As it is, the Father judges no one, but he has given all judgment to the Son .. .I judge no one … For I came not to judge the world, but to save the world! (Jesus Christ. See In. 5: 22. 8: 15. 12: 47) Therefore, judge nothing before the time, [that is] until the Lord comes. He will bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the motives of every
THE first time you are victorious over self may be a sign to you: Now I am on the way! But do not consider yourself virtuous, only thank God, for it was He who gave you the power; and do not rejoice beyond measure, but swiftly go on. Otherwise the vanquished evil may come to life and conquer you from the rear. Remember: the Israelites received the command from God to drive out all the
On many occasions throughout history people witnessed persecution and were not afraid, but shared in the suffering and did not protest; for instance, Sophia, the mother who stood by each of her daughters, Faith, Hope and Charity, encouraging them to die, or many other martyrs who helped one another but never turned against the tormentors. The spirit of martyrdom can be brought out by several examples. The first expresses the spirit of martyrdom in itself,
During the reign of the Emperor Alexius Comnenus (1081-1118), a controversy arose in Constantinople among men learned in the Faith and zealous for virtue about the three holy Hierarchs and Fathers of the Church, Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian and John Chrysostom. Some argued for Saint Basil [known as Basilians] above the other two because he was able, as none other, to explain the mysteries of the Faith, and rose to angelic rank by
The problem of “ego” is so recurring in different religions, through successive periods of history and under various disguises, that we know we are dealing with some foundational and core issue, and one that must be almost unconscious. It is an issue that cannot be dealt with by simply being “moral” about this or that, or joining the right group; but by a fundamental “dying” which almost all of us are afraid to do. As
Saint Ephraim the Syrian, a teacher of repentance, was born at the beginning of the fourth century in the city of Nisibis (Mesopotamia) into the family of impoverished toilers of the soil. His parents raised their son in piety, but from his childhood he was known for his quick temper and impetuous character. He often had fights, acted thoughtlessly, and even doubted God’s Providence. He finally recovered his senses by the grace of God, and
Fr. Maximos went on to comment on the next fruit of the Holy Spirit, which according to St. Paul is kindness. “In the Greek original, Paul refers to kindness as chrestotis, with the Greek e in the chre and not with an i as it is in Christotis, meaning ‘being anointed by Christ,’ or ‘becoming Christified.’ Chrestotis with an e means something different. It means usefulness. It seems that what the apostle meant is that
It is entirely fitting that the first revelation of the consubstantiality, the unity, of human nature, in the Bible should be in terms of marriage: ‘This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh,’ says the man when God brings the woman before him. And Genesis adds this comment on what marriage actually entails: ‘Therefore a man leaves his father and mother and cleaves to his wife, and they become one
Evagrius helped lead another student into liberating insight into the nature of her very active mind, especially the connection between her anger and her fear. While she was less revealing of the details of her struggles, she was grappling with the fallout and follow-through of an intervention initiated by concerned friends. She admits it needed to be done but she still struggles with feelings of betrayal and more. She wrote: Evagrius seems to know that
We don’t teach meditation to the young monks. They are not ready for it until they stop slamming doors. — Thich Nhat Hanh to Thomas Merton in 1966 The piercing truth of this statement struck me as a perfect way to communicate the endless disguises and devices of the false self. There is no more clever way for the false self to hide than behind the mask of spirituality. The human ego will always try
© 2020 Saint Sophia Greek Orthodox Cathedral
