6/8/2026
Rev. Dr. Oliver Subotic
Every sin is usually preceded by a simple thought, depending on a person’s particular weakness. If there is no habit of cutting off such thoughts, they gradually grow and develop, eventually enslaving the person.
As the great spiritual father of our time, Archimandrite Sophrony (Sakharov), observes, all the wartime “slaughters” of biblical Israel depicted in the Old Testament are but a prefiguration of the mental annihilation of sinful thoughts, so that no trace of them remains.
The triad of faith–prayer–virtue was the hallmark of Patriarch Ilia, accompanying him throughout his patriarchal ministry.
It makes no difference whether a man carries in his bag a single stone weighing one hundred kilograms, or a thousand pebbles weighing one hundred grams each: on his back he will be carrying the same weight.
Here the analogy with medicine is almost complete, with the priest being only a servant of the True Physician of soul and body—the Lord Jesus Christ. It is therefore very important to find a priest who is spiritually experienced, so that he may adequately treat the wounds of our soul.
Repentance is not merely a matter of feeling sorry for having committed a sin. True repentance is precisely what the original word signifies—a change of mind—meaning the acquisition of an entirely new way of thinking and acting.
The key issue is our encounter with God in eternity—those whose souls are healthy will experience that encounter as eternal light, while those whose souls are sick will experience it as eternal darkness.
