HOLY SILENCE

Life is hard work. But ask yourself, "What kind of work am I doing? What am I working toward? Am I working at God's will or mine? Will my work bring me closer to Him and the Heavenly Kingdom?" The great saint tells us: "Labor, for nothing will come from you otherwise. If you are not successful in prayer, do not expect success in anything else. It is the root of everything." - St. Theophan the Recluse. "Letter 71." The Spiritual Life and How to be Attuned to It, translated fro

How can you complain about life if you don't pray? How can you be angry with God when you don't speak to Him, or, more importantly, listen to Him? The time has come to elevate your life. The only way to do this is by communicating with God, which is prayer. The great saint tells us: "Prayer is the exaltation of the nous* and the heart to God, so they can give glory and thanks to Him." - St. Theophan the Recluse * For the Orthodox Christian, the nous is often called the eye of

"...I am a worm, and not human; scorned by others, and despised by the people. All who see me mock at me; they make mouths at me, they shake their heads; ‘Commit your cause to the Lord; let him deliver— let him rescue the one in whom he delights!’ "Yet it was you who took me from the womb; you kept me safe on my mother’s breast. On you I was cast from my birth, and since my mother bore me you have been my God. Do not be far from me, for trouble is near and there is no one to

"Do not fritter away the time given you for repentance. Do not rivet your eyes to the earth on which you are a momentary actor, on which you are an exile, on which by the mercy of God you are given a chance to change your mind and offer repentance for the avoidance of hell's eternal prisons and the eternal torment in them. Use the short spell of your pilgrimage on earth to acquire a haven of peace, a blessed refuge in eternity. Plead for the eternal possession by renouncing e

"Our mind is so darkened by the fall that unless we force ourselves to remember death we can completely forget about it. When we forget about death, then we begin to live on earth as if we were immortal, and we sacrifice all our activity to the world without concerning ourselves in the least either about the fearful transition to eternity or about our fate in eternity. Then we boldly and peremptorily override the commandments of Christ; then we commit all the vilest sins; the

"The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit" (John 3:8). To be born from above means we must let down our barriers and allow the Father to continue the creating that He began in us long before our parents knew each other. To be born from above means we must let go our of our sins and allow the Son to continue the redeeming and recapitulating in us tha

"Today the faithful celebrate the feast with joy illumined by your coming, O Mother of God. Beholding your pure image we fervently cry to you: 'Encompass us beneath the precious veil of your protection; deliver us from every form of evil by entreating Christ, your Son and our God that He may save our souls'." - Kontakion (a type of hymn) sung on the Feast of the Protection of the Mother of God. #MotherofGod #God #JesusChrist #soul #Faith #Joy #luminousdarkness #IntercessoryPr

"What we human beings achieve in our lives, is like the conquest of a mountain. The human soul cleanses itself through the effort of climbing up." - A monk from Mount Athos #God #Sin #Sinner #PrayUnceasingly #MeditativePrayer #Podvig #Struggle #Humanity #humility #MountAthos

"The body at work but the thought with God - such should be the state of a true Christian. "We should set in order our inner state as soon as we open our eyes each morning. In this same state of inner order we should keep ourselves all day, and in the evening warm and strengthen it and so fall asleep. It is a good thing to set limits to our personal affections, avoiding particular friendships, and making all our relationships with others of the same nature. When inner prayer

"Do not overlook the fact that health does not depend on food alone, but above all on inner peace. Life in God, cutting us off from worldly turmoil, brings peace to the heart and, through this, keeps the body also in good health. "Activities are not the main thing in life. The most important thing is to have the heart directed and attuned to God." - St. Theophan the Recluse. "Work, Inner and External." The Art of Prayer: An Orthodox Anthology, Timothy Ware, ed., Faber and Fab

"Before Thy Cross we bow down in worship, O Master, and Thy holy Resurrection we glorify (3x). Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, both now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen. And Thy holy Resurrection we glorify. Before Thy Cross we bow down in worship, O Master, and Thy holy Resurrection we glorify." - Hymn from the Elevation of the Holy Cross #Cross #Crucifixion #Father #Son #HolySpirit #HolyTrinity #Resurrection #Worship #MeditativePrayer #

"Of course, every good deed done for Christ's sake gives us the grace of the Holy Spirit, but prayer gives us this grace most of all, for it is always at hand, as an instrument for acquiring the grace of the Spirit. For instance, you would like to go to church, but there is no church or the service is over; you would like to preserve your virginity, but you have not the strength to do so because of your temperament, or because of the violence of the wiles of the enemy which b

"May the Lord help you to be fully alive and to preserve sobriety. But do not forget the chief thing, to unite the attention and mind with your heart, and remain there unceasingly, before the Lord. Every effort that you make in prayer must be directed towards this. Pray to the Lord, that He may give you this blessing: it is the treasure hidden in the field, the pearl beyond price." - St. Theophan the Recluse. "Hidden Treasure." The Art of Prayer: An Orthodox Anthology, Timoth

"The descent of the mind into the heart by the way of breathing is suggested for the case of anyone who does not know where to hold his attention, or where the heart is; but if you know, without this method, how to find the heart, choose your own way there. Only one thing matters - to establish yourself in the heart." - St. Theophan the Recluse. "The Way of Breathing." The Art of Prayer: An Orthodox Anthology, Timothy Ware, ed., Faber and Faber, 1966, p. 198. #Breathing #Atte

"All your inner disorder is due to the dislocation of your powers, the mind and the heart each going their own way. You must unite the mind with the heart: then the tumult of your thoughts will cease, and you will acquire a rudder to guide the ship of your soul, a lever with which to put all your inner world in movement. How can this union be achieved? Make it your habit to pray these words with the mind in the heart: 'Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy upon me'. And

"Be concentrated within yourself and try not to leave the heart, for the Lord is there. Seek this state and work for it. When you have attained it you will realize how precious it is." - St. Theophan the Recluse. "Concentrated within yourself." The Art of Prayer: An Orthodox Anthology, Timothy Ware, ed., Faber and Faber, 1966, p. 194. #StTheophantheRecluse #Lord #God #Concentration #within #luminousdarkness #MeditativePrayer #meditation #secretmeditation #prayer

"Just as thieves do not lightly attack a place where they see royal weapons prepared against them, so he who has grafted prayer into his heart is not easily robbed by the thieves of the mind." - St. Mark the Monk. "Spiritual Thieves." The Art of Prayer: An Orthodox Anthology, Timothy Ware, Editor, Faber & Faber, 1966, p. 201. #Heart #Mind #prayer #PrayeroftheHeart #evil #MeditativePrayer #ContemplativePrayer #Spirituality

Waters flow Clouds float People flit Movement is all around Look beyond Eternity awaits us Be still Find the silence It is found in every hour #Eternity #luminousdarkness #silence #Stillness #ContemplativePrayer #MeditativePrayer

The Transfiguration of Jesus can be found in Matthew 17:1–8, Mark 9:2–8, Luke 9:28–36, John 1:14, and 2 Peter 1:16–18. In these accounts, Jesus and three of his apostles, Peter, James, and John, go to Mt. Tabor. There Jesus radiates light, revealing His divinity, while Moses (the lawgiver) and Elijah (the prophet) appear on either side of Him. Then, "... a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. Then from the cloud came a voice tha

Forgive me, O Lord, for wanting to hear you. Forgive me, O Lord, for desiring to see you. Forgive me, O Lord, for yearning to feel you. Though I know 'I am not worthy to untie your sandal' (cf. John 1:27), how can I stop? My ears give heed to Your whisper. My eyes squint for Your glimmer. My heart casts about for Your warmth. #StJohntheEvangelist #Lord #luminousdarkness #MeditativePrayer #secretmeditation #Forgiveness #Sin #Love #Loneliness