20 February 2023
04 February 2023
Stand Courageously and Trust Firmly in God - St. Silouan the Athonite
Stand Courageously
and Trust Firmly in God. St. Silouan the Athonite
https://youtu.be/oa4EjLiuFvM
And
sometimes for a long time the Lord tests the soul whether it is faithful to Him,
and the soul, not seeing in itself the sweetness that it has known, craves that sweetness again and humbly waits for it and is constantly attracted to the Lord by the fervor of love.
With
grace, it is easy to love God and pray day and night. But the wise soul tolerates even dryness
and trusts firmly in the Lord and knows that He will not shame hopes and will provide
in due time.
The grace
of God comes sometimes soon, and sometimes it is not given over an extended period. But the wise soul humbles itself
and loves its neighbor and meekly bears its cross and thereby defeats the
enemies who try to tear it away from God. When sins like clouds hide from the
soul the light of God's new indwelling, then the soul – although it thirsts for
the Lord – is still weak and powerless as a bird imprisoned in a cage, although
it breaks into a green grove it cannot fly to sing in freedom a song of praise
to God. For a
long time I suffered not knowing the way of the Lord. But now, through many
years and through many sorrows and by the Holy Spirit, I have come to know the
will of God. All that the Lord has commanded must be fulfilled exactly, for
this is the way into the Kingdom of Heaven and we
shall see God. But
think not that you shall see God but rather humble yourself and think that after
death you will be plunged into a dungeon and there you will languish and miss
the Lord.
When we
weep and humble our souls, the
grace of God keeps us, and if we leave weeping and humility, we can get
carried away by thoughts or visions. A humble soul has no visions and does not desire them,
but with a pure mind it prays to God, and a vain mind is not pure of thoughts
and imagination and can even go so far as to see demons and speak to them. I
write about this because I myself was in this misfortune. Twice I was in PRELEST [delusive
charm].
01 February 2023
30 January 2023
Prayer against Hunger to St. Elijah, the Prophet of God
Every day after the noon meal I recite this Troparion [Tone 4] to the Prophet Elijah:
25 January 2023
Archimandrite Seraphim (Alexiev) - 30 yrs since his Repose /26Jan1993/
BG https://docs.google.com/document/d/1wvX9gGmJaIkdMCVziq6MzNc3q_S7ryduwC3xjOQ7gd0/
EN https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UQOHES5unyBXqtDH95oXXp4MmBaTHfR_CPb6n4MF87U/
Стояние в истине вопреки соблазнам времени. Архимандрит Серафим (Алексиев)
Автор: чтецъ Мартинъ. Дата публикации: 04 июля 2013. Категория: Болгарская Старостильная Церковь.
WAR
The
sun in blood sets in the West.
The day of October fades despondent.
Quietly leaves crumble and drip...
After a sad day, my eyelids flap to close,
I think... with my head inclined in laps.
A read newspaper, dumped near me,
it stands and looks at me with stupid eyes.
It tells me of terrible battles,
of numerous killed, wounded, and captured,
And now it is listlessly silent.
The heart is covered in blood and it suffers
for those who are lying somewhere in blood.
Leaves are dripping... and the evening is setting...
I think how leaf after lead is now falling
amidst the storm where many are dying today.
O Lord, the earth here is at peace –
we breathe freely and sleep a meek dream.
But... how come the heavens are coloured in fire
over that end where the war rages
among horrors, crashes, fire and smoke!
How many mothers in this hour — O poor —
in sadness unspeakable wring hands,
waiting on the doorstep, all terrified
and their hearts tremble in the bright sunset
after a dear heart on the front!
O Lord, have mercy on Thy creatures –
on the quiet, meek, unknown souls!
Mortal trials are flaming today.
The world is swayed, burning in suffering,
but come Thee Thyself, and quench the fire!
The day of October fades despondent.
Quietly leaves crumble and drip...
After a sad day, my eyelids flap to close,
I think... with my head inclined in laps.
A read newspaper, dumped near me,
it stands and looks at me with stupid eyes.
It tells me of terrible battles,
of numerous killed, wounded, and captured,
And now it is listlessly silent.
The heart is covered in blood and it suffers
for those who are lying somewhere in blood.
Leaves are dripping... and the evening is setting...
I think how leaf after lead is now falling
amidst the storm where many are dying today.
O Lord, the earth here is at peace –
we breathe freely and sleep a meek dream.
But... how come the heavens are coloured in fire
over that end where the war rages
among horrors, crashes, fire and smoke!
How many mothers in this hour — O poor —
in sadness unspeakable wring hands,
waiting on the doorstep, all terrified
and their hearts tremble in the bright sunset
after a dear heart on the front!
O Lord, have mercy on Thy creatures –
on the quiet, meek, unknown souls!
Mortal trials are flaming today.
The world is swayed, burning in suffering,
but come Thee Thyself, and quench the fire!
14 January 2023
St. Seraphim of Sarov the Miracle Worker, 190th death anniversary
"Drink [water] where the horse drinks. A horse will never drink bad water. Place your bed where the cat is comfortable. Eat fruits that the worms choose. Plant a tree where a mole digs. Build a home where a snake basks in the sun. Dig a well, where birds nest in the sweltering heat. Look often up to the sky and not to your feet, and your thoughts will be clear and light. Keep more silent than you speak, and silence will come to your soul as well, and your spirit will be at peace and calm.''
St. Seraphim of Sarov the Miracle Worker
12 January 2023
Christ calls the sinful soul to Himself (from the book 'Our Prayer')
In St. Tikhon of
Zadonsk we find the following touching words with which Christ calls the sinful
soul to Himself:
"Why,
man, did you leave Me?
Why have you turned away from Me, Who loves you?
Why did you join My enemy?
Remember that for you I came down from heaven.
Remember that for you I clothed myself in flesh.
Remember that for you I humbled myself!
Remember that for you I endured slander, insults, desecration, dishonor, wounds,
spitting, slaps, ridicule!
04 January 2023
Faith - Only faith in true life is real.
...
Faith is that which lives by God, and not by
itself. Faith is a certain new air through which the objects of the world are seen
in a new way and everything is seen in a new way. Faith is more reliable than any
reality of this world; it is not only a conviction, but also a condition; and not
only a state, but also an ascent “from glory to glory”
(2 Cor. 3:18). Faith is good reality, and unbelief is a bad dream ... It is impossible
to live in disbelief, just as it is impossible to live only in the present on this
earth. And therefore, disbelief, in fact, is not. There is only faith, and there
is falsehood.
“Every man walketh
in a vain shew” [like a ghost] (Ps. 39:7). There
is no past, no future, but where is the present? Only faith in true life is real.
“I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.
Amen." (Matt. 28:20).
Petty Sin Apocalypse, a collection,
ArchBp. John Shakhovsky, (About Christian Faith)
30 December 2022
In Words Relate the Prayer...
Разкажи
молитвата със думи…
Надеждите с поклон подзащити…
Сърцето бие сякаш гони
страха и черното от теб…
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)