This condition lasted for several years. The elder endured unimaginable sufferings. He was in great pain, but he did not show it outwardly. He could no longer lie down on his right side. He fulfilled his monastic rule, but he did it with difficulty and with pain.

Finally, tied with a special medical belt, with a stick, the weak and suffering Elder left Athos, wishing to go to Sinai. But the doctor who examined him in Suroti did not allow him to continue his journey. An urgent operation was required. The Elder's condition was critical, and there was no time to delay.

Thus, despite his reluctance, instead of Sinai, the Elder found himself on the operating table. The pious doctor, Mr. Georgios Bladzas, who operated on the Elder, was worried about the outcome of the operation. Realizing this, the Elder said to him:

"Don't be afraid, Giorgi. I saw how the operation would go... It's going to be all right. I just want to ask you this: do not write "monk Paisios" in your medical history and on the sign at the entrance to the ward, write "Arsenios Eznepidis".

"Why, Geronda?"

– Because if you write "monk Paisius", then people will come, and this will cause you inconvenience.

And indeed, the operation was done, and everything went well – as the Elder saw and predicted. The doctors and nurses never guessed who this monk was. They only said: "This monk is an amazing man! Many monks were in our hospital, but this one is not like the others."

The Elder was hospitalized at the Theagenion Hospital in Thessaloniki on November 12, 1987 (New Style). After undergoing inguinal hernia surgery, he was discharged from the hospital on November 18 of the same year in satisfactory condition.

Not yet having had time to properly recover from the operation and not visiting Mount Athos, the Elder visited the Holy Mount Sinai for a short time.

Богохульный фильм

В 1988 году во всей Греции возникли волнения в связи с показом богохульного фильма Скорцезе «Последнее искушение Христа», снятого по книге писателя Казандзакиса.

Помимо отдельных протестов благочестивых представителей греческого народа, Элладская Православная Церковь приняла решение о проведении 67 ноября 1988 г. (н. ст.) акции всецерковного протеста, принять участие в которой Церковь призвала и Святую Гору Афон.