A Break from Blogging

A long break, probably. Thank you for visiting my blog.

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When the door of the steam baths is continually left open, the heat inside rapidly escapes through it; likewise the soul, in its desire to say many things, dissipates its remembrance of God through the door of speech, even though everything it says may be good. Thereafter the intellect, though lacking appropriate ideas, pours out a welter of confused thoughts to anyone it meets, as it no longer has the Holy Spirit to keep its understanding free from fantasy. Ideas of value always shun verbosity, being foreign to confusion and fantasy. Timely silence, then, is precious, for it is nothing less than the mother of the wisest thoughts.

- St. Diadochos of Photki, On Spiritual Knowledge

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Holy God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, take from us all that keeps us from You. Have mercy on us and on the whole world.

Harbouring Rancour

Resentment is linked with rancour. When the intellect forms the image of a brother's face with a feeling of resentment, it is clear that it harbours rancour against him. 'The way of the rancorous leads to death' (Prov. 12:28. LXX), because 'whoever harbours rancour is a transgressor' (Prov. 21:24. LXX).

If you harbour rancour against anybody, pray for him and you will prevent the passion from being aroused; for by means of prayer you will separate your resentment from the thought of the wrong he has done you. When you have become loving and compassionate towards him, you will wipe the passion completely from your soul. If somebody regards you with rancour, be pleasant to him, be humble and agreeable in his company, and you will deliver him from his passion.

St. Maximos the Confessor
Third Century on Love (from the Philokalia)

(Septuagint links here)

Called to Freedom

For you were called to freedom, brethren;
only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh,
but through love be servants of one another.
For the whole law is fulfilled in one word,
"You shall love your neighbor as yourself."
But if you bite and devour one another,
take heed that you are not consumed by one another.
But I say, walk by the Spirit,
and do not gratify the desires of the flesh.
For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit,
and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh;
for these are opposed to each other,
to prevent you from doing what you would.
But if you are led by the Spirit you are not under the law.
Now the works of the flesh are plain:
fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery,
enmity, strife, jealousy, anger, selfishness, dissension, party spirit,
envy, drunkenness, carousing, and the like.
I warn you, as I warned you before,
that those who do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience,
kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control;
against such there is no law.
And those who belong to Christ Jesus
have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.
Let us have no self-conceit,
no provoking of one another,
no envy of one another.

Galatians 5:13-26

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If you totally fulfil the command to love your neighbour, you will feel no bitterness or resentment against him whatever he does. If this is not the case, then the reason why you fight against your brother is clearly because you seek after transitory things and prefer them to the commandment of love.

St. Maximos the Confessor

We must confess that Jesus is Lord

If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord
and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead,
you will be saved.
For one believes with the heart and so is justified,
and one confesses with the mouth and so is saved.
The Scripture says,
No one who believes in him will be put to shame.
There is no distinction between Jew and Greek;
the same Lord is Lord of all,
enriching all who call upon him.
For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

Romans 10:9-13

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He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them,
“If any want to become my followers,
let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.
For those who want to save their life will lose it,
and those who lose their life for my sake,
and for the sake of the gospel, will save it.
For what will it profit them to gain the whole world
and forfeit their life?
Indeed, what can they give in return for their life?
Those who are ashamed of me and of my words
in this adulterous and sinful generation,
of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed
when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”

Mark 8:34-38

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What shall it profit, my brethren,
if a man say he hath faith, but hath not works?
Shall faith be able to save him?

And if a brother or sister be naked, and want daily food:
And one of you say to them:
Go in peace, be ye warmed and filled;
yet give them not those things
that are necessary for the body, what shall it profit?

So faith also, if it have not works, is dead in itself.

But some man will say: Thou hast faith,
and I have works: shew me thy faith without works;
and I will shew thee, by works, my faith.

Thou believest that there is one God.
Thou dost well: the devils also believe and tremble.

But wilt thou know, O vain man,
that faith without works is dead?

James 2:14-20

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Faith without works and works without faith will both alike be condemned, for he who has faith must offer to the Lord the faith which shows itself in actions. Our father Abraham would not have been counted righteous had he not offered its fruit, his son (c.f. James 2:21; Romans 4:3).

St. Diadochos of Photki
On Spiritual Knowledge

Lowliness befits man

It is characteristic of the soul which consciously senses the love of God always to seek God's glory in every commandment it performs, and to be happy in its low estate. For glory befits God because of His majesty, while lowliness befits man because it unites us with God. If we realize this, rejoicing in the glory of the Lord, we too, like St. John the Baptist, will begin to say unceasingly, 'He must increase, but we must decrease' (cf John 3:30)

St. Diadochos of Photki
On Spiritual Knowledge

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When Jesus looked up he saw some wealthy people putting their offerings into the treasury and he noticed a poor widow putting in two small coins. He said, “I tell you truly, this poor widow put in more than all the rest; for those others have all made offerings from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has offered her whole livelihood.”

Luke 21:1-4