Contents:
Non-judgment and Forgiveness of Offenses
Discerning the Movements of the Heart
Excessive Concern for Worldly Matters
The Active and Contemplative Life
The Acquisition of the Holy Spirit
Saint Seraphim (born Prokhor Moshnin) was born in 1759 in Kursk into a merchant family. At the age of 10, he fell seriously ill. During his illness, he saw the Mother of God in a dream, who promised to heal him. A few days later, a religious procession took place in Kursk carrying a local miraculous icon of the Mother of God. Due to bad weather, the procession took a shortcut past the Moshnin family’s home. After his mother placed Seraphim before the miraculous icon, he began to recover quickly. At a young age, he had to help his parents in their shop, but he had little interest in commerce. Young Seraphim loved to read the lives of the saints, attend church, and withdraw to pray.
At the age of 18, Seraphim firmly resolved to take monastic vows. His mother blessed him with a large copper crucifix, which he wore over his clothes for the rest of his life. After that, he entered the Sarov Monastery as a novice.
From his very first day at the monastery, exceptional abstinence in food and sleep became a defining feature of his life. He ate only once a day, and even then, very little. On Wednesdays and Fridays, he ate nothing at all. After asking his elder for a blessing, he began to frequently retreat into the forest for prayer and contemplation. Soon he fell seriously ill again and was forced to spend most of his time in bed for three years.
Once again, he was healed by the Most Holy Virgin Mary, who appeared to him accompanied by several saints. Pointing to the Venerable Seraphim, the Most Holy Virgin said to the Apostle John the Theologian, “This one is of our kind.” Then, touching his side with her staff, she healed him.
His tonsure into the monastic order took place in 1786 (when he was 27 years old). He was given the name Seraphim, which in Hebrew means “fiery, burning.” Soon after, he was ordained a hierodeacon. He lived up to his name with extraordinary fervor in prayer. He spent all his time, except for the briefest rest, in the church. Amid such prayerful and liturgical labors, St. Seraphim was granted the vision of angels concelebrating and singing in the church. During the Liturgy on Holy Thursday, he saw the Lord Jesus Christ Himself in the form of the Son of Man, entering the church accompanied by the heavenly hosts and blessing those who were praying. Struck by this vision, the venerable one was unable to speak for a long time.
In 1793, the Venerable Seraphim was ordained a hieromonk, after which, for a year, he celebrated the Divine Liturgy daily and received Holy Communion. Later, Saint Seraphim began to retreat to the “distant hermitage”—a remote forest five versts from the Sarov Monastery. The level of perfection he attained during this time was remarkable. Wild animals—bears, hares, wolves, foxes, and others—would come to the ascetic’s hut. Matrona Pleshcheeva, an elderly nun at the Diveyevo Convent, personally witnessed Saint Seraphim feeding a bear that had come to him from his own hands. “The face of the great elder seemed especially wondrous to me at that time. It was joyful and radiant, like that of an angel,” she recounted. While living in his little hermitage, the Venerable Seraphim was once severely attacked by robbers. Although he was physically very strong and had an axe with him, the Venerable Seraphim did not resist them. In response to their demands for money and their threats, he lowered the axe to the ground, folded his hands in the sign of the cross over his chest, and meekly surrendered to them. They began striking him on the head with the blunt side of his own axe. Blood poured from his mouth and ears, and he fell unconscious. After that, they began beating him with a log, trampling him underfoot, and dragging him across the ground. They stopped beating him only when they decided he was dead. The only treasure the robbers found in his cell was an icon of the Tender Mercy of the Mother of God, before which he always prayed. When, some time later, the robbers were caught and brought to trial, the reverend interceded on their behalf before the judge. After being beaten by the robbers, the Reverend Seraphim was left hunchbacked for the rest of his life.
Shortly thereafter began the pillar-living period of St. Seraphim’s life, during which he spent his days on a single rock near the “little hermitage” and his nights deep in the forest. He prayed almost without interruption, with his hands raised toward heaven. This ascetic feat continued for a thousand days.
Following a special vision of the Mother of God toward the end of his life, St. Seraphim took on the role of an elder. He began to receive all who came to him for counsel and guidance. Many thousands of people from the most diverse walks of life and social statuses now began to visit the elder, who enriched them from his spiritual treasure, acquired through many years of asceticism. Everyone found St. Seraphim to be gentle, joyful, and thoughtfully sincere. He greeted those who came with the words, “My joy!” To many he advised, “Acquire a peaceful spirit, and thousands around you will be saved.” No matter who came to him, the elder would bow to the ground before everyone, bless them, and kiss their hands himself. He did not need those who came to tell him about themselves; he knew for himself what was in their hearts. He also used to say: “Cheerfulness is not a sin. It drives away weariness, and weariness leads to despondency—and there is nothing worse than that.”
“Ah, if only you knew,” he once said to a monk, “what joy, what sweetness awaits the soul of the righteous in Heaven, then you would be willing to endure all manner of sorrows, persecutions, and slander in this earthly life with gratitude. If this very cell of ours were full of worms, and if those worms were to eat our flesh throughout our entire life here, we would gladly accept it, so long as we did not lose that heavenly joy which God has prepared for those who love Him.”
A close admirer and disciple of Saint Seraphim—Motovilov—described a miraculous instance of the saint’s transformation. It happened in winter, on a cloudy day. Motovilov was sitting on a tree stump in the forest. Saint Seraphim was crouching across from him, speaking to his disciple about the meaning of the Christian life and explaining why we, as Christians, live on earth.
“The Holy Spirit must enter the heart,” he said. “All the good things we do for Christ give us the Holy Spirit, but above all, prayer, which is always within our reach.”
“Father,” Motovilov replied, “but how can I see the grace of the Holy Spirit? How can I know whether He is with me or not?”
Saint Seraphim began to give him examples from the lives of the saints and the apostles, but Motovilov still did not understand. Then the elder took him firmly by the shoulder and said to him, “We are both now, Father, in the Spirit of God.” It was as if Motovilov’s eyes had been opened, and he saw that the elder’s face was brighter than the sun. In his heart, Motovilov felt joy and peace; his body was warm, as if it were summer, and a sweet fragrance filled the air around them. Motovilov was terrified by this extraordinary change—and above all, by the fact that the elder’s face shone like the sun. But Saint Seraphim said to him, “Do not be afraid, Father. You would not even be able to see me if you yourself were not now filled with the Spirit of God. Give thanks to the Lord for His mercy toward us.”
Thus Motovilov understood, both with his mind and with his heart, what the descent of the Holy Spirit and the transformation of a person by Him mean.
Feast days of the Venerable Seraphim: August 1 and January 15 (July 19 and January 2 according to the church calendar)
Troparion: From your youth you loved Christ, O blessed one, and, eager to serve Him alone with fervor, you labored in the desert with unceasing prayer and toil; having attained the love of Christ with a contrite heart, you became a chosen and beloved one of the Mother of God. For this reason we cry out to you: Save us by your prayers, Seraphim, our venerable father... To Him be glory forever and ever, amen.
God is fire, warming and setting ablaze hearts and innermost beings. Therefore, if we feel coldness in our hearts—which comes from the devil (for the devil is cold)—let us call upon the Lord: He, coming, will warm our hearts with perfect love, not only for Him but also for our neighbors. And the coldness of the enemy of goodness will flee from the presence of His warmth.
Where God is, there is no evil. Everything that comes from God is peaceful, beneficial, and leads a person to acknowledge their shortcomings and to humility.
God reveals His love for humanity to us not only when we do good, but also when we offend Him with our sins and provoke His wrath. How patiently He endures our transgressions! And when He punishes, how mercifully He does so! “Do not call God righteous,” says the Venerable Isaac, “for His righteousness is not evident in your deeds. True, David called Him both righteous and just, but the Son of God has shown us that God is more good and merciful. Where is His righteousness? We were sinners, and Christ died for us” (Isaac the Syrian, Homily 90).
1. God’s love for the human race: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son” (John 3:16).
2. The restoration of the image and likeness of God in fallen humanity.
3. The salvation of human souls: “God did not send His Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him” (John 3:17).
Therefore, following the purpose of our Redeemer, the Lord Jesus Christ, we must live our lives in accordance with His divine teaching, so that through this we may save our souls.
Faith, according to the teaching of the Venerable Antiochus, is the beginning of our union with God: the true believer is a stone of God’s temple, prepared for the building of God the Father, lifted up to the heights by the power of Jesus Christ—that is, through the cross and the help of the grace of the Holy Spirit.
“Faith without works is dead” (James 2:26). The works of faith are: love, peace, long-suffering, mercy, humility, bearing the cross, and living according to the Spirit. True faith cannot exist without works. Whoever believes sincerely will certainly perform good deeds.
All who have firm hope in God are drawn to Him and enlightened by the radiance of eternal light.
If a person does not worry excessively about themselves out of love for God and for the sake of virtuous deeds, knowing that God cares for them, then such hope is true and wise. But if a person places all his hope in his own deeds and turns to God in prayer only when unforeseen misfortunes befall him—and, seeing no means in his own strength to avert them, begins to hope for God’s help—then such hope is vain and false. True hope seeks the one Kingdom of God and is confident that everything necessary for this earthly life will certainly be provided. The heart cannot find peace until it acquires such hope. It is this hope that fully pacifies the heart and brings joy to it. It was of this hope that the most holy lips of the Savior spoke: “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28).
One who has attained perfect love for God lives this life as if he did not exist. For he considers himself a stranger to the visible world, patiently awaiting the invisible. He has been completely transformed into love for God and has renounced all worldly attachments.
One who truly loves God considers himself a stranger and a sojourner on earth; for within him, the longing for God with soul and mind contemplates Him alone.
A person, in the flesh, is like a lit candle. The candle must burn out, and a person must die. But his soul is immortal; therefore, our care must be directed more toward the soul than toward the body: “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? Or what ransom can a man give for his soul?” (Matt. 16:26), for which, as is well known, nothing in the world can serve as a ransom? If a single soul is in itself more precious than the whole world and the earthly kingdom, then the Kingdom of Heaven is incomparably more precious. We hold the soul to be more precious than anything else for the reason, as Macarius the Great says, that God chose to commune and unite His divine nature with nothing else—not with any visible creation—but with man alone, whom He loved more than all His other creatures.
We must treat our neighbors kindly, without even giving the appearance of offense. When we turn away from a person or insult them, it is as if a stone were placed upon our heart. We must strive to encourage the spirit of a person who is troubled or despondent with words of love.
If you see a brother committing a sin, cover him, as Saint Isaac the Syrian advises: “Spread your garment over the sinner and cover him.”
In our relationships with our neighbors, we must be pure in both word and thought and treat everyone equally; otherwise, we will render our lives useless. We must love our neighbor no less than ourselves, in accordance with the Lord’s commandment: “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Luke 10:27). But this does not mean that love for our neighbors, if it goes beyond the bounds of moderation, should distract us from fulfilling the first and foremost commandment of love for God, as our Lord Jesus Christ Himself teaches: “Whoever loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and whoever loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me” (Matt. 10:37).
We must be merciful toward the poor and strangers; the great luminaries and Fathers of the Church devoted much attention to this. With regard to this virtue, we must strive by every means to fulfill the following commandments of God: “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful” and “I desire mercy, not sacrifice” (Luke 6:36; Matt. 9:13). The wise heed these saving words, but the unwise do not; therefore, the reward will not be the same, as it is said: “Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously” (2 Cor. 9:6).
May the example of Peter the Bread-Giver, who received forgiveness for all his sins in exchange for a piece of bread given to a beggar (as was shown to him in a vision), inspire us to be merciful toward our neighbors—for even a small act of charity contributes greatly to entering the Kingdom of Heaven.
Alms should be given with a cheerful heart, according to the teaching of St. Isaac the Syrian: “If you give anything to one who asks, let the joy on your face precede your gift, and comfort his sorrow with kind words.”
You must not judge anyone, even if you have seen with your own eyes someone sinning and persisting in violating God’s commandments, as it is written in the Word of God: “Do not judge, so that you will not be judged” (Matt. 7:1). “Who are you to judge another’s servant? He stands or falls before his own Lord. And he will be restored, for God is powerful to restore him” (Rom. 14:4). It is far better to always remind yourself of the apostle’s words: “Let anyone who thinks he stands take care not to fall” (1 Cor. 10:12).
We must not harbor malice or hatred toward those who are hostile toward us; on the contrary, we must love them and, as much as possible, do good to them, following the teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ: “Love your enemies and do good to those who hate you” (Matt. 5:44). Therefore, if we strive with all our strength to fulfill all this, we may hope that the Divine light will shine in our hearts, illuminating our path to the heavenly Jerusalem.
Why do we judge our neighbors? Because we do not strive to know ourselves. Whoever is occupied with self-knowledge has no time to notice the faults of others. Judge yourself—and you will cease to judge others. Judge the evil deed, but do not judge the one who commits it. We must consider ourselves the most sinful of all and forgive every evil deed committed by our neighbor. We must hate only the devil, who has deceived them. It sometimes happens that it seems to us as though another is doing wrong, but in reality, given the doer’s good intentions, it is good. Moreover, the door of repentance is open to all, and it is unknown who will enter it first—you, the one who judges, or the one you judge.
Those who wish to be saved must always have a heart inclined toward repentance and contrite: “A broken spirit is a sacrifice to God; a broken and contrite heart, O God, You will not despise” (Ps. 50:19). With such a contrite spirit, a person can easily and safely avoid all the cunning schemes of the devil, whose every effort is directed toward disturbing the human spirit and, in that disturbance, sowing his tares (weeds), according to the words of the Gospel: “Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did the weeds come from? He replied, ‘An enemy of the man did this’” (Matt. 13:27–28). But when a person strives to have a humble heart and keeps peace in his thoughts, then all the enemy’s schemes are rendered powerless; for where there is peace of mind, there God Himself dwells: “In peace,” it is said, “is His dwelling place” (Ps. 75:2).
Throughout our lives, we offend God’s majesty through our sins, and therefore we must always humbly ask the Lord for forgiveness of our sins.
Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Leader of Asceticism and our Savior, strengthened Himself through prolonged fasting before undertaking the work of redeeming the human race. And all ascetics, as they set out to serve the Lord, armed themselves with fasting and did not embark on the way of the cross except through the practice of fasting. They measured their very success in asceticism by their success in fasting.
Nevertheless, to the amazement of others, the holy fasters knew no lethargy but always remained alert, strong, and ready for action. Illness was rare among them, and their lives were exceptionally long.
As the flesh of the fasting person becomes thin and light, the spiritual life reaches perfection and reveals itself through wondrous phenomena. Then the spirit performs its actions, as it were, in a disembodied form. The external senses are effectively shut off, and the mind, detaching itself from the earthly, soars toward heaven and is wholly immersed in the contemplation of the spiritual world. However, not everyone can impose upon themselves a strict rule of abstinence in all things and deprive themselves of everything that might serve to alleviate their infirmities. “Let the one who can accept this accept it” (Matt. 19:12).
One should eat enough food each day so that the body, having been strengthened, may be a friend and helper to the soul in the practice of virtue; otherwise, it may happen that as the body grows weak, the soul will also grow weak. On Fridays and Wednesdays, and especially during the four periods of fasting, follow the example of the Fathers and eat only once a day—and the Angel of the Lord will be with you.
One must always be patient and accept everything that happens with gratitude for God’s sake. Our life is but a single minute compared to eternity. And therefore, “the present sufferings,” according to the Apostle, “are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us” (Rom. 8:18).
Endure in silence when the enemy insults you, and open your heart only to the Lord. Try by every means to forgive those who humiliate you or take away your honor, according to the words of the Gospel: “Do not demand back what has been taken from you” (Luke 6:30).
When people revile us, we must consider ourselves unworthy of praise, realizing that if we were worthy, everyone would bow down to us. We must always humble ourselves before everyone, following the teaching of Saint Isaac the Syrian: “Humble yourself, and you will see the glory of God within yourself.”
The body is the slave of the soul, and the soul is the queen. Therefore, it often happens that, by God’s mercy, our body is worn down by illness. Through illness, the passions weaken, and a person comes to his senses. Furthermore, sometimes even physical illness itself arises from the passions. Whoever endures illness with patience and gratitude has it counted as a feat of virtue—or even more than that.
One elder, who suffered from dropsy, said to the brothers who came to him wishing to treat him: “Fathers, pray that my inner self may not be afflicted with such an illness. As for this present affliction, I ask God that He not suddenly deliver me from it, for as my outer self is wasting away, so my inner self is being renewed” (2 Cor. 4:16).
Peace of mind is gained through suffering. Scripture says: “We have gone through fire and water, and You have brought us to a place of rest” (Ps. 65:12). For those who wish to please God, the path leads through many trials. How can we praise the holy martyrs for the sufferings they endured for God’s sake when we cannot even endure a fever?
Nothing contributes more to the attainment of inner peace than silence and, as much as possible, constant conversation with oneself and rare conversation with others.
A sign of spiritual life is a person’s immersion within themselves and the secret work of the heart.
Our Lord Jesus Christ left this peace, like a priceless treasure, to His disciples before His death, saying, “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you” (John 14:27). The Apostle also speaks of it: “And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:7); “Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord” (Heb. 12:14).
Therefore, we must direct all our thoughts, desires, and actions toward obtaining the peace of God, and always cry out with the Church: “O Lord our God, grant us peace” (Isa. 26:12).
We must do everything in our power to preserve inner peace and not be upset by insults from others. To this end, we must refrain from anger in every way and, through mindfulness, guard our minds and hearts from unseemly fluctuations.
We must endure insults from others with indifference and accustom ourselves to such a state of mind, as if they did not concern us at all. Such practice can bring peace to our hearts and make them a dwelling place for God Himself.
We see an example of such benevolence in the life of Saint Gregory the Wonderworker, from whom a certain prostitute publicly demanded a bribe, allegedly for a sin committed with her. He, however, without the slightest anger toward her, meekly said to one of his friends, “Quickly give her the price she demands.” As soon as the woman accepted the unjust payment, she began to rage. Then the saint, after praying, cast the demon out of her.
If, however, it is impossible not to be indignant, then at the very least one must hold one’s tongue, in accordance with the words of the Psalmist: “I am stunned and cannot speak” (Ps. 76:5).
In this case, we can take Saint Spyridon of Trimythous and the Venerable Ephrem the Syrian as our examples. The former endured an insult in the following way: when, at the request of the Greek king, he was entering the palace, one of the servants in the royal chamber, mistaking him for a beggar, mocked him, refused to let him into the chamber, and even struck him on the cheek. Saint Spyridon, being without malice, turned the other cheek to him, following the Lord’s command (Matt. 5:39). The Venerable Ephrem, living in the desert, was once deprived of food in this way. His disciple, while carrying food, accidentally broke the vessel on the way. The venerable one, seeing his disciple sad, said to him, “Do not grieve, brother. If the food did not want to come to us, then we will go to it.” So the venerable one went, sat down by the broken vessel, gathered up the food, and ate it. That is how gentle-hearted he was!
To preserve peace of mind, one must cast away despondency and strive to maintain a joyful spirit, according to the words of the wise Sirach: “Sorrow has killed many, and there is no benefit in it” (Sir. 30:25).
To preserve inner peace, one must also avoid judging others in every way possible. Inner peace is preserved through forbearance toward one’s brother and silence. When a person is in this state of mind, he receives divine revelations.
To avoid falling into the trap of judging others, one must be mindful of oneself, refuse to accept bad news from anyone, and remain indifferent to everything.
To preserve inner peace, one must frequently turn inward and ask: “Where am I?” In doing so, one must ensure that the bodily senses—especially sight—serve the inner person and do not distract the soul with sensory objects; for only those who engage in inner work and watch over their souls receive divine gifts.
To disciples eager to undertake excessive ascetic feats, the Venerable Seraphim said that bearing insults with patience and meekness is our chains and hair shirt. (Chains—iron chains and various weights; hair shirt—thick clothing made of coarse wool.) Some ascetics wore these items to mortify their bodies.
One should not undertake feats beyond one’s measure, but rather strive to ensure that our friend—our flesh—remains faithful and capable of producing virtues. We must walk the middle path, turning neither to the right nor to the left (Prov. 4:27): giving the spirit what is spiritual, and the body what is physical, as needed to sustain our temporal life. Nor should we deny society what it rightfully demands of us, according to the words of Scripture: “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s” (Matt. 22:21).
We must be lenient with our own soul in its weaknesses and imperfections, and bear with our own shortcomings just as we bear with the shortcomings of others, but we must not grow complacent and must constantly strive to improve ourselves.
If you have eaten too much or done something else characteristic of human weakness, do not be upset; do not add harm to harm; but courageously, resolving to make amends, strive to preserve peace of mind according to the Apostle’s words: “Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself in what he chooses” (Rom. 14:22). The words of the Savior convey the same meaning: “Unless you turn and become like children, you will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven” (Matt. 18:3).
We must attribute every success in anything to the Lord and say with the prophet: “Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to Your name give glory” (Ps. 113:9).
We must constantly guard our hearts against impure thoughts and impressions, as the writer of the Book of Proverbs says: “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it” (Prov. 4:23).
Through the long-term guarding of the heart, purity is born within it, and through this purity, the vision of the Lord becomes accessible, as assured by the eternal Truth: “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Matt. 5:8).
Whatever is best in the heart, we should not reveal it unnecessarily, for only when it is kept as a treasure within the heart does it remain safe from visible and invisible enemies. Do not reveal the secrets of your heart to everyone.
When a person receives something divine, he rejoices in his heart; but when he receives something devilish, he becomes troubled.
The heart of a Christian, having received something divine, does not require external assurance that it is from the Lord, but is convinced by that very act that its perception is heavenly, for it feels within itself the spiritual fruits: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Gal. 5:22). But even if the devil were to transform himself into an angel of light (2 Cor. 11:14) or present the most plausible thoughts, the heart will still sense a certain vagueness, agitation in its thoughts, and confusion of feelings.
The devil, like a lion lying in ambush (Ps. 9:30), secretly sets snares of impure and ungodly thoughts for us. Therefore, as soon as we notice them, we must break them by means of godly reflection and prayer.
It requires great effort and vigilance so that, while singing the psalms, our mind may be in harmony with our heart and lips, lest a foul odor be mingled with our prayer to the incense. For the Lord abhors a heart with impure thoughts.
Let us unceasingly, day and night, humble ourselves with tears before the face of God’s goodness, that He may purify our hearts from every evil thought, so that we may worthily offer Him the gifts of our service. When we do not accept the evil thoughts instilled in us by the devil, we do good.
The impure spirit exerts a strong influence only on those who are ruled by passions; but those who have purified themselves of passions are touched by it only superficially, or from the outside. A person in his youth cannot help but be troubled by carnal thoughts. But he must pray to the Lord God that the spark of vicious passions may be extinguished within him at the very beginning. Then the flame will not grow strong within him.
Excessive concern for worldly affairs is characteristic of the unbeliever and the faint-hearted. And woe to us if, while caring for ourselves, we do not ground our hope in God, who cares for us! If we do not attribute to Him the visible blessings we enjoy in this present age, how can we expect from Him those blessings that are promised in the future? Let us not be so faithless, but rather let us seek first the Kingdom of God, and all these things will be added to us—according to the words of the Savior (Matt. 6:33).
When the evil spirit of sorrow takes hold of the soul, it fills it with bitterness and distress, preventing it from praying with due zeal, hindering the reading of spiritual writings with proper attention, depriving it of meekness and goodwill in dealing with others, and giving rise to aversion to all conversation. For a soul filled with sorrow, becoming as it were mad and frenzied, cannot calmly accept good counsel nor meekly answer the questions posed to it. It flees from people, as if from the culprits of its distress, not realizing that the cause of its illness lies within itself. Sorrow is a worm of the heart, gnawing at the mother who gave birth to it.
Whoever has conquered the passions has also conquered sorrow. But whoever is overcome by the passions will not escape the bonds of sorrow. Just as a sick person is recognizable by the color of his face, so one possessed by passion is distinguished by sorrow.
Whoever loves the world cannot help but grieve. But whoever despises the world is always joyful. Just as fire purifies gold, so sorrow for God’s sake [repentance] purifies the sinful heart.
A person consists of soul and body, and therefore his life’s journey must consist of bodily and spiritual actions—of action and contemplation.
The path of the active life consists of fasting, abstinence, vigil, kneeling, prayer, and other bodily disciplines, which make up the narrow and difficult path that, according to the word of God, leads to eternal life (Matt. 7:14).
The path of the contemplative life consists in directing the mind toward the Lord God, in heartfelt attention, focused prayer, and contemplation through such exercises of spiritual subjects.
Anyone who wishes to lead a spiritual life must begin with the active life and only then proceed to the contemplative life, for without the active life, it is impossible to transition to the contemplative life.
The active life serves to purify us from sinful passions and raises us to the level of active perfection; and thereby paves the way for us to the contemplative life. For only those who have been purified of passions and have attained perfection can enter into that other life, as can be seen from the words of Holy Scripture: “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” (Matt. 5:8), and from the words of St. Gregory the Theologian: “Only those who are perfect in their experience may safely enter into contemplation.”
If one cannot find a spiritual guide who can lead us on the path to the contemplative life, then one must be guided by Holy Scripture, for the Lord Himself commands us to learn from it, saying: “Search the Scriptures, for you think that through them you have eternal life” (John 5:39).
One should not abandon the active life even when one has progressed so far in it as to have attained the contemplative life, for the active life contributes to the contemplative life and elevates it.
In order to receive and experience the light of Christ in one’s heart, one must, as much as possible, detach oneself from visible affairs. Having purified the soul through repentance and good deeds, with sincere faith in the Crucified One, and having closed one’s physical eyes, one must immerse the mind within the heart and cry out, ceaselessly invoking the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Then, in proportion to the zeal and fervor of the spirit toward the Beloved (Luke 3:22), a person finds delight in the name being invoked, which stirs a thirst for higher enlightenment.
When a person contemplates the eternal light within, his mind becomes pure and free from all sensory perceptions. Then, being wholly absorbed in the contemplation of uncreated beauty, he forgets all that is sensory, does not even wish to see himself, but desires to hide in the heart of the earth, so long as he does not lose this true good—God.
(from conversations with Motovilov)
The true goal of our Christian life consists in acquiring [receiving, obtaining] the Holy Spirit of God. Fasting, vigil, prayer, almsgiving, and every good deed performed for Christ’s sake are the means for acquiring God’s Holy Spirit. Only a good deed performed for Christ’s sake brings us the fruits of the Holy Spirit.
Some say that the lack of oil in the “foolish virgins” refers to their lack of good deeds in life (the parable of the Ten Virgins, Matt. 25:1–12). This understanding is not entirely correct. What lack of good deeds could they possibly have, when they are called virgins—even though they are holy fools? After all, virginity is the highest virtue, a state equal to that of the angels, and could in and of itself serve as a substitute for all other virtues. I, a humble soul, believe that what they lacked was precisely the grace of God’s Most Holy Spirit. In performing their virtues, these virgins, due to their spiritual ignorance, believed that the sole Christian task was simply to perform virtues. “We have performed a virtue, and thereby accomplished God’s work”; but as for whether they had received the grace of God’s Spirit, or whether they had attained it—that was not their concern… It is precisely this acquisition (receiving) of the Holy Spirit that is actually called that “oil,” which the “holy fools” lacked. That is why they are called “holy fools”—because they forgot the necessary fruit of virtue, the grace of the Holy Spirit, without which there is no salvation for anyone and there cannot be, for: “Every soul is nourished (revived) by the Holy Spirit and exalted by purity, and is enlightened by the Trinitarian unity of the Holy Mystery.” The Holy Spirit Himself dwells in our souls, and it is precisely this indwelling of the Almighty in our souls, the Almighty, and the indwelling of His Triune Unity with our spirit is granted only through our earnest pursuit of the Holy Spirit, which prepares in our soul and body a throne for God’s all-creating indwelling with our spirit, according to God’s unchanging word: “I will dwell among them and be their God, and they shall be My people” (Lev. 26:12).
This is precisely the oil in the lamps of the wise virgins, which could burn brightly and continuously, and those virgins, with these burning lamps, were able to await the Bridegroom who came at midnight and enter with Him into the palace of joy. The foolish virgins, however, seeing that their lamps were going out, went to the marketplace to buy oil, but did not manage to return in time, for the doors were already shut. The marketplace is our life; the doors of the bridal chamber, which were shut and did not admit them to the Bridegroom, are human death; the wise and foolish virgins are Christian souls; the oil is not our deeds, but the grace of God’s Most Holy Spirit received through them, which transforms us from corruption to incorruption, from spiritual death to spiritual life, from darkness to light, from the den of our being—where passions are bound like cattle and beasts—into the temple of the Divinity, into the most radiant hall of eternal joy in Christ Jesus.
Editor: Bishop Alexander (Mileant)