Saturday, December 27, 2014

O Theotokos






You are the honored Mother of the Light; from the risings of the sun to its settings praises are offered to you, O Theotokos, the second heaven, as you are the bright and unchanging flower, and the ever virgin mother; for the Father chose you, and the Holy Spirit overshadowed you, and the Son condescended and took flesh from you. 

Wherefore, ask Him to give salvation to the world which He created, and to deliver it from all tribulations. 

Let us praise Him a new praise, and bless Him, now and forever and unto the ages of all ages. 
Amen.

From the Prime Hour 
of the Coptic Orthodox Agpeya 

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Friday, November 21, 2014

Verses and Fathers Sayings






But the ones that fell on the good ground are
those who, having heard the word 

with a noble and good heart, keep it 
and bear fruit with patience.

Luke 8:15
 


Observe your thoughts, and beware of what you have in your heart and your spirit, knowing that the demons put ideas into you so as to corrupt your soul by making it think of that which is not right, in order to turn your spirit from the consideration of your sins and of God. 

Abba Elias

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Saturday, November 1, 2014

Dwell Together In Unity





Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way 
into him who is the head, into Christ, 
from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint 
with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, 
makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

Ephesians 4: 15 - 16 ESV







Perform your duties in the church faithfully and joyfully, as they fall to your lot according to your rank, and fulfill your ministry with uprightness, because of that God under whom we are fellow servants and to whom we understand that we shall render an account of our actions.

Therefore, his mercy ought to abound in us, because 'judgment without mercy to him that has not done mercy.' For this reason pray with us for those who still cause us sadness, that the sickness of their carnal mind, intensified and concentrated by long custom, may be healed.

For who does not understand 'how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity' if that pleasure touches a palate from which the mind has spit out all the bitterness of division and that loves the sweetness of charity?

The God to whom we pray for them is powerful and merciful enough to use any sort of occasion to draw them even now to salvation. May the Lord preserve you in peace.
 
St Augustine


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Tuesday, October 14, 2014

Troubled Thoughts





He who goes out weeping, bearing
the seed for sowing, shall come home
with shouts of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.
Psalm 126:6


A brother questioned Abba Poemen in this way, 'My thoughts trouble me, making me put my sins aside, and concern myself with my brother's faults'. The old man told him the following story about Abba Dioscorus (the monk), 'In his cell he wept over himself, while his disciple was sitting in another cell. When the latter came to see the old man he asked him, "Father, why are you weeping?" "I am weeping over my sins," the old man answered him. Then his disciple said, "You do not have any sins, Father." The old man replied, "Truly, my child, if I were allowed to see my sins, three or four men would not be enough to weep for them."

Abba Dioscorus



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Wednesday, September 10, 2014

Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus





From the parable, it is quite certain that souls when they leave the body do not still linger here, but are forthwith led away. And hear how it is shown: ‘It came to pass,’ it is said, ‘that he died, and was carried away by the angels.’ Not the souls of the just only, but also those of sinners are led away. This also is clear from the case of another rich man. For when his land brought forth abundantly, he said within himself, ‘What shall I do? I will pull down my barns and build greater.' (Luke 12:18) Than this state of mind nothing could be more wretched.

He did in truth pull down his barns; for secure storehouses are not built with walls of stone; they are ‘the mouths of the poor.’ But this man neglecting these, was busy about stone walls. What, however, did God say to him? ‘Thou fool, this night shall they require thy soul of thee.’

Mark also: in one passage it is said that the soul is carried away by angels; in the other, that ‘they require it;’ and in the latter case they lead it away as a prisoner; in the former, they guard and conduct it as a crowned victor. And like as in the arena a combatant, having received many wounds, is drenched with blood; his head being then encircled with a crown, those who stand ready by the spot take him up, and with great applause and praise they bear him home amid shouting and admiration.

In this way the angels on that occasion led Lazarus also away. But in the other instance dreadful powers, probably sent for that purpose, required the soul. For it is not of its own accord that the soul departs this life; indeed, it is not able. For if when we travel from one city to another we need guides, much more does the soul stand in want of those who can conduct it, when it is separated from the flesh, and is entering upon the future state of existence.

St. John Chrysostom

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Saturday, August 30, 2014

God Never Quits





The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
 his mercies never come to an end.
  Lamentations 3:22


Many of us have difficulty accepting that God is as generous as He is. When we repeat a failure, we have a tendency to say, "This is it. God is finished with me this time." Actually God is never finished with any of his children. You see, there is not a loophole in God's mercy.

The problem is that we take the feelings that we would have if someone wronged us and apply them to the way we wrong God.  We say, "I would be finished with anyone who did that to me, so God must be finished with me." We take the feelings we have and project them onto God. Nothing could be farther from the truth. God will discipline us if we sin, because he wants us to mature. But he never "drops" us. So we can relax and enjoy God's endless mercies and thank Him for His discipline. God isn't finished with us yet. 

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Tuesday, August 26, 2014

The Assumption of The Most Holy Virgin Mary





Her Falling - Asleep Story

After the death of her Son, Jesus Christ St. Mary lived under the care of St. John according to her Son’s commandment. She witnessed the “New life in Jesus Christ” and helped the Disciples and Apostles by her love and prayers.

When she was about 60 years old on the 20th of Tobi, St. Mary, the Disciples and the Virgins of the Mount of Olives were all gathered and the Lord Jesus appeared and greeted them. He told them that he would return back the next day and receive his mother’s soul.

On the 21st of Tobi the Lord returned in the chariot of the Cherubim, accompanied with thousands of angels and David the sweet Singer. The assembled men and women wept, and St. Mary also wept, but the Lord consoled them. He kissed her and blessed them and bade St. Peter to look upon the altar for heavenly garments, which the Father had sent to shroud St. Mary in.  She turned to the east and prayed in a heavenly language and then lay down, still facing eastward.  The virgins stood about St. Mary singing, and Jesus sat by her. David the Singer rejoiced and said “Right dear in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints”.
 
At the ninth hour the Lord received her soul, shrouded her body in the heavenly garments and they were fastened thereto. He bade the Apostles to take up the body; Peter bearing the head and John the feet, and carry her to a new tomb in the field of Jehoshaphat....

At the Field of Jehoshaphat
The Coptic text says “When we came to the field of Jehoshaphat, the Jews heard the singing and came out intending to burn the body”. The Apostles set down the bier and fled. Darkness came on the Jews and they were blinded and smitten by their own fire. They cried out for mercy and were healed and many were converted.

Ruben and the Bier
Our Synaxarium relates that a Jewish man, called Ruben, tried to upset the bier, but his hands withered to the elbow, He began to weep, asking the Apostles to pray for him that he might be saved and become a Christian. They knelt and prayed, and his hands were loosened and he was healed. He was baptized at once, and began to preach.

St. Mary's Assumption

This feast commemorates the entrance of St. Mary’s body into heaven, as she preceded us and sat at the right hand of her Bridegroom and Son. It bears a powerful witness to the eschatological truth of our faith, i.e. “the world to come”.

❖ In accord with what has been written, ‘You are beautiful’ (Cant. 2:13), and your virginal body is wholly saintly, wholly chaste, wholly the dwelling place of God; with the result that thereafter it is wholly free from dissolution into dust... It was impossible that the vessel which had received God, the temple of the Only-Begotten Son, should be held fast by death....
Fr. Germanus of Constantinople

❖  Today the celestial spirits bring to heaven the Abode of the Holy Spirit, making her enter into the heavenly Jerusalem, to the immaculate Tabernacle, to us inaccessible, close to the Holy Trinity. 

❖  Today the heavenly spirits have carried to heaven the holy body of the Virgin Theotokos, placing it among the angels to share in the unspeakable delights... 

❖  Having lived in this body all-holy life, you are brought by the divine will to the Kingdom of your Son, our God; pray for us . . . 
 

Armenian Liturgical Hymns on the assumption
        
❖  I salute the Assumption of the body which the human heart can never conceive . . . 

❖  O Mary,  your body was like a pearl, and death itself was shamed when with wonder it saw you ascending resplendent through the clouds to heaven . . . 

❖  O Mary, dove of Euphrates shelter me under your wings in the day of judgment, when the earth will give back those whom she had taking into her keeping!

Ethiopian Feast of Assumption 


Her Assumption’s Story 

The Lord did not permit that the body in which He Himself had dwelt and from which He had formed His own humanity become a prey to corruption and dissolution. 
St. Mary as a human being her body died; but ascended to heaven. 
“The assumption according to the narrative of Joseph the Arimathea” (According to Synaxarium), states that Thomas the Apostle was absent in India when St. Mary felt asleep and passed away. On his return he asked about her and was told what happened.

St. Thomas pretended not to believe until he sees the body in the grave. At the grave he told the Disciples that the body is not in the tomb. As they rolled the stone there was no body, they did not know how to explain it, being vanquished by St. Thomas’ words. Then St. Thomas told them how he saw her body assuming to heaven, and St. Mary gave him her girdle, and show it to them.

They all rejoiced and asked the Lord to see her again.

In the seventh month after her death (i.e., on 15th of Mesra), the Disciples reassembled at the tomb and spent the night watching and singing hymns.

At dawn on the 16th of Mesra there were great thundering and a choir of angels were heard. The Lord Jesus came on the Cherubim with the soul of the Virgin Mary seated in His Bosom and greeted them.

Other stories state that till the 16th of Mesra her body was not ascended. The Lord came with the soul of His mother and asked the body to accompany Him. He took her into the chariot. The angels went before them, and a voice called “Peace to you, my brethren”.    
     
Fr. Tadros Malaty 


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Tuesday, August 12, 2014

Mary Blessed Are You Among Women





In the following words St. Mary teaches us how worthless she felt of herself and that she received by the heavenly grace that was lavished on her every sort of good merit that she had. She says, "For He has considered the humility of his handmaid.  For behold from this time on all generations will call me blessed."

She demonstrates that in her own judgment she was indeed Christ's humble handmaid, but with respect to heavenly grace she pronounces herself all at once lifted up and glorified to such a degree that rightly her pre-eminent blessedness would be marvelled at by the voices of all nations.

Bede 


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Sunday, August 3, 2014

Surrender Yourself Completely To Him






How is it possible that in the face of so many exhortations and promises, we still refuse to accept totally to go to him and surrender ourselves completely to him? How can we refuse, as the Gospel says, to deny all other things, even our own soul (Luke 14:26), and to seek him alone with our love and give it to nothing else?

But, look, all these things and such glory given! Look at all the loving dispositions of God manifested in the times of the fathers and the prophets! What promises! And what exhortations! What great mercy of the Lord has been shown us from the very beginning! Finally, in his own coming on this earth he has shown to us an ineffable kindness through his crucifixion in order to convert us and bring us into life. And yet, we do not will to give up our love for the world nor our evil tendencies and habits.

In this way we show ourselves persons of little or absolutely no good faith. And in spite of all this, he still shows himself kind to us. He protects and cherishes us invisibly, not turning us over (according to our sinful deserts) to the deceits of evil and the world. He, in his great compassion and long-suffering, watches from above, waiting for the time we shall return to him.


St. Macarius The Great
 

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Saturday, July 26, 2014

Work while it is day






We read in the Psalm: 'My sorrow is always before me.' What sorrow? Brethren, let me speak plainly: we sorrow over our misfortunes, but do we consider why they have happened? A man who suffers loss is more likely to say, 'I did not deserve it', than to remember what he did deserve. To mourn the loss of money more than that of righteousness. If you have sinned mourn over the treasury of your heart. Your purse is empty - perhaps your soul is even emptier. God forbid that we should be sorrowful over our pains.  Let us regret the wound, not the medicine that heals it, for misfortune is the cure for sin.

Listen, brethren: we are Christians. If one of your children dies, you mourn, but if he sins you do not, and yet in your house he is not only dead, but putrefying. Sin is what we must weep for;  we must bear with anything else. The psalm goes on: 'For I acknowledge my wickedness.' Yes, but don't feel secure when you have acknowledged your sins: are you confessing them and going on committing them? A man can weep copiously and do nothing about it.

You want to heal the wound? Then take steps to do so. Redeem your sins by giving alms. The beggar rejoices in your gift, and you in what God has granted you. In your eyes he is a beggar; what are you before God? If you look at him with scorn, how does God see you? That is why I tell you to give him what he needs, so that God may fill your empty heart.


  DAILY READING WITH
St Augustine --- The Heart at Rest 

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Wednesday, July 23, 2014

Prayer of St. Ephrem







O Lord and Master of my life,
give me not the spirit of sloth,
meddling, lust for power and idle talk.

But grant unto me,
Thy servant,
a spirit of chastity (integrity),
humility, patience and love.

Yea, O Lord and King,
grant me to see mine own faults
and not to judge my brother.
For blessed art Thou unto the ages of ages.
Amen.



St. Ephrem The Syrian

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Monday, July 14, 2014

IF TWELVE MEN LEAVENED THE WORLD, HOW ABOUT YOU?






For as the leaven converts the large quantity of meal into its own quality (Mt. 13:33)  even so shall you convert the whole world. .. Let nobody reprove us, therefore, for being few. For great is the power of the Gospel and what is once leavened becomes leaven in turn for the remainder. .. Now if twelve men leavened the whole world, imagine the extent of our weakness in that we cannot, in spite of our numbers, improve what is left.

We who ought to be enough for ten thousand worlds and to become leaven to them. 'But', you object, 'they were apostles. So what! Were they not partakers with you? Were they not raised in cities? Did they not enjoy the same benefits? Did they not practice trades? What, were they angels? Did they come down from Heaven?
(in Matt. 46(47),2) 

From The Writing of
St. John Chrysostom 

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Tuesday, July 1, 2014

Sayings of the Desert Fathers



 

About St. Moses The Black

Once the order was given at Scetis, 'Fast the week.' Now it happened that some brothers came from Egypt to visit Abba Moses and he cooked something for them. 

Seeing some smoke, the neighbors said to the ministers, 'Look, Moses has broken the commandment and has cooked something in his cell.' The ministers said, 'When he comes, we will speak to him ourselves.' 

When the Saturday came, since they knew Abba Moses' remarkable way of life, the ministers said to him in front of everyone, 'O Abba Moses, you did not keep the commandment of men, but it was so that you might keep the commandment of God.'


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Sunday, June 15, 2014

Lift up your hearts




It is foolish to deceive oneself: look into your hearts and acknowledge how often useless thoughts get in the way of your prayer. You want to praise God but you cannot find anything that will restrain your wandering thoughts, so that in all your prayers there is scarcely one that is really prayer.

Only remember that God is gentle and mild and bears with our wandering and waits for us to pray in such a way that he may perfect it. When he gives us that prayer he accepts it and does not remember how badly we have prayed before. If you were before a jude and in the middle of your speech you started gossiping with a friend, what would happen? Yet God puts up with prayers that are interrupted by other thoughts.

When you read, he speaks to you; when you pray, you speak to him.

If this is so, brethren, must we despair, thinking that punishment awaits anyone whose mind wanders at his prayer? No; let us say: 'Rejoice the soul of thy servant, for to thee O Lord I lift up my soul.' How shall I lift it up? As much as I can with the strength you give me; as much as I am able to keep hold of my wandering thoughts. Because you are mild and gentle you do not cast me off; strengthen me and I shall stand firm, and until then bear with me.


  DAILY READING WITH
St Augustine --- The Heart at Rest 

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Sunday, June 8, 2014

The Power of the Holy Fire




“The power to bear Mysteries, which the humble man has received, which makes him perfect in every virtue without toil, this is the very power which the blessed apostles received in the form of fire. For its sake the Savior commanded them not to leave Jerusalem until they should receive power from on high, that is to say, the Paraclete, which, being interpreted, is the Spirit of consolation. 

And this is the Spirit of divine visions. Concerning this it is said in divine Scripture: ‘Mysteries are revealed to the humble.’ (Ecclus 3:19) The humble are accounted worthy of receiving in themselves this Spirit of revelations Who teaches mysteries.”

St Isaac the Syrian


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Friday, May 30, 2014

The Descent of the Spirit on the Son





For it is not true that Christ then descended on Jesus: nor are Christ and Jesus two distinct persons, but the Word of God, the Savior of all and the Ruler of heaven and earth, is Jesus. He took flesh; he was anointed by the Father with the Spirit and became Jesus Christ as also Isaiah says ‘there shall spring forth a rod from the root of Jesse, and a flower shall come up from this root, and the Spirit of God shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding’ . . .  (Isaiah 11:1-2)

And again Isaiah, foretelling his anointing, and the end for which he was anointed, says, ‘The Spirit of God is upon me, wherefore he has anointed me, and sent me to preach good tidings to the lowly’ . . . (Isaiah 61:1)  Therefore the Spirit of God descended on him; the Spirit of him who through the prophets had promised that he would anoint him, in order that we might receive of the abundance of his unction and be saved.

God promised through the prophets to ‘pour out this Spirit upon his servants and handmaidens in the last days, that they may prophesy.’   
  
And the Spirit descended from God on the Son of God, made son of man, and with him became accustomed to dwell among the human race and to ‘rest on’ men and to dwell in God's creatures, working the Father's will in them, and renewing them from their old state into the newness of Christ.

St Irenaeus of Lyons


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Sunday, May 25, 2014

I SINNED! I SINNED!




Repent and turn away from your idols, and turn away 
your faces from all your abominations

Ezekiel 14:6 


From the inspiration of Ezekiel  (14)
 

My God … How difficult it is for me to confess!
Expose to me my hidden depths; so that I should cry out:
I sinned! I sinned!

In the old days, the people used to cast the blame on the priests;
And the priests used to cast the blame on the people!
And every generation think that it is punished for sins of their fathers.
As for me, I confess to You:
I sinned! I sinned!

My father will not intercede on my behalf, if I neglect my salvation!
And I will not be punished for his weaknesses!
I admit to You my personal responsibility!
I sinned! Forgive me, and absolve me!

The prophet Moses interceded on behalf of his people.
And the prophet Samuel kept on praying for them.
A cloud of witnesses surrounds us,
who intercede and pray for us, and support us!
Instruct me on how to care for my salvation,
Then this cloud would become my support!

I complain about myself to You; Sin has destroyed me:
A famine for God's word has come on me!
I became like a desolate land, in which evil thoughts dwell, like wild beasts!
The sword of sin strokes my depths, destroying my talents!
By my sin, I became like a pestilence, corrupting those around me.
I confess my sin to You;
The responsibility is all mine!
Save me … Rescue me!

Fr. Tadros Malaty
From the Inspiration of The Book of Ezekiel


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He Came To Restore





What is restored to life is not something other than that which dies; just as that which is lost is not something different from that which is found.

It was the sheep that was lost which the Lord came to find. What then was it which perished? Clearly it was the substance of flesh, which lost the breath of life …

The Lord came to restore this flesh to life, that 'as in Adam all die', as possessing merely sensual life, we may live 'in Christ', as having spiritual life, putting away not the handiwork of God but the lusts of the flesh, and receiving the Holy Spirit. 

St. Irenaeus of Lyons



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Saturday, May 17, 2014

Resurrection Destroyed Death






Christ came that He might slay sin, 
render death null and void, and give life to men. 

The Word of God was made flesh in order that 
He might destroy death and bring us to life. 

Saint Irenaeus


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Friday, May 2, 2014

Salvation of The Lord





“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, Because the Lord has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to those who are bound;

To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn,

To console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.”

Isaiah 61:1-3 (NKJV)


Isaiah calls “poor” those who have lost heavenly riches, “broken-hearted” those who have corrupted their reason, “blind” those who do not know God and who worship creation, “prisoners” those brought into the enemy’s camp and who have lost their original freedom.

Christ did not only give to us the forgiveness of sins and free us from the tyranny of the devil and reveal to us the divine light, but He also announced the future existence and warned of the righteous judgment.

For I think that “the year of grace” means His first coming and “day of recompense” the day of judgment. To console all who mourn with the hope of the resurrection, He has tempered the despair of death.

Theodoret of Cyr


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Monday, April 21, 2014

Glorified With Him In The Resurrection





“Yesterday I was crucified with Him; today I am glorified with Him; yesterday I died with Him; today I am quickened with Him; yesterday I was buried with Him; today I rise with Him.

But let us offer to Him Who suffered and rose again for us— you will think perhaps that I am going to say gold, or silver, or woven work or transparent and costly stones, the mere passing material of earth, that remains here below, and is for the most part always possessed by bad men, slaves of the world and of the Prince of the world.

Let us offer ourselves, the possession most precious to God, and most fitting; let us give back to the Image what is made after the Image.

Let us recognize our Dignity; let us honor our Archetype; let us know the power of the Mystery, and for what Christ died.”

St. Gregory the Theologian
 

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Saturday, April 12, 2014

The Comforter




 
Wait on the Lord; Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart;
Wait, I say, on the Lord!

Psalm 27:14 (NKJV)



The Holy Spirit is called Comforter, because He comforts and encourages us and “helps our weakness. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself pleads for us with unutterable groaning,” that is, clearly, to God.

Often a person for Christ’s sake is treated with contempt and unjustly dishonored; martyrdom is at hand, tortures on every side, fire, swords, wild beasts and the abyss.

But the Holy Spirit gently whispers, “Wait for the Lord,” for your present sufferings are slight, while your rewards will be great. Endure for a little while, and you will be with the angels forever.

“The sufferings of the present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory to come that will be revealed in us.” He portrays for the person the kingdom of heaven and even gives him a glimpse of the paradise of pleasure; and the martyrs, who must present their bodily countenances to their judges, are in spirit already in paradise, despise what appear to be hardships.

St. Cyril Of Jerusalem



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Thursday, April 10, 2014

Fasting and Sackcloth




Fasting and sackcloth are the weapons of faith, and helper of sinners. Fasting first and then the sackcloth; the first represents the invisible and the latter the visible. One is always before the Lord; the other is temporary for people's eyes. 

 
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Monday, March 31, 2014

Trials and Tribulations



Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 
for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.

James 1: 2 - 3 ESV



From The Sayings of The Fathers 
“Suffering is a real bond, an encouragement to greater love, and the basis of spiritual perfection and godliness. Listen to the one who says: ‘If you want to serve the Lord, prepare your soul for temptation.’ And again Christ said: ‘In the world you will have tribulation, but take courage.’ And again: ‘straight and narrow is the way.’ Everywhere you see suffering being praised, everywhere it is accepted as necessary for us. For in the world there is no one who wins a trophy without suffering, who has not strengthened himself with labors and dieting and exercise and vigils and many other things like that. How much more is that true in this battle!”
St. John Chrysostom

"Whenever in your path you find unchanging peace, beware: you are very far from the divine paths trodden by the weary feet of the saints. For as long as you are journeying in the way to the city of the Kingdom and are drawing nigh the city of God, this will be a sign for you: the strength of the temptations that you counter. And the nearer you draw nigh and progress, the more temptations will multiply against you."
St. Isaac the Syrian

"Just as the world has to pass through winter before the spring comes and the flowers bloom, so a man must go through many temptations before he can inherit the prize of eternal life. For as Paul said: ‘Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.’ Temptations come in three ways, by persuasion, by attraction and by consent. Satan persuades, the flesh is attracted, and the mind consents.”
St. Hilary of Arles



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Thursday, March 13, 2014

The life we lead






There are three kinds of life: that of repose, that of action, and the one which combines the two. A man may attain to everlasting happiness by leading any of them, as long as he keeps to the faith.

But we must ask the man who seeks the truth in repose what he does for love of his neighbour. He must not give himself up to idle leisure; let him search for the truth, progress in his search, hold fast to what he has learnt and be generous in sharing it with others.  He who leads an active life must not long for honors and power - he must love the work itself if it is well and profitably done, that is, if it leads to the salvation of those under him.

Let no one be so attached to his own repose that he has no thought for his neighbour, not on the other hand be so busy that he neglects the contemplation of God. If we are believers, we are walking in the path of faith, and if we keep to it, some of us will arrive at a certain comprehension of the unchanging truth, and at the end will contemplate it 'face to face' as the apostle says.

On the other hand, there are those who, while understanding what is meant by things invisible and immutable, refuse to keep to the way that alone leads to everlasting happiness, the way of Christ crucified. Some rays of heavenly light have reached their souls, but only as it were from a great distance, and they will not reach Christ's hidden mansion of rest.


  DAILY READING WITH
St Augustine --- The Heart at Rest 
 

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