Image by Gabriela Piwowarska from Pixabay
Humility and Love, there you have it. This is everything. ~ St Paisios
Tag: mind heart
Inexpressible Wonder
Our Garden’s Rosa Tropicana (Warm Coral) & English Lavender
It’s been said we may catch glimpses of the Holy Trinity’s Mystery more readily through the temple of our hearts, rather than by using our ineffective, logical minds. Beholding the beauty of God’s Creation – whether in the garden, or a child’s smile, quite simply takes my breath away. When our Heavenly Father already gives us countless aesthetic blessings to delight in, one can’t help but wonder… if this is just earth… how much more beauteous will our Heavenly Home be?! Amen!
You see the Trinity if you see love. ~ Blessed Augustine
Master how could I describe the vision of Your Face? How could I ever speak of the ineffable contemplation of Your Beauty? How could mere words contain One Whom the World could never contain? . . . suddenly You appeared from on high, shining greater than the Sun itself, shining brilliantly from the heavens down into my heart .. . . . What intoxication of the Light! What swirlings of fire! ~ St. Symeon the Theologian hymn
One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life to behold the beauty of the LORD and to enquire in his temple. ~ Psalm 27:4
Happiness is Found Within Ourselves
Happiness is found within ourselves, and blessed is the man who has understood this. Happiness is a pure heart, for such a heart becomes the throne of God. Thus says Christ of those who have pure hearts: “I will visit them, and will walk in them, and I will be a God to them, and they will be my people.” (II Cor. 6:16) What can be lacking to them? Nothing, nothing at all! For they have the greatest good in their hearts: God Himself! ~ St. Nektarios of Aegina
… the human heart, along with the mind, is an organ of knowledge. And the knowledge of the heart is higher than the knowledge of the mind. ~ St. Luke of Crimea
Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. ~ Psalm 51:10
In the Midst of Them
For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. ~ St. Matthew 18:20
Set our hearts on fire with love for You, O Christ our God, so that in its flame we may love You with all our heart, with all our mind, with all our soul and with all our strength, and our neighbours as ourselves, so that by keeping Your commandments we may glorify You, the giver of all good gifts. ~ A Prayer For Lighting a Candle
With One Mind
The 3 casements on this ancient church wall in Turkey (2004), inspired construction of the 3 eastern facing windows in our own parish altar.
The Creed belongs only to those who live it. Faith and love, theology and life, are inseparable. In the Byzantine Liturgy, the Creed is introduced with the words, ‘Let us love one another, that with one mind we may confess father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Trinity one in essence and undivided.’ This exactly expresses the Orthodox attitude to Tradition. If we do not love one another, we cannot love God; and if we do not love God, we cannot make a true confession of faith and cannot enter into the inner spirit of Tradition, for there is no other way of knowing God than to love Him. ~ Kallistos Ware (The Orthodox Church)
Budding Promises
Rose from Pixabay ~SchneeKnirschen
Rosebuds contain mysterious layers of hidden beauty. Immature buds have no perfume until they mature and bloom. Upon fruition, they radiate a myriad of fragrances which correspond to their various transformations. All buds promise the possibility of flowers, and fill us with joy, hope, and reflections of Sonshine.
For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing; ~ 2 Corinthians 2:15
Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma. ~Ephesians 5:1-2
Oil and perfume make the heart glad, So a man’s counsel is sweet to his friend. ~ Proverbs 27:9
Your mind is the garden, your thoughts are the seeds, the harvest can either be flowers or weeds. ~ William Wordsworth
As From One Great Heart
You cannot pray at home, like you can at church, where there is a great multitude; where exclamations are cried out to God as from one great heart, and where there is something more: the unions of minds, the accord of souls, the bond of charity, the prayers of priests. ~ St. John Chrysostom
The Church, through the temple and Divine service, acts upon the entire man, educates him wholly; acts upon his sight, hearing, smelling, feeling, taste, imagination, mind, and will, by the splendour of the icons and of the whole temple, by the ringing of the bells, by the singing of the choir, by the fragrance of the incense, the kissing of the Gospel, of the cross and the holy icons, by the prosphoras, the singing, and sweet sound of readings of the Scriptures. ~St. John of Kronstadt
We ought to have the most lively spiritual union with the heavenly inhabitants, with all the saints, apostles, prophets, martyrs, prelates, venerable and righteous men, as they are all members of one single body, The Church of Christ, to which we sinners also belong, and the living Head of which is the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. This is why we call upon them in prayer, converse with them, thank and praise them. It is urgently necessary for all Christians to be in union with them, if they desire to make Christian progress; for the saints are our friends, our guides to salvation, who pray and intercede for us. ~ St. John of Kronstadt
Through Attention
Beautiful Sunflower Church Bouquet with Lemons and Chestnuts, by Evguenia
It is impossible for anyone who stands in God’s holy Church collecting his thoughts, lifting his mind to God, occupying his understanding with the sacred singing from the beginning until the end, and waiting patiently, not to undergo a divine change, in accordance with his attention to God and His teachings. Through this attention a certain warmth is born in the heart which chases away evil like flies, creates a spiritual peace and comfort in the soul and bestows sanctification on the body, according to him who said, ‘My heart was hot within me, while I was musing the fire burned’ (Psalm 39:3)… ~ St. Gregory Palamas
The church has been planted as a paradise in this world. ~ St. Irenaeus of Lyons
A Christian should inscribe the Symbol of Faith upon the tablets of the heart... Your accumulated offences do not surpass the multitude of God’s mercies: our wounds do not surpass the great Physician’s skill. ~ St. Cyril of Jerusalem (315 – 386 AD)
With Mind and Heart
When the soul knows the love of God by the Holy Spirit, then he clearly feels that the Lord is our own Father, the closest, dearest Father, the best. And there is no greater happiness than to love God with all the mind and heart, and our neighbour as ourself. And when this love is in the soul, then all things bring joy to the soul. ~ St. Silouan the Athonite
No matter how much we may study, it is not possible to come to know God unless we live according to His commandments, for God is not known by science, but by the Holy Spirit. Many philosophers and learned men came to the belief that God exists, but they did not know God. It is one thing to believe that God exists and another to know Him. If someone has come to know God by the Holy Spirit, his soul will burn with love for God day and night, and his soul cannot be bound to any earthly thing. ~ St. Silouan the Athonite
Understand two thoughts, and fear them. One says, “You are a saint,” the other, “You won’t be saved.” Both of these thoughts are from the enemy, and there is no truth in them. But think this way: I am a great sinner, but the Lord is merciful. He loves people very much, and He will forgive my sins. ~ St. Silouan the Athonite
Prayers of the Heart
A long-distance parishioners’ home’s beautiful Little Church during special prayers
Internal Prayer and the Jesus Prayer – Excerpts from our 2019 Parish Family Camp
In the Name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. ~ 1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18
Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groaning which cannot be uttered. ~ Romans 8:26
St. Paul said it is necessary to attain a state of permanent prayer, to always pray. – …The Jesus Prayer is a short prayer containing many ideas in it, and by practicing repetition of the Jesus Prayer it is possible to attain a state of permanent prayer. The Lord’s Prayer is very long and contains many ideas. When repeating the Lord’s Prayer the mind focuses on the ideas so that prayer isn’t experienced by the heart. For prayer to be real it must not only be in the mind but also the heart and will (mind, heart, and will, are the three aspects of the soul). Real, permanent prayer does not come easily. It is necessary to make many very long and persistent efforts in order to attain permanent prayer. We must pray to learn to pray. If we attain permanent prayer we will be able to walk, talk, eat, drive, even sleep and still be constantly repeating the prayer. ~ Metropolitan Vitaly
The Jesus Prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me.”– Or “Lord Jesus Christ Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner.” – Or “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on (Name).”
This simple, ancient prayer is rooted deeply in Church tradition and can be used anytime or anywhere. We recite it to permeate our hearts, to focus our minds, and help us follow God’s Will, instead of our own, usual, self-will. Prayer is the breath of the soul.
Begin by saying the Jesus Prayer sometimes, during the day or night. If the mind wanders, peacefully begin anew, attentively returning the heart again to the prayer. Ask God to calm the mind’s restlessness. Practicing this prayer with humility and patience, draws God’s grace to actively work within us.
Many Orthodox Christians use a prayer rope to help them concentrate as they repeat the Jesus Prayer. Prayer Ropes come in a great variety of forms and sizes. Some are knotted of wool or silk, others are made of wood. When you pray the prayer, hold the prayer rope with your left hand between the thumb and the index finger and move from knot to knot each time you say the prayer. In this way, your right hand is free to Cross yourself as needed while praying. St. Seraphim of Sarov once said the tassels at the end of some prayer ropes are for wiping away our tears. Of course, if we don’t have a prayer rope, we can still pray this prayer.
It’s not the quantity of times the prayer is said, but the quality of our prayer.
The Jesus Prayer is not a mantra to simply quiet the mind. One Jesus Prayer prayed slowly with all our heart and soul, is worth more than a million parroted prayers, repeated without any thought or without focus on what we are actually saying. When praying, we also remember God’s endless Love and Mercy, and thank Him for all our Blessings.
St. Hesychios, an Abbot of Saint Catherine’s Monastery on Mount Sinai who lived in the 7th century said, “Just as it is impossible to fight battles without weapons, or to swim a great sea with clothes on, or to live without breathing, so without humility and the constant prayer to Christ, it is impossible to master the art of inward spiritual warfare or to set about it and pursue it skillfully.”
Abbot Tryphon of the Christ the Saviour Monastery on Vashon Island in Washington says: “There is a common misconception concerning the word “mercy”, used throughout the liturgical services of the Church, as well as our private prayers, and the Jesus Prayer. It is a given that we are all sinners, but the asking for God’s mercy is not limited to asking His forgiveness, or begging God to overlook our sinfulness. When we pray forty Lord have mercies, we are recognizing that EVERYTHING proceeds out of God’s mercy. The air we breathe, the health we enjoy, the food on our table, the water in our tap, the friendships we treasure, our family, and everything good, flows out upon us through God’s mercy. Lord Jesus Christ have mercy.”
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner – contains our entire Orthodox confession of faith; all dogma is built on it. If you say it attentively, then the Lord will gradually purify your inner world.” ~ Fr. Nikolai Vedernikov
Every prayer must come from the heart, and any other prayer is no prayer at all. Prayer-book prayers, your own prayers, and very short prayers, all must issue forth from the heart to God, seen before you. And still more must this be so with the Jesus Prayer ~ St. Theophan the Recluse