HOLY SILENCE

Between God, in His Divine Essence, and humankind, in all of its sinful banality, there lies an incomprehensible infinitude. Yet, through God's creatively-redeeming and lovingly-sanctifying Divine Energies, humankind also discovers an equally incomprehensible intimacy. In other words, we are not God and never will be. But God loves us and He is nearer to us than we are to ourselves. That is why we should lovingly seek that love with every breath, every thought, every beat of

The happiness we perceive in this life is never permanent. It fleets and it fools. It is most often dependent on the actions of others. And it always seems to rely on various levels of pleasure and prosperity. The only real and lasting happiness is in the Lord. Seek Him and you will find a deeper contentment. As the great saint says: "Do not gravitate to the earth. All is corruptible; only the happiness beyond the grave is eternal, unchanging, true, and this happiness depends

God knows everything about us. But do we know everything about ourselves? We must commit to uncovering the things we have done to harm ourselves and others. When we're honest about these sins and transgressions, we participate in the catharsis necessary for theoria (illumination). "Do not try to conceal yourself, covering your nakedness with a fig leaf and hiding in the bushes from the Lord, who comes to you in the conscience and exposes you. Blame yourself completely, and as

Sadness, difficulty, anger, and fear seem to be a part of life. But from where do these arise? Setting aside illness and death for the moment, these emotional responses flood our minds frequently, if not daily, as expressions of disappointment in ourselves and others. As humans, partly through the fact of sin and partly through the conditioning of our culture, we tend to think we are not capable or good enough. Often, the expectations others put upon us are inappropriate. Som

"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

To truly help others - to intercede for them - one must love. To truly love - to sacrifice for them - one must know God. To know God - to understand His will - one must reach for Christ. To reach for Christ - to go beyond the self - one must contemplate Him. To contemplate Christ - to reside in Him - one must let go. To let go - to enter the Divine cloud - one must trust. To trust - to be bathed in the luminous darkness - one must be sanctified. To be sanctified in the Holy S

"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

"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

"Woe betide us if He finds us overcharged with the cares and sorrows of this life! For who will be able to bear His anger, who will bear the wrath of His countenance? That is why it has been said: "Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation" (Mark 14:38), that is lest you be deprived of the Spirit of God, for watching and prayer brings us His grace." - St. Seraphim of Sarov. "The Aim of the Christian Life." On Acquisition of the Holy Spirit, S.A. Nilus, ed., CreateSpace I

"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

"By Your Nativity, O Most Pure Virgin, Joachim and Anna are freed from barrenness; Adam and Eve, from the corruption of death. And we, your people, freed from the guilt of sin, celebrate and sing to you: The barren woman gives birth to the Theotokos, the nourisher of our life!" - Kontakion (a hymn) from the Feast of the Nativity of the Theotokos taken from “Nativity of the Theotokos.” Orthodox Wiki, https://orthodoxwiki.org/Nativity_of_the_Theotokos. #Theotokos #Virgin #Adama

"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

"The most important work that a spiritual wrestler can do, is to enter within the heart, there to fight Satan; to hate and repel the thoughts that he inspires and to wage war upon him." - St. Makarios of Egypt. "Fighting Satan in the Heart." The Art of Prayer: An Orthodox Anthology, Timothy Ware, Editor, Faber & Faber, 1966, p. 201. #Satan #Evil #PrayerAgainstEvil #PrayeroftheHeart #Sin #Sinner #Renewal #Repentance

Have you started working on letting go of those things, which the world imprints on you? Those things, which are not of God? Examine your thoughts, deeds, desires, and dreams. Are they worldly or other-worldly? Seek the light of the world, not the world itself. #Sin #Sinner #Redemption #Redeemer #luminousdarkness #God

Everyone asks questions of God all the time. Why am I here? What is my purpose? Are you there? Are you listening? Can you help me? Please, will you help me out of this problem? Please, I'm begging you, can you help me? Why is he/she/they doing this to me? Where am I going? Why do I do these things? No matter your question, part of God's answer will always be that you simplify your life. Think about it. How many problems in your life come from the overcomplicated, overwrought

The Sacrament of Confession is a necessary and beautiful part of a contemplative life. It forces us to reflect on ourselves, and our relationship with God and others. More specifically, it gives us the opportunity to encounter God out loud, forcing us out of our desire to lie to ourselves, and helping us more clearly participate in the forgiveness we need in order to draw closer to Him who desires our sanctification. While many people throughout history have disagreed with th

Planning. Contriving. Scheming. This is what we do. Going before God in silence will break us of these habits. He will help us to know ourselves as sinners. He will help us to know His saving grace. He will fill us with a love that radiates before others as hope. #God #Sin #Sinner #Repentance #JesusChrist #HolySpirit #continualprayer #luminousdarkness

There is no way to spend eternity with God without first desiring to be close to Him now. Ask for forgiveness. Desire in your inner heart to commune with Him. Embrace silence. It is the only true path. #silence #Repentance #Sin #Sinner #God #Heart

On bended knee, With bowed head, and Drenched with tears, I cry out O Lord For your forgiveness. Remove from me All that is not you. In love, With faith, and Filled with hope, I reach out O Lord For your embrace. Fill me With your Spirit. #Lord #HolySpirit #JesusChrist #Faith #Hope #Love #Suffering #Sin #Sinner #Repentance