Asceticism
“Understood accurately, asceticism is about Beauty; it’s about attempting to be the sort of artists who won’t betray what they have seen of the beautiful. For example, we don’t fast in order to be good, but rather so that our devotion, our eros for Christ’s Beauty, will be absolute. Moral effort only matters when it expands that ascetic effort into the arena of Goodness. Moral struggle has to be an amplification of asceticism, never a substitute. It has to be the working out
Trials and Temptations
“Trials should be distinguished from temptations. Trials come directly from the God of Providence, while temptations come directly from the evil spirits, although they are allowed by God. Trials are neither saving nor leading to spiritual death in themselves; they are only reasons for the manifestation of human will in relation to what the Lord gives us. The purpose of temptations is spiritual death, although they disguise themselves as something harmless and even good. Tempt
Compassion
“It is of note to me that there is a great darkness associated with God in some presentations of the Christian faith, enough to drive...
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...
Conscience
“Two gifts that God has given to man for the good of himself and others and which he should multiply are conscience and faith. The...
Desire
“Desire is transformed into lust when we exclude God from the picture. Without God, the natural powers of our soul become corrupt. Abba...
Conquering
“During the first century, the people of God envisioned the Messiah as a descendant of David (Matthew 12:23) who would conquer nations...
Love Thy Neighbor
“The standard of judgment is uncalculated mercy toward others. The works produced by faith are emphasized, for saving faith always...
Character and Choices
“All of life’s choices have consequences, consequences for ourselves and consequences for the world around us. And when we fall into the...
Blessed, Blessedness and Blessings
“Our Lord Jesus Christ entered into this world to endure its suffering. He did not simply remove it from us, He shared in it. And as a...