'' Today, while the overall teachings of the fathers is under attack and the shipwrecks of Faith are numerous, the mouths of the faithful are silent.''
'' An obvious fall from faith and pride is to either subtract something from what is written or to introduce something new to the unwritten. ''
'' Anyone who is capable of speaking the truth but remains silent, will be heavily judged by God, especially in this case, where the faith and the very foundation of the entire church of the Orthodox is in danger.
To remain silent under these circumstances is to betray these and the appropriate witness belongs to those that reproach ( stand up for the faith ). ''
St. Basil the Great
What do we do when we are bothered by a seductive thought or a temptation?
First of all, don’t be afraid. Second, do not attempt to expel it. The important thing is to turn your attention to Christ.
The simplest way to do this is by making the sign of the Cross.
Elder Porphyrios says,
The most important weapon to use against the devil is the Holy Cross, of which he is terrified. … communication with the Christ, when it takes place simply and naturally without force, makes the devil flee. Also as you make your Cross say the words “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me.’
The Elder says,
This is our method. We will raise our ams to Christ and He will give us grace. This the same approach as given to us by Saint Neilos the Ascetic.
Whenever a temptation comes to you, or a dispute excites you, either to express at once anger towards your adversary or to utter a senseless cry, remember prayer and the judgment concerning it, and at once the disorderly movement in you will subside. (The Philokalia vol 2, trans. Constantine Cavarnos, p65) What we are doing is showing contempt for evil.
Reference: Wounded By Love, p 149 -151
Why do we pray?
Is it for love, longing and divine eros for God, or for the hope of compensation and the wages which the Lord sends with the consolation and sweetness of Grace ?
Prayer is a basic necessity of our being as indispensable as breathing. It forms the natural environment of each soul, in which the love for God is the beginning and end.
But by no means can we not expect the fruits also, the taste of which makes man more easily attain his divine destination, in other words, his union with Christ, who is the beginning and the source of all good.
Themes from the Philokalia- Watchfulness and Prayer pg. 66
Archimandrite Ioannikos
To many people the Saints seem far removed from us. But the Saints are far only from people who have distanced themselves – they are very close to them that keep Christ’s commandments and possess the grace of the Holy Spirit. In heaven all things live and move in the Holy Spirit. But this same Holy Spirit is on earth too.
The Holy Spirit dwells in our Church; in the sacraments; in the Holy Scriptures; in the souls of the faithful. The Holy Spirit unites all men, and so the Saints are close to us; and when we pray to them they hear our prayers in the Holy Spirit, and our souls feel that they are praying for us.
The Saints live in another world, and there through the Holy Spirit they behold the glory of God and the beauty of the Lord’s countenance. But in the same Holy Spirit they see our lives, too, and our deeds. They know our sorrows and hear our ardent prayers. In their lives they learned of the love of God from the Holy Spirit; and he who knows love on earth takes it with him into eternal life in the Kingdom of Heaven, where love grows and becomes perfect. And if love makes one unable to forget a brother here, how much more do the Saints remember and pray for us!
Saint Silouan the Athonite (an excerpt from his writings)
http://agapienxristou.blogspot.ca/2012/11/saints-and-their-intercessions.html
Saint Pophyrios spoke of the following experience:
In the old days, during the feast of the Theophany, we used to sanctify homes. One year I also went to sanctify. I would knock on the doors of the apartments, they would open for me, and I walked in singing "In Jordan, You were baptized O Lord...."
As I went along the road called Maizonos, I saw an iron door. I opened it, walked into the courtyard which was full of tangerine, orange and lemon trees, and proceeded to the stairs. It was an outdoor staircase that went up, and down was the basement. I climbed the stairs, knocked on the door, and a lady appeared. Since she opened I began my common practice singing, "In Jordan, You were baptized O Lord...." She stopped me abruptly. Meanwhile, girls began to emerge from their rooms after hearing me from the left and right of the hallway. "I see that I fell into a brothel," I said to myself. The woman walked in front of me to stop.
"Leave", she told me. "It is not right for them to kiss the Cross. I will kiss the Cross and then you should leave, please."
I took seriously her disapproving attitude and said: "I cannot leave! I am a priest, I cannot go! I came here to sanctify."
"Yes, but it is not right for them to kiss the Cross."
"But we don't know if it is right for them or you to kiss the Cross. Because if God asks me for whom it is more right to kiss the Cross, the girls or you, I probably would say: 'It is right for the girls to kiss and not you. Their souls are much better than yours.'"
With that she became a bit red in the face, so I said: "Leave the girls to come kiss the Cross." I signalled for them to come forward. I began to chant more melodically than before: "In Jordan, You were baptized O Lord..." because I had such joy within me, that God had ordained things so that I may also come to these souls.
They all kissed the Cross. They were all made-up, with colorful skirts, etc. I told them: "My children, many years! God loves us all. He is very good and 'allows the rain to fall on the righteous and the unrighteous' (Matt. 5:45). He is the Father of everyone and God cares for everyone. Let us make sure to come to know Him and for us to also love Him and to become good. May you love Him, and then you will see how happy you will be."
They looked at me, wondering. Something took a hold of their tired souls.
Lastly I told them: "I rejoice that God has made me worthy to come here today to sanctify you. Many years!"
"Many years!" they also said, and I left.
http://agapienxristou.blogspot.ca/2012/10/elder-porphyrios-in-brothel-elder.html
