceptance of her endless love.

Gathering together with a close friend over tea … in a small living room group for stillness and prayer … or on zoom from faraway places, are all intimate ways to build faith, when approached with intention.

In our upcoming Axia Women’s Pacific Northwest gathering, in our next ‘Saint Gavrilia’s Circle of Light’ event on July 11, or wherever people like you and me choose to gather with other seekers of spiritual growth, God is in our midst.

Questions to approach Saint Gavrilia

In these times together, we can learn from saints and each other, as we explore questions close to our hearts. Even if you can’t attend just now, feel free to dive in, and ask yourself or consider in your journaling life:

“What does the ‘Ascetic of Love’ mean to you?”

“In what ways do you identify with Saint Gavrilia?”

“Tell about one of your favorite stories from her life.”

“What is one way Saint Gavrilia has influenced your life?”

“What are your favorite words or phrases that she uses?”

If you haven’t read the new editions of the The Ascetic of Love² and the Light and Joy of Saint Gavrilia³, you are truly missing a rare and wonderful new treasure in the world of faith. You can get them at SeaSalt Books, or on my Etsy store. And you don’t need to travel or zoom or leave your cozy room, if you don’t want to!

+++

Q: See above ;

Spark: Pull out that dusty journal and enjoy your own private pilgrimage.

Resources:

1. Karen Lee-Thorp, How to Ask Great Questions: Guide Discussion, Build Relationships, Deepen Faith (NavPress, 1998)

2. Nun Gavrilia Georgiou, The Ascetic of Love: The Life and Teachings of Saint Gavrilia, trans. Helen Anthony (Sea Salt Books, 2025).

3. Gerondissa Philothei, The Light and Joy of Saint Gavrilia. (Sea Salt Books, 2025).