A miracle has occurred on Mt. Athos—the body of a deceased monk has been found to be without any signs of corruption and not emitting any foul smell, a month and a half after his repose. The deceased monk Fr. Stephen labored in the skete of Kavsokalyvia for forty years. Fr. Stephen led an
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THE PRAYER THAT TERRIFIES DEMONS
When a man or woman or child falls into the life of sin they find themselves inching closer to the demons and further from the Master of Creation. This is the case no matter how small or insignificant the sins may seem to us at the time because sin is a rebellion against God our
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JESUS PRAYER IS A DIVINE COMMANDMENT – Saint Ignatius Brianchaninov
The Jesus Prayer is a divine commandment. “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” It hasn’t been established through a prophet or an Apostle, not through an angel-but by God and the Son of God Himself. After the Last Supper, through other requests, final commandments and wills, Lord Jesus Christ
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Spiritual Counsels of St. Nikon of Optina
We honor the memory of the Optina Monastery holy confessor Nikon. St. Nikon (in the world, Nicholai Mitrofanovich Belyaev) was a great example of patience and obedience—from his youth to the end of his life, he good-heartedly endured everything sent to him by God. Even in his childhood, there were events that were like signs
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THEOSIS – THE TRUE PURPOSE OF HUMAN LIFE – Part 7 of 10 – Qualifications for Theosis
The holy Fathers certainly say that within the Church we can attain Theosis. But at the same time they say Theosis is a gift from God, it is not something we can attain on our own. Of course, we must desire, struggle, and prepare ourselves so that we are worthy, capable, and receptive enough to
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The Way of Spiritual Transformation – #5
5. Self Aware and Prayer The healing of our sick nous begins with what we have just been discussing: the sacrifice of our “old man,” the cutting off of the passions, repentance. In speaking of the healing of the nous, the Holy Fathers place much emphasis on the practice ofwatchfulness. We must at all times watch
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The Way of Spiritual Transformation – #8
8. On Not Measuring One’s Progress In conclusion, I would like to make one more point concerning the theme of transformation. The Holy Fathers counsel us that we are not to try to measure our spiritual progress. Trying to measure our progress can lead to pride on the one hand, and to despair on the
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The Way of Spiritual Transformation – #7
7. On Getting Out of Ruts How can Fr. Isaaky’s words not inspire us toward spiritual transformation? What hinders us from growing unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, as St. Paul says (Eph. 4:13)? It is our egos, our passions, that hinder us. Many of us get stuck in a
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The Way of Spiritual Transformation – #6
6. The Primary Mark of Spiritual Transformation Now, having looked at the nature of spiritual transformation and the way to that transformation, let us examine more closely the marks of transformation in a Christian. We have already discussed in some detail the first two verses of Romans, chapter 12. St. Paul devotes the remainder of
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TAKING CUSTODY OF YOUR THOUGHTS
My overall focus in all of the talks has been the practice of the prayer of the heart and its foundations. The prayer of the heart is one of the most beloved and powerfully transformative prayers of the Orthodox Church. It’s not insignificant, but perhaps the most important thing we can do in terms of
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