SACRAMENTAL LIVING

“One test of spiritual attainment is peace. Those who are truly advanced in the Spirit have peace of mind and share the peace of God… “Wherever God is — there is peace. And the opposite is self-evident: where there is envy, enmity, impatience, self-love — there is the devil. Wherever the devil is — there, everything is ruinous, proud and hostile.” (Fr. Basil, St. Anatoly of Optina) “How do we attain peace? We put aside all…pride and hostility and destructiveness. And we acqui

“Christians are told by the authors of the New Testament to rejoice and be people of hope. However, living in the same world as nonbelievers, Christians still experience, like everyone else, moments of doubt, despair, despondency….The opposite of hope is despondency and despair. According to the spiritual tradition of the Church, the state of despondency and despair is the most grievous and horrible condition that a person can be in. It is the worst and most harmful of the si

“A strange illness has appeared in our days – the passion for distractions. Never before was there such a desire for distractions; people have forgotten how to lead a serious life for the good of others; they have no spiritual life and are bored. They exchange the profound content of a spiritual life for distractions! What madness! It is here that pastors must deploy their strength: they must re-introduce into life its lost meaning and give back to the people the knowledge of

“The signs of God’s grace surround us and lie within us. But we have our own idols that blind us to all the signs that witness to the steadfast love of God. God is good. Yet the troubles of this world, the suffering of illness and grief, the attractions of this age, the temptations of greed, jealousy, and avarice, and the press of daily affairs conspire to hide the goodness of God from us. And in times of distress, we might even blame the Almighty and All-Merciful for our tro

“Even if we cannot find much assistance in a culture of self-indulgence, comfort and luxury, finding little help from others, at least “I will behave in my home with heartfelt integrity…Heartfelt integrity” means one doesn’t play head games with those we claim to love. Integrity means honesty and more—a person whose whole self is filled with inner peace, openness and unity in mind, soul and body. He or she radiates sincerity without a trace of doubt or duplicity. To be sincer

“All that we read in holy Scripture for our instruction and salvation demands an attentive ear. You have just heard [Luke 24:13-35] how the eyes of those two disciples whom the Lord joined on their way were kept from recognizing Him. He found them in despair of the redemption that was in Christ, supposing Him now to have suffered and died as a man, not imagining Him to live forever as the Son of God. So He opened to them the Scriptures and showed them that it was necessary fo

“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 body, whilst victory over the passions affords heavenly tranquility and health both to the soul and the body. Conquer the many-headed hydra of sin - and you will be made whole. Preserve tranquility of spirit; do not be disturbed, do not be irritated by any opposition, offences, negligences, injustices - and then you will always enjoy spiritua

“Especially with the media and technology available to us today, it is hard not to become distracted by pointless worry about matters that will never help us become more beautiful icons of Christ. The problems and divisions of the world can easily become obsessions which tempt us to view ourselves as creatures defined merely by our place in it. People who believe that there is no hope, truth, or meaning beyond our present life will understandably obsess about such matters, fo

“The story of ‘the Fall’ is the story of human self-will: we like to do what we want regardless of how our relationships or others are affected by what we do…Adam and Eve felt God was denying them something good by forbidding them to eat the fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. They are given all of Paradise (the perfect world!) and yet they imagine God is withholding something more from them and they want what they imagine they have been denied rather than

“The Hebrew word לֵב (lev) “heart” includes the mind. Hebrew does not separate “heart knowledge” and “head knowledge.” While “heart” may convey a deep commitment, the “mind” is crucial to considering and adopting the instruction. To have the instruction “on your mind” is critical to the deliberate talking to oneself needed to conform to the instruction, to meditating on it and assimilating it into one’s world view.” (NET Bible, Proverbs 6:21) “St. Diadochos who distinguishes