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Part 2: On Battling Pride
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Part 3: The Spirit, and Spirits
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Part 4: The Role of Christian Women
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Part 5: On Seeking the Kingdom of God
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Part 9: The Silence of the Theotokos
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Part 10: On the Monastic Life
Photo: stihi.ru
Fasting
Repentance without fasting is unthinkable. Although fasting outwardly seems to be a law for the stomach, in essence, it’s a law for the mind and heart.
True fasting consists not only of abstinence from food, for abstinence alone isn’t enough to reconcile us to God…
As St. Basil the Great says, “True fasting is refraining from evil deeds. As much as you take away from the flesh, so much do you add to the soul, so that it may shine with spiritual health, because victory is achieved not by bodily strength, but by constancy of soul and patience in sorrows... Beware of measuring fasting by mere abstinence from food. Those who abstain from food but behave badly are likened to the devil, who, although he eats nothing, nevertheless does not cease to sin.”
Great Lent
Great Lent was established in memory of the forty-day fast of our Lord Jesus Christ, and it’s necessary for our heartfelt participation in the coming feast of the Resurrection of Christ.
At the very beginning of the holy fast, the Church reminds us of the fall of the Forefather Adam. Undoubtedly, this is done not so we might seek justification for ourselves in his fall, not so that, possessing such a damaged nature, we might give in to despondency, but solely with the aim of convincing us that Adam, although he was the first to transgress the commandment of God, was also the first to repent, and through this earned the favor of the Heavenly Father for himself and his descendants. From this example we should learn how great is the weight of sin, how destructive its consequences, and turn to repentance as the only means of salvation.
With this reminder, the Holy Church tells all of us with all strictness: “And you have fallen!” but at the same time commands with a voice full of love: “Get up!”
Fasting and health
Holy fasting acts for the refreshment of our strength, not for its decline, and this isn’t hard to prove. After all, our body is a most skillful machine that is set in motion in two ways: by breathing and by eating. Although breathing is constant, it requires a certain regularity and also moderation. The human body needs food, however, in much smaller quantities than we’re used to consuming it out of habit. Uninterrupted eating would cause death, and this should be regarded as nature’s own indication that fasting is a means to maintain health.
Overeating disrupts the digestive organs and generates numerous diseases. As a result, medical science primarily aims to restore the function of the digestive organs. But how can this be done? Naturally, for this, we have to stop overworking our organs, which we can do by not eating. Thus, from a scientific point of view, fasting restores health rather than destroys it.
First, and then
First, glorify God, thank Him and ask for guidance, and then look after your desires and decisions!
First, warm your hearts with love for the Lord and neighbor, with active and living love, and then receive authority over your neighbors and become their leaders!
First, know your weakness, your willingness to transgress the commandments every minute, your powerlessness in the battle with the passions, and then become deciders of fates, guardians of law and order!
First believe, hope, and love, and then call yourself a disciple of Christ.
The path to healing
Every man is sick with some kind of inner weakness, felt mainly in the heart due to sinful feelings and habits. In recent times, this weakness has given rise to a mass of powerless and weak-willed people!
The path to healing is the same for everyone. There are people who, aware of their inner weakness, rebuked by their conscience, and offended in their love for God by their own impurity, start to feel a spiritual sickness in the depths of their heart and understand their immorality. The more often they spend time alone pondering their inner discord, which begins to trouble them, the stricter and stricter they judge their actions, feelings, persistent thoughts and desires, passing sentence on them. Strength is gradually born in the heart, and at times it compels a man to refrain from repeating sin and rewards him for this with a feeling of satisfaction, inner peace, and a certain sweetness. This enlivens a man so much that such secret sensations become dear to him.
Some people think that it depends on us to live righteously and not commit any lawlessness, because man is given both will and freedom. Sin doesn’t take away freedom. But only those who haven’t yet embarked upon a spiritual life, haven’t experienced sorrows and illnesses, and haven’t felt the power of repentance think this way. The attraction to the passions distorts human will to such an extent that people often can’t refuse sin. Although sin doesn’t take away freedom, it turns a man into a weak child, its slave, and for them, it’s impossible without outside help not only to rise but even to think about correction.
Those people who feel their powerlessness begin to understand the truth of the Holy Gospel, and it becomes clear to them that a man can’t achieve anything by his own strength, but all things are possible only with God. And the intention to improve forces them to persistently ask for strength and help from Christ the Savior and His Most Pure Mother. What child would be afraid to cry out for help and salvation when in danger, and what parents would find it difficult to rush to the call of someone dear to them?
The path to salvation
For the salvation of the soul, there is but one path, traversed by the Son of God, to which He calls all those who desire salvation.
This is the path of self-sacrifice, of bearing your cross and being crucified upon it, of suffering to the point of death.
A path that preserves the soul but is agonizing for the body, for human flesh.
A path that is victorious for the soul and spirit over the passions and sinful habits, but disastrous for sins.
The path of fulfilling the commandments of Christ and disobeying the dictates of the spirit of malice and lies.
The path of weeping, tears, and worldly sorrow, but also of joy, triumph, and spiritual sweetness.
The path of the crucifixion of the flesh, passions, and sin, but also of the resurrection of the soul.
Christian souls, redeemed at an inexpressible price, by the sufferings and Blood of the Son of God, the Almighty Lord and Creator, are obliged for the sake of their Christ and the Holy Gospel, for the whole purpose of their life, for love and gratitude to the Savior, to strive after the Lord, and, not buckling under the weight of their cross but carrying it in their hands as a banner of victory, to go to crucifixion, which we well know ends in resurrection!
All other paths are not of God, but of men. They are a striving not after Christ, but after the enemy of Christ, not for the sake of the Savior and His Holy Gospel and love for Him, but for the sake of oneself and self-love.
Religion
Religion is armor against the blows of fate and the tricks of the enemy.
It is the strength to fight passions and temptations.
It is a guarantee that children will live honestly and virtuously and won’t commit any senseless crimes.
Finally, only religion makes it possible to endure hardships to the end and carry your cross after Christ to the gates of Paradise.
The Russian people
The history of Russia is full of national sorrows. Who among its neighboring peoples hasn’t tried to conquer its regions and force it to change the Orthodox faith that the Russian people received unshakably together with the Mother of God and the Son she bore, as the breath of life, in the firm consciousness that Orthodoxy is one true, universal faith, and its Church is the one Church of Christ?
All these attempts were met not only with a united but outright miraculous resistance from the Russian people, who were protected and glorified by the Mother of God and her innumerable wonderworking icons, which appeared in all cities, towns, and monasteries of vast Russia for the preservation of the true faith.
The Russian people, strong in spirit and mind, will always view allowing every corrupt, weak-willed, and spiritually undeveloped person to convert from their faith to another, even a non-Christian one, as a disparagement of the Orthodox faith, an insult to the truth of Christ, the descent of enlightened leaders into the abyss of impiety, to the times of the triumph of paganism, when it wasn’t yet decided whom and how a man should worship, where the truth is, what the purpose of human life is, where his conscience lies. This can only be taken as blasphemy against the Holy Spirit and the most intolerable betrayal of the homeland, leading to corruption and devastation.
Listen, beloved, to this terrible rumble of the people reaching you from all corners of great Russia, which looks in horror at the general corruption of the young generation by the spirit of the times, created by the sworn enemies of Russia; and at the freedom of religion being implemented, according to the new teachings of contemporary non-Orthodox thinkers, in imitation of some Western states that have brought their people to “degeneracy.” It is a freedom that, in the words of the holy Apostle Peter, is a cloke of maliciousness (1 Pt. 2:16).
But the Russian people are still strong through the intercession of the Most Blessed Mother of God. Truly, she was and always is our Mother, of all those faithful to the Lord, of all who are sorrowful, offended, and persecuted.
Self-love
It’s known that the human heart came out of the hands of God as pure, meek, and loving, and should return to Him the same. It was where man’s true treasure was, but then addiction to the world and its goods destroyed and perverted the holy, true love for God and men and replaced it with self-love, a motivation even in good deeds. Everything that grows from this root of self-love is impure in the sight of God and is unworthy of the Heavenly Kingdom!
Self-reliance1
Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your Heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you, says Christ (Mt. 6:31-33).
But the human mind is afraid and doesn’t want to believe that on this earth, where we earn our living by the sweat of the brow, anything could come by itself.
So, fathers of families are certain that if they don’t exclusively think about tomorrow and about the future of their children in general, then their children will certainly turn out ignorant and poor.
Mothers think that families are undoubtedly held together by their endless worries about little things.
Young people see their salvation entirely in worrying about their careers, and so on.
All are deluded in the same way, because the human mind is proud and relies only on itself. Self-reliance and overconfidence prevent people from being enlightened by the true light, the source of which is and always will be Christ.
Self-pity
The main reason for our imperfection is self-pity.
Every pain causes self-pity, as do every great labor and any disadvantage in life. This is how most people raise their children.
They pity them when they have to get up early or go to bed late.
They pity them when they have to study and when they’re punished, even for their faults.
It’s a pity to make them give up even the slightest desire and pleasure.
It's a pity to demand resilience from them, to require them to fight their habits, to exert force over a weak will, and to strictly fulfill their duties and obligations.
The easiest virtue to possess is pity, for it requires nothing but words and a kind smile. This is the type of good that a Christian should reflect upon, recognizing the mixing of good with evil within it.
The light of Christ
I am the light of the world (Jn. 8:12), said our Lord Jesus Christ.
Light, in both the language of spiritual writers and in ordinary human language, is a symbol of spiritual illumination, enlightenment, a special religious-moral state, blessed and joyful; whereas darkness is a state of spiritual ignorance, blindness, corruption, and sin in general.
St. John Chrysostom says that the holy Apostle John calls Christ light and life because He gave us the light of knowledge and life in this light. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not (Jn. 1:5).
As a result of mankind’s falling away from God, the true vision of God was gradually obscured, the truth turned into a lie, and until the Incarnation of the Word, the whole world was in darkness; people sat in the region and shadow of death (Mt. 4:16).
But God chose a people to whom He gave a pure revelation of Himself, entrusted them with the truth of knowledge of God and worship of God until the time of the renewal of the whole world. Thus, in the darkness of the universal pagan lies that engulfed nearly all of mankind, the Jewish people had the light of truth in the Mosaic Law, in the prophets and in the promises.
Thus, the Word has been the light of the world not only from the time of His Incarnation, but at all times. And the darkness comprehended it not (Jn. 1:5). No matter how strong this darkness was that enveloped all of mankind, it didn’t overpower, didn’t overcome, didn’t suppress this light, didn’t completely obscure its rays; it continued to shine in the darkness, and when the appointed time came, it illuminated the entire universe by the Incarnate Word in the dispensation of His Church, in which the truth was fully revealed.
In order to clearly and purely contemplate the Word of God, the mysteries of the Kingdom of God, the saving teaching and saving works of Christ, man needs Divine light, the light of Christ, the light of the Holy Spirit and the unfolding of the mind by the power of this light.
“To this day,” says Metropolitan Philaret of Moscow, “until this happens in a man, he may hear the Word of God and see its action, but he doesn’t grasp its breadth, height, and depth...”
“But if our eye is too weak,” says the same Holy Hierarch, “to fully enjoy the light with which the risen Lord opens our mind, then let us turn our gaze for a minute the other way, to the darkness, that we might all the more come to love the miraculous light to which we’re called.”
The light of Christ illumines all!
Including the wisest, the most learned, the greatest and most glorious in earthly deeds, revealing to them the mysteries of the Kingdom of God.
And the simplest, most unlearned people, opening the eyes and ears of their hearts to understand Holy Scripture, the surrounding nature, and the purpose of human life.
And the rich, teaching them to find enrichment not in themselves, but in God, to distribute their wealth to the poor, to glorify the Creator with good deeds, to wipe away the tears of the sorrowful.
And the poor, showing them the value of inner wealth.
And the noble, reminding them of the significance of the Lord of Heaven.
And the elders, promising them rest from all their labors.
And the young, encouraging them to fight with the passions.
And babes, opening their mouths to praise the Lord.
The light of Christ illumines all!
Free will
Undoubtedly, all people feel that the desire for good and evil accompany each other: When a good desire comes, an evil desire immediately appears to oppose it.
Since the desire for good and evil come of themselves, regardless of our will, neither can an evil desire be attributed to us as a vice, nor a good desire as a virtue or merit.
Only what depends on our free will is imputed to us, and what depends on us is to incline this or that way, to evil or to good.
You can give preference to an evil feeling, an ugly thought, or to a good mind, a good feeling, a Christian aspiration. Spiritual struggle obliges us to not allow our free will to incline towards the lower desire, to the carnal will, but to always follow only the higher, rational will—for it is the will of God.
However, good feelings can also be mixed with less than perfect desires, and therefore Christians should pay attention to them and examine them carefully before carrying them out.
After all, you can do good deeds not for the sake of the Lord, not for the sake of love of others, but for the sake of your own enjoyment and comfort, for the sake of profit, of impure intentions, for the sake of glory, reward, and so on. But for good to be pure, it must be done only for the sake of Christ, out love for Him.
The Heavenly Father bestows gifts of grace upon all people, various endowments, and gives them freedom of choice, so that they may experientially know the necessity of inclining toward the demands of good will rather than evil.
To be continued…
