Boredom
“It is not incorrect to describe our relationship with the passions as an addiction. The fathers described the passion-driven life as a constant swing between pain and pleasure. We experience boredom as a pain and seek to replace it with pleasure, which will only yield more pain later on. This movement, as it dominates our experience, draws us away from the opportunity to grow in noetic experience. As such, it tears us away from God other than as an entertaining idea or a con
Fear (and Love)
“There’s a lot of fear circulating these days. Fear in the secular realm, and fear, I think, in the Christian too. We are cowed by the violence and brutality of a fallen world. We’re drawing in, we’re identifying what we’re against. That’s natural. We were made for safety and joy, and the wild danger and grief of the world is not natural. And in a way it is necessary: I am not saying that evil must not be countered or truth spoken. But I think we are in danger of slipping int
God's Will vs Self Will
“…sin lies in the direction of the will…A person sins when he looks upon his life as if it belonged only to him…It is necessary for...
Providence
“All good things come from God providentially, and those who bring them are the servants of what is good.” (St. Mark the Ascetic) “We do...
Thankfulness
“I find the bits and pieces of everyday life much more precious than the hopes and dreams of an unlived future. Clouds passing in the sky...
Prayer and Feelings
“All kinds of things are going on invisibly within us when we pray, though outwardly nothing has changed and we feel only the same....
Simplicity
“People can memorize huge portions of Scripture, read the Bible from cover to cover a dozen times, learn all of the intricacies of...
Prayer (Fervent)
“Paul not only urges us to pray, but he teaches us how we should do it. He writes that we should offer our petitions and supplications to...
Tranquility
“Behold, thou art made whole; sin no more.” [John 5:14] Experience proves that sins and passions destroy the health of the soul and the...
Jesus and Judas
“Jesus clearly knew that Judas felt no kindness or wise consideration for his master. He also knew that Judas was full of devilishly...