prayer Archives - Page 13 of 14

The Essence of Prayer (I)

10/22/2013

THE GOSPEL OF St Matthew confronts us almost from the beginning with the very essence of prayer. The Magi saw the long-expected star; they set out without delay to find the king; they arrived at the manger, they knelt, they worshipped and they presented their gifts: they expressed prayer in its perfection, which is contemplation and adoration. Often, in more or less popular literature about prayer, we are told that prayer is an enthralling adventure.

“. . . BUT BY PRAYER AND FASTING” (Part II)

03/22/2013

What then is fasting for us Christians? It is our entrance and participation in that experience of Christ Himself by which He liberates us from the total dependence on food, matter, and the world. By no means is our liberation a full one. Living still in the fallen world, in the world of the Old Adam, being part of it, we still depend on food. But just as our death—through which we still must pass—has

Empowered to…

03/15/2013

Empowered to Speak The Spirit that Jesus gives us empowers us to speak. Often when we are expected to speak in front of people who intimidate us, we are nervous and self-conscious. But if we live in the Spirit, we don’t have to worry about what to say. We will find ourselves ready to speak when the need is there. “When they take you before . . . authorities, do not worry about how to

Saint Isaac the Syrian: Desperation, Prayer at Night

03/01/2013

Desperation Nothing is so strong as desperation. It knows no defeat at the hand of any, whether on the right hand or the left. When someone has cut off in his mind all hope of life, no one is more daring than he; no foe can face him, no rumors of affliction can weaken his purpose, for every affliction which may come is less than death, for he has resolved to accept death for himself.

Make Me Feel Your Presence. Years without Prayer.

01/23/2013

Make me feel Your presence Lord, I have to tell You that prayer is a problem for me. How should I collect my spirit, which is split and squandered in a thousand pieces? How should I concentrate; how can I close off from all around me and within me each entrance from the outside world, appearances, and sensations? My mind buzzes like a beehive. My ears are bombarded by a million noises. In my eyes

I Don’t Know How to Pray. Be the Conversant I am Looking For.

01/16/2013

I don’t know how to pray My God, I don’t know how to pray. Yet I so deeply feel in myself the need for prayer. I want to pray. Hour by hour the intense longing to talk with You altogether comes over me. The longing to come into contact with You, the Ineffable and Unfathomable. But I lose the words. I cannot piece together what I mean. My thoughts become confused. So often I don’t

Persons in Communion: The Disciplines of Communion (Part II)

10/17/2012

The training of our consciousness enables us to recover an immediacy of response to anybody’s face, however spoilt, haggard, or careworn, and precisely because it is such. God loves this person here and now, in their very ordinariness, their cowardice, their loneliness, their sin. Our consciousness being awakened, the eye of the heart is opened, and we begin to see with the eyes of God. Then we can put ourselves in the other’s place, share

REPENTANCE IN THE PHILOKALIA (Part I)

09/21/2012

ST. ISAIAH THE SOLITARY I, ON GUARDING THE INTELLECT, SEC. 22 Here Isaiah the Solitary expresses the same confidence that Paul speaks of in Romans 8:38-39, that “nothing can separate us from the love of God.” All that is required is for the sinner to repent and return to God. “Be attentive to yourself, so that nothing destructive can separate you from the love of God. Guard your heart, and do not grow listless

Father Maximos on the Need to Learn Our Archetype

08/21/2012

There was a pause as Fr. Maximos signaled that he was ready for the next question. “During the morning session you said something very significant,” said Eleni, a professional accountant who had decided to get an M.A. in theology. “You mentioned that in order to understand the essence of who we are as human beings we need to understand the nature of God. What did you mean by that? Who is God? What can you

Contemplation and Self-Abandonment

07/30/2012

Contemplation (the prayer beyond words and ideas) is a way to describe what Jesus did in the desert. It is not learning as much as it is unlearning. It is not explaining as much as containing and receiving everything, and holding onto nothing. It is refusing to judge too quickly and refining your own thoughts and feelings by calm observation and awareness over time—in the light of the Big Picture. You cannot understand anything well

Tags

The Essence of Prayer (I)

“. . . BUT BY PRAYER AND FASTING” (Part II)

Empowered to…

Saint Isaac the Syrian: Desperation, Prayer at Night

Make Me Feel Your Presence. Years without Prayer.

I Don’t Know How to Pray. Be the Conversant I am Looking For.

Persons in Communion: The Disciplines of Communion (Part II)

REPENTANCE IN THE PHILOKALIA (Part I)

Father Maximos on the Need to Learn Our Archetype

Contemplation and Self-Abandonment

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