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Topic of the Week – Thoughts on Spiritual Reading

“…When you read a worldly magazine or newspaper, it is light and agreeable reading, you easily believe in everything in it. 

 

But if you take up a religious publication or book to read, especially one relating to church matters, or sometimes when you begin reading prayers–you feel a weight upon your heart, you are tormented by doubt and unbelief, and experience a sort of darkness and aversion. 

 

Many acknowledge this. From what does it proceed?…”

 

Excerpted from My Life in Christ, Saint John of Kronstadt  p 176 – 177

Adult/Family:

“…When you read a worldly magazine or newspaper, it is light and agreeable reading, you easily believe in everything in it. But if you take up a religious publication or book to read, especially one relating to church matters, or sometimes when you begin reading prayers–you feel a weight upon your heart, you are tormented by doubt and unbelief, and experience a sort of darkness and aversion. Many acknowledge this.

 

From what does it proceed? Of course, not from the nature of the books themselves, but from the nature of the readers, from the nature of their hearts, and–chiefly–from the Devil, the enemy of mankind, the enemy of everything 
holy: “he taketh away the word out of their hearts.”,

 

When we read worldly books, we do not touch him, and he does not touch us. 

 

But as soon as we take up religious books, as soon as we begin to think of our amendment and salvation, then we go against him, we irritate and torment him, and therefore he attacks us and torments us on his side. 

 

What can we do? We must not throw aside the good work, the reading or prayers that are profitable to our souls, but we must patiently endure, and in patience save our souls. “In your patience possess ye your souls,” says the Lord. 

 

The same applies to theatres and churches, to the stage and Divine service. 

 

Many people find it pleasant to go to the theatre, and oppressive and dull to go to church. Wherefore? Because in the theatre everything is well suited to please the sensual man, and when we are there we do not provoke the Devil, but please him, and he, on his side, affords us pleasure, and does not touch us. Make merry, my friends, thinks he–laugh, only do not remember God. 

 

Whilst in the church everything is adapted to arouse faith and the fear of God, pious feelings, the feeling of our sinfulness and corruption; and the Devil sows in our hearts doubt, weariness, despondency, evil, impure and blasphemous thoughts–so that the man is not glad in himself, and cannot stand for even an hour, and he gets away as quickly as possible. 

 

The theatre and the church–are opposite contrasts. 

 

The one is the temple of the world, and the other the temple of God; the one is the temple of the Devil, and the other–the temple of the Lord….”

Excerpted from My Life in Christ, Saint John of Kronstadt  p 176 – 177

 

 

Preschool/Elementary:

“If a man should come here [to Church listening to the Gospel readings] with earnestness – even though he does not read the Scriptures at home – and if he pays attention to what is said here, within the space of even one year he will be able to obtain  a  considerable  acquaintance with them. For we do not read these Scriptures today, and tomorrow others that are quite different, but always the same section and consecutively.

 

However, in spite of this, many have such an apathetic [showing lack of interest] attitude that after such reading they do not even know the names of the books. And they are not ashamed, nor do they shudder with dread, because they have come so carelessly to the hearing of the word of God.

On the other hand, if a musician, or a dancer, or anyone else connected with the theater should summon them to the city, they all hurry eagerly, and thank the one who invited them, and spend an entire half-day with their attention fixed on the performer exclusively. Yet when God addresses us through the prophets and apostles, we yawn, we are bored, we become drowsy.”

Taken from St. John Chrysostom: Homily 58

When we are in Church and the Gospel is being read, how closely are we listening to the words to learn what God wants to teach us? Why when we are at a play or movie, or watching TV do we pay more attention than we do in Church? Did you know that in her wisdom the Church has designated the same Gospel readings every year? Why would the Church keep repeating the same teachings? They must be important for us to learn from!  We need to practice being good listeners when the priest is reading the Gospel in Church.

Middle School:

 

“A monk complained to St. Arsenius that while reading Holy Scripture he does not feel, neither the power of the words read nor gentleness in his heart.

 

To that the great saint will reply to him: “My child, just read! I heard that the sorcerers of serpents, when they cast a spell upon the serpents, the sorcerers are uttering the words, which they themselves do not understand, but the serpents hearing the spoken words sense their power and become tamed.

 

And so, with us, when we continually hold in our mouths the words of Holy Scripture, but even though we do not feel the power of the words, evil spirits tremble and flee for they are unable to endure the words of the Holy Spirit.”

My child, just read!

 

The Holy Spirit Who, through inspired men, wrote these divine words, will hear, will understand and will hasten to your assistance; and the demons will understand will sense and will flee from you.

That is: He Whom you invoke for assistance will understand, and those whom you wish to drive away from yourself will understand. And both goals will be achieved.

Taken from St. Nikolai Velimirovich: My child, just read!

 

High School:

“Here is a rule for [spiritual] reading:

1) Before reading you should empty your soul of everything;

2) Arouse the desire to know about what is being read;

3) Turn prayerfully to God;

4) Follow what you are reading with attention and place everything in your open heart;

5) If something did not reach the heart, stay with it until it reaches;

6) You should, of course, read quite slowly.

Stop reading when the soul no longer wants to nourish itself with reading. That means it is full. If the soul finds one passage utterly stunning, stop there and read no more.

The best time for reading the Word of God is in the morning, Lives of Saints after the mid-day meal, and Holy Fathers before going to sleep. Thus you can take up a little bit each day.

During such occupations, you should continually keep in mind the main goal — impressing the truth on yourself and awakening the spirit. If reading or discourse does not bring this about, then they are but idle teachings of the tongue and ears, or empty discussion. It if is done with intelligence, then the truths impress themselves and rouse the spirit, and one thing aids the other. But if the reading or discourse digresses from the proper image, then there is neither one nor the others — truth is stuffed into the head like sand, and the spirit becomes cold and hard, smokes over and puffs up.

…All your work should be limited, as we have said, to the following: clarify the truth and hold it in the mind until the heart tastes of it. The Holy Fathers put it simply: remember it, hold it in the mind, and have it always before your eyes.

Read the entire advice here More Notes from St. Theophan The Recluse about the Spiritual Life (windowtoeternity.net)

Start reading daily The Prologue from Ochrid  written by Saint Nikolai Velimirovich

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