Abbot Ephraim was a simple man of the people, as he often said himself, yet with his hesychastic upbringing and inner work, he reached high spiritual levels.
His psychophysical entirety, his being, was filled with the fullness of divinity that dwelled within him, and thus he managed to become a participant in the uncreated glory of God from this life.
Father Ephraim was granted the gift of a clear mental vision of God; "having known God, rather let Him be known by you" (Gal. 4:9).
Through obedience, practice, and tranquility, with abundant tears, having purified his senses, with a serene mind and a clean heart, he received grace and a light of knowledge.
The holy elder was a product of the Holy Spirit. He achieved a deep personal experiential encounter with the Lord in the grace of the Holy Spirit.
Thus he reached high levels of theosis. He lived in this way within the world of holy stillness in the name and person of Christ.
He had a "pure" prayer, and for this reason, he was a theologian, according to the teaching saying of Saint Silouan: "If you are a theologian, you pray purely. If you pray purely, then you are a theologian."
Also, Elder Ephraim had "true" prayer. He had a type of prayer that holy Neilos the Ascetic considered a prerequisite for real Theology: "If you are a theologian, you will truly pray. And if you truly pray, you are indeed a theologian."
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