Flame from a flame.

In the first chapter of Apostle Paul’s Epistle to the Romans, we read: "The righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith." This means akin to from flame to flame, and how we should guard this flame! Without it we are like unlit candles. The spark of faith must be preserved. We should watch out for opposing winds, i.e. society that is hostile to faith, books that detract from faith and personal mental rambling.

From faith to faith. Therefore, by succession. We learn faith from the Apostles, from their writings, which perpetually retain within themselves the live source of faith. Here, faith is imparted through the word. We learn from contemporary Saints: here faith is conveyed through their closeness to us, by the flame of the power of their faith. We learn in Church and from the Church, face to face with Her. Thus Apostle John wrote to his spiritual children: "I had many things to write, but I will not with ink and pen write unto thee: but I trust I shall shortly see thee, and we shall speak face to face" (3 John 1:14).

From faith to faith. Over a lengthy string of decades, faith is conveyed from one church generation to another church generation, from fathers — to their children, from Martyrs, Confessors, Saints, Ascetics — to people that have seen them, that learned from them, that lived shortly before us and preserved holy memories of them. This is a holy conveyance — the conveyance of faith. That’s why we especially value our knowledge and directives of Saints who lived in the period shortly before ours: we too can ignite with faith by coming into direct contact with theirs. And so the chain continues: "from faith to faith," from Apostolic times to our contemporary era.