The Symbolic Representation of the Church #
To make it even clearer for you how the right and saving confession of faith represents the Church of Christ, and how believing people abide within it, let us present the simplest and most visual representation of the Church. I read in a book titled Lessons and Examples of Christian Faith, which collects excerpts from various books. Here is what is written in it:
“It is impossible to cross the sea without a ship,” says Saint John Chrysostom. “And this ship signifies the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church. The master of this spiritual ship is Almighty God the Father; the helmsman is His only-begotten Son; the favorable wind is the Holy Spirit; the subordinate rulers of the ship—the Church—are the apostles and their successors, the pastors and teachers of the Church; those sailing on this ship are all true-believing Christians; the hull and foundation of this ship are the right faith in the Holy Trinity; the sides of the ship, its bow, and helm represent the right dogmas of faith, the commandments of God, the Church’s traditions, apostolic rules, the ecumenical councils, and church statutes in general; the mast is the holy cross of Christ, which strengthens and establishes all within the Church; the sails are love; the anchor is hope. This spiritual ship of the Church transports all the true-believing and genuine Christians from various places and lands across the sea of life to the heavenly Jerusalem. Although it is tossed by many winds and waves, it never suffers shipwreck. However many enemies and persecutors have risen against the holy Church, it has never been overcome, for it is established by the word of the Lord: ‘Upon this rock I will build My church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it’” (Matthew 16:18) (Lessons and Examples of Christian Faith, p. 421).
In the book by Blessed Simeon of Thessalonica, there is even an illustration of a ship with many passengers, directed by Christ Himself. Beneath the ship stand many people with various instruments in their hands, striving to harm the ship. Above the illustration is inscribed: “The ship symbolizes the Church, militant and persecuted by heretics; on the earth, kings and rulers of men have gathered, that is, heretics” (see the beginning of his book, following the preface and table of contents). Also, in the Greek Rudder, (Pedalion), we read the following:
To explain the title (Pedalion, which translates to ‘rudder’ or ‘helm’), an illustration is included in the book (the Greek Pedalion) of a ship with many passengers, directed by Christ Himself. This ship, say the publishers of the Pedalion, in the caption under the illustration, symbolizes the catholic Church of Christ: the hull of the ship represents the Orthodox faith in the Holy Trinity; the beams and planks represent the dogmas of faith and traditions; the mast is the cross; the sails are hope and love; the helmsman is Christ; the rowers and shipmen are the apostles, their successors, and all clerics; the passengers are all Orthodox Christians; the sea is present life; the gentle breezes (favorable winds) represent the gracious breath of the Spirit; the winds are temptations; the helm guiding it to the heavenly harbor is this book of divine rules (The Greek Pedalion, by I. Nikolsky, p. 5).
From these descriptions of the Church of Christ, it is clearly visible what role the commandments of God, apostolic teachings, dogmas, and holy traditions play within the Church, and what role believing people who hold and fulfill them play. The Orthodox faith and church traditions constitute the structure of the ship itself, while the believers are like the rulers and passengers on the ship. From this, it is clear that if the ship itself is strong, durable, and undamaged, then even if some passengers or even shipmen are missing, it can sail safely and will not be destroyed or sink. Similarly, in the Church: if the Orthodox faith and holy traditions are intact and unaltered, then even if some members are missing, the Church can safely proceed on its course in this world and fully reach its goal, bringing its children to eternal blessedness, being directed by its Almighty Helmsman—Christ.
If, however, the ship itself is damaged, with a leaky hull or broken sides, beams, and planks, then even if it is filled with many passengers, shipmen, rowers, and rulers, it will inevitably sink, and all who remain on it will go to the bottom. Likewise, with the Church: if the Orthodox faith is corrupted, church dogmas and traditions are distorted, and the teachings of the Gospel and the holy fathers are perverted, then, even if it is filled with countless passengers, shipmen, and rowers, it will inevitably perish, and all within it will go down to the depths of hell.
Now let us consider the Old Believer Church of Christ and see if it has any such damage. No, it reveals no such damage whatsoever. The description of the Church above states that the hull and foundation of the ship-Church are the Orthodox faith in the Holy Trinity, which the Old Believer Church has always preserved, unchanging and uncorrupted; hence, its hull and foundation are strong and undamaged. And what of its sides, or its bow and stern? These are also intact. It states: “the sides of the ship-Church, its bow, and helm, or beams and planks, represent the right dogmas of faith, the commandments of God, the traditions of the Church, apostolic rules, and the decrees of the ecumenical councils and church ordinances in general.” The Old Believer Church has always held these without the slightest alteration or distortion. Thus, in the Old Believer Church, both the hull and foundation and the sides of the ship, the bow, and the helm are perfectly whole and entirely undamaged.
What, then, was its only lack? Only that for a certain time, it lacked some subordinate rulers of the ship, or rowers and shipmen—specifically, bishops. However, it should be noted that not all rowers and shipmen were absent in the Old Believer Church, but only a part of them; there was still a portion, for it is said that the rowers and shipmen represent the apostles, their successors, and all clerics. And the clerics are precisely the priests, deacons, subdeacons, and so forth. These clerics have always existed in the Old Believer Church, even during the absence of bishops. But the most important point is that the ship itself was always intact and undamaged.