Reading the Holy Fathers (advise)

On Reading the Holy Fathers
by St. Ignatius Brianchaninov

Conversation and association with one's neighbors very much affects a person. Conversation and acquaintance with a learned man communicates much knowledge; with a poet, many exalted thoughts and feelings; with a traveler, much information about countries, about the characters and customs of peoples. It is obvious that conversation and acquaintance with the saints communicates holiness. "With the holy man wilt thou be holy, and with the innocent man wilt thou be innocent. And with the elect man wilt thou be elect" (Psalms 17:25-26).From henceforth, during the time of this short earthly life, which Scripture has not even called "life," but rather "journeying," let us become acquainted with the saints. Do you want to belong to their society in heaven, do you want to be a partaker of their blessedness? From henceforth enter into association with them. When you go forth from the house of the body, then they will receive you to themselves as their own acquaintance, as their own friend (Luke 16:9).

There is no closer acquaintance, there is no tighter bond, than the bond of oneness of thoughts, oneness of feelings, oneness of goal (I Corinthians 1:10).

Where there is oneness of thoughts, there without fail is oneness of soul, there without fail is one goal, an identical success in the attaining of one's goal.

Appropriate to yourself the thoughts and the spirit of the Holy Fathers by reading their writings. The Holy Fathers attained the goal: salvation. And you will attain this goal by the natural course of things. As one who is of one thought and one soul with the Holy Fathers, you will be saved.

Heaven received into its blessed bosom the Holy Fathers. By this it has borne witness that the thoughts, feelings, and actions of the Holy Fathers are well-pleasing to it. The Holy Fathers set forth their thoughts, their heart, the image of their activity in their writings. This means: what a true guidance to heaven, which is borne witness to by heaven itself, are the writings of the Fathers.

The writings of the Holy Fathers are all composed by the inspiration or under the influence of the Holy Spirit. Wondrous is the agreement among them, wondrous is the anointing! One who is guided by them has without any doubt whatsoever the guidance of the Holy Spirit.All the waters of the earth flow together into the ocean, and it may be that the ocean serves as the beginning of all the waters of the earth. The writings of the fathers are all united in the Gospel; they all incline towards teaching us the exact fulfillment of the commandments of our Lord Jesus Christ; of all of them both the source and the end is the holy Gospel.

The Holy Fathers teach how to approach the Gospel, how to read it, how to understand it correctly, what helps and what hinders in comprehending it. And therefore in the beginning occupy yourself with the reading of the Fathers. When they have taught you how to read the Gospel, then read the Gospel primarily.

Do not consider it sufficient for yourself to read the Gospel alone, without the reading of the Holy Fathers! This is a proud, dangerous thought. Better, let the Holy Fathers lead you to the Gospel, as their beloved child who has received his preparatory upbringing and education by means of their writings.

Many people, all who have senselessly and presumptuously rejected the Holy Fathers, who have come without any intermediary, with a blind audacity, with an impure mind and heart to the Gospel, have fallen into fatal delusion. The Gospel has rejected them; it grants access to itself only to the humble.

The reading of the Fathers' writings is the father and the king of all virtues. From the reading of the Fathers' writings we learn the true understanding of Holy Scripture, right faith, the way of life in accord with the Gospel's commandments, the deep esteem which one should have toward the Gospel commandments—to say it in a word, one learns salvation and Christian perfection.

Because of the diminishing of Spirit-bearing instructors, the reading of the Fathers' writings has become the main guide for those who wish to be saved and even attain Christian perfection. (Rule of St. Nil Sorsky)

The books of the Holy Fathers, as one of them has expressed it, are like a mirror; looking into them attentively and frequently, a soul can see all of its shortcomings.

Again, these books are like a rich collection of medicinal means; in them the soul can seek for each of its illnesses a saving remedy.

St. Ephphanius of Cyprus said, "A mere glance at holy books arouses one towards the pious life." (Alphabetic Patericon)

The reading of the Holy Fathers should be careful, attentive, and constant; our invisible enemy, who hates the voice of confirmation (Proverbs 11:15), hates especially when this voice comes forth from the Holy Fathers. This voice unmasks the wiles of our enemy, his evilness, reveals his snares, his way of working; and therefore the enemy arms himself against the reading of the Fathers by various proud and blasphemous thoughts, tries to cause the ascetic to fall into vain cares in order to distract him from this saving reading, fights with him by means of despondency, depression, forgetfulness. From this warfare against the reading of the Holy Fathers we should conclude how saving (is) the weaponry for us, by the degree to which it is hated by the enemy. The enemy makes all efforts to wrest it out of our hands.

Let each personally choose for himself the reading from the Fathers which corresponds to his way of life. Let the hermit read the Fathers who wrote about the solitary life; let the monk who lives in the cenobitic life read the Fathers who wrote instructions for cenobitic monks; let the Christian who lives in the world read the Holy Fathers who pronounced their teachings for all Christianity in general. Let everyone, in whatsoever calling he be, draw forth abundant instruction in the writings of the Fathers.

It is absolutely necessary that the reading correspond to one's way of life. Otherwise you will be filled with thoughts which, although holy, will be unfulfillable in the actual deed and will arouse you to fruitless activity in only the imagination and desire; the work of piety which does correspond to your way of life will slip out of your hands. Not only will you become a fruitless dreamer—your thoughts, being in constant opposition to your sphere of activity, will without fail give birth to turmoil in your heart, and to uncertainty in your conduct, which are burdensome and harmful for you and for your neighbors. By an incorrect reading of Holy Scripture and the Holy Fathers, one can easily deviate from the saving path into impassable thickets and deep abysses, which has happened with many. Amen.

From Living Orthodoxy (Vol. XVII, No. 2, March-April 1995)

Instructions for One Day - Part 1 - In the Morning - Part c

How should we conduct ourselves in the morning?

Cont ..

6. Because of our long familiarity with them, prayers learned by heart or read from a book are sometimes said without due attention to their contents, and we therefore are actually not praying, but just dreaming that we are praying. For this reason we may pray at times using words other than those of the prayers that are prepared and designated by the Holy Church. But when you pray this way, always carefully observe the following:

a) Thank the Lord God that He preserved your life during the past night and is again giving you time for repentance and amendment of your life, for each new day is for us a new and not in the least bit deserved favour from God, because no new day automatically follows after night. Very many people, having quietly gone to sleep in the evening, have awakened not in this life, but in another one: eternity. 

Is it really that difficult for a person to lose his life? Sometimes even a mild fright can cause us to die. Not one night passes without many people dying during it. What preeminence do we have over those who have died in the past night? Could we not also die? Yes, we could, very easily. But who has preserved us from death, if not the All-good and All-merciful God, Who continuously awaits our repentance and amendment of our lives? He preserved us and has granted us a new day, that we might save our souls. So, can we not give thanks to the Lord God? 

Each morning thank Him with all your soul, like this, for example:

"My Lord God and King! I thank Thee that during the past night Thou has preserved my life and that Thou has again granted me time for repentance and amendment of my life. Many, many people have been deprived of their earthly lives in the past night. The day that is beginning is not an inevitable day in my life. It is beginning only because Thou art giving it to me because of Thine unspeakable mercy. I could easily have died in the past night. But Thou, O All-good One, hast saved me and hast given me a new day, that I might save my soul. I thank Thee with all my heart, O All-merciful One."

Instructions for One Day - Part 1 - In the Morning - Part b

How should we conduct ourselves in the morning?


Cont ..


5. After having washed and dressed, stand before the holy icons and say those morning prayers as specified and in the order specified by the Holy Church, the interpreter and guardian of the path to salvation. So that you may pray unimpeded, especially if you do not know how to read, learn by heart at least the beginning morning prayers. Is this difficult? And how could you not know by heart even the Lord's Prayer, that is, the prayer

"Our Father, Who art in the heavens." 

Learn it! This is the most important prayer and most salvific for all occasions.

Instructions for One Day - Part 1 - In the Morning - Part a

How should we conduct ourselves in the morning?

In the morning, conduct yourself in the following manner:

1. Upon awakening, try first of all to direct your thoughts to the Lord God. Directing your thoughts to the Lord God should be our most natural activity at every other time of the day as well, because there is absolutely no one who could be so necessary for us, so dear and precious for us as God. For absolutely everything that we have now and that we have ever had, including even our very being-absolutely everything is a gift from God. The person who is the most needed, the most precious, the dearest of all for us is the one who usually first comes to our minds in the morning.  As soon as we wake up in the morning, the thought of whoever or whatever is the most needed and dear to us wakes up as well. This always happens in the natural course of things. Therefore, it is always natural for our thoughts to turn first of all to the Lord God with some heartfelt appeal, such as "Glory to Thee, O Lord! Glory to Thee O All-Merciful One!" We would be unworthy of the name Christian if, waking from sleep, we were to open only our physical eyes, and not our spiritual ones, and were to think first of the earth and of earthly things, and not of the Lord God.

2. If the time at which you woke is the time at which or near which you should get up, then without any delay say, "In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit," while making the sign of the cross. And then, "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner."

3. Right after this, or at the same time, get out of bed. Getting out of bed quickly is often very unpleasant for our flesh, because our flesh, like a lazy servant, always likes to lie and sleep or to luxuriate and remain idle. Every single morning act against the base desires of your flesh. Let this opposition to the flesh be your first sacrifice to the Lord God. Among other reasons, quickly getting up in the morning is very beneficial for the soul because (as all those who fervently strive for salvation have long observed) when we lie in bed for a long time after waking, impure tendencies very easily arise in our bodies, and impure thoughts and desires in our souls. Later in the day these easily cause the careless to fall into serious sins and into great danger of losing their salvation. But whoever bravely opposes the wishes of his flesh in the morning will resist temptation besetting him during the day and evening, even very serious ones. But if you have been watching after yourself to any degree, you already know this.

4. Having risen from bed, wash immediately, and having washed, dress immediately in a way that befits a respectable person. It is necessary to get dressed immediately like this in the morning, although there may be no one with us, because:

First, we never are completely alone; always and everywhere our Guardian Angel and the Lord God are with us. Our Guardian Angel, if we ourselves do not drive him away from us, is always with us, and the Lord God unquestionably is always with us by His very essence, because He is an omnipresent God. For in him we live, and move, and have our being, says the holy apostle (Acts 17:28).

Second, after having woken and washed, we should immediately stand before the Lord God with our morning prayers. And we would never dare to appear before even any of our lower-ranking earthly bosses without having dressed properly.

And finally, if you have dressed decently immediately after sleep, you will guard yourself from two dangers to which unfortunately very many people are subjected to in our times, namely: from the danger of causing temptation for others and from the danger of becoming infected with the spirit of shamelessness.

My friend, 

what can we expect in the midday and evening 

from one who is shameless in the morning?

* * *
... tomorrow Part b of How should we conduct ourselves in the morning?

Appeal to Christians - part 2

The Christian must be such as was Jesus Christ.

Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, said the Holy Apostle Paul (Phil 2:5). Are you the kind of person that Jesus Christ was? Do you behave as He did? Do you live by His teaching, or Gospel, that He gave us as a rule of life?

A Christian must not love the world (I John 2:15). But many are completely bound to the world, so that it seems like they live only for the world: they always think like the world, they behave like the world, and all the rules that they follow in their likes are precisely those rules that the world follows. Aren't you such a person? Such a life is not a Christian one and is quite disastrous.

The Lord once said in the Old Testament through the Holy Prophet to His Chosen People:

Judge, I pray you, betwixt me and my vineyard. What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it? wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes, brought it forth wild grapes? And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down. (Isa. 5:3-5)

Can not the Lord God with incomparably greater right in the New Testament tell us who are disobedient to Him, "What could I do for you that I have not done? I redeemed you with My Blood, gave birth to you the bosom of My church; enlightened you with the light of the true faith, gave you all the means and abilities for salvation, prepared eternal blessedness for you and constantly in every way disposed you to seek this blessedness. Did I not sufficiently show My love for you? Wretches! I became your Saviour and try in every way to lead all of you into eternal blessedness, but you only endeavor in every way not to find yourself in eternal blessedness, but for Me to become your judge and give you up to eternal torments. I created you to be eternally with Me and to experience My joys, but you behave yourselves in such a way that I would abhor you and repudiate you. I am very merciful towards you, but you by your ingratitude and your self-will try only to enflame My anger toward you. Neither My mercy, which I constantly show you, nor eternal blessedness, to which I so often and so earnestly call you, nor the terrible torments of hell, with which I threaten you, rouse you onto the path of salvation. Would it not have been better for you if you had not been born, and the light of faith had not shone on you?"

My friend, what if one day we shall have to hear such words from the Lord? Such words even now, when we have not yet heard them, tear at the heartstrings. What will it be like when we do hear them and when we have to reap what we have sown for ourselves by our sins?

Have fear in your heart! Cease your customary way of life and begin to live according to the Lord's teaching, which is written in His Holy Gospel, a God-pleasing, holy life.

So that you will be able to more quickly get started, I offer instructions for one day.

If you faithfully follow these instructions, you will see that you will need no other instructions. You should pass every subsequent day just as you did the first one.

***

... tomorrow Part 3, How should we conduct ourselves in the morning?

Appeal to Christians - part 1

Do you call yourself a Christian?

Are you a Christian in actual fact?

Do you live as a Christian should live - that is, do you fervently desire and earnestly seek after that which a true Christian desires and seeks after?

The blessings that the Lord promises the true Christian in the future life are to be highly desired. And inexpressibly horrible is the misfortune into which sin plunges us, if we do not desire and do not seek what a Christian must desire most fervently and seek after most earnestly. 

What will happen if you do not receive the promised blessings and are cast into eternal torments?

You have already lived a considerable time, but have you ever asked yourself these and similar questions? In particular, have you ever contemplated upon them seriously?

***

... tomorrow Part 2 of  ... an appeal to Christians

You fell, now arise (Proverbs 24:16)

St Peter of Damascus on "Despair"

It is always possible to make a new start by means of repentance.

‘You fell,’ it is written, ‘now arise’ (Proverbs 24:16.)

And if you fall again, then rise again, without despairing at all of your salvation, no matter what happens. So long as you do not surrender yourself willingly to the enemy, your patient endurance, combined with self-reproach will suffice for your salvation.

‘For at one time we ourselves went astray in folly and disobedience,’ says St. Paul. ‘…Yet He saved us, not because of any good things we had done, but in His mercy’ (Titus 3:5.)

So do not despair in any way, ignoring God’s help, for He can do whatever He wishes. On the contrary, place your hope in Him and He will do one of these things: either through trials or temptations, or in some other way which He alone knows, He will bring about your restoration; or He will accept your patient endurance and humility in the place of works; or because of your hope He will act lovingly towards you in some other way of which you are not aware, and so will save your shackled soul. Only do not abandon your Physician, for otherwise you will suffer senselessly the twofold death because you do not know the hidden ways of God.

The root of the righteous yields fruit

-- Proverbs 12:12

One of the fathers asked Abba Nastir ...

"What is the best work for me to do?"

And he said to him,

"Not all kinds of labour are the same. For the book says that:

1. Abraham was a lover of strangers, and that God was with him;
2. Elijah was a lover of silent contemplation, and that God was with him;
3. David was a humble man, and God was with him.

Therefore, whatsoever work your soul wishes to do, provided that it be of God, that do, and keep your heart from evil things."

-- St Athanasius of Alexandria.

Large families

Having many children is a matter of sacrifice and less material means ...

Families with many children are very blessed by God.

Consider the following circumstance:

A certain man had very many children and he died relatively young. All who knew him, mentioned that he was very harsh and tortured his wife and children. A short time, however, before he died, he came to repentance, asked for forgiveness from his family, confessed and left prepared. Elder Epiphanios commented,

"God, rewarding this man's obedience in the matter of having many children, saved both him and delivered his family from his coarse behaviour."

The Queen of Virtues

Love for God expels all fear from the soul except fear of sin.

Yes, love reinforces fear of sin: fear of sin, that is also fear of God.

The great lovers of Christ were not afraid either of men or beasts or poverty or death.

They even rejoiced in suffering for Him, who had suffered for them, seeking only to become like Him. They desired to die and leave this world without delay, so as to be with their beloved Lord as soon as possible.

Christ recommends to those who follow Him, not some earthly model of love, but divine love:

John 15:10 "If you keep My commandments, you shall abide in My Love; even as I have kept My Father's commandments, and abide in His Love"

And all His commandments are contained in one: "Love"

All His other commendments, such as: prayer, alms, humility, purity, forbearance, self-sacrifice, bravery, carefreeness, forgiveness, vigilance, joy are simply rays emanating from His love.

He who obtains the Queen of Virtues, obtains her royal retinue ...

What is the body?

God knows the value of men's bodies.

What is the body?

He has said it through His prophets and apostles and priestly poets:

"a puff of smoke that vanishes, a herb that withers, a flower that wilts, dust from dust."

Men look at the cart from shortsightedness and vanity; they look at the vehicle but not at the coachman. He, however, first looks at the coachman hidden in the vehicle. All His concern and love are directed towards the invisble coachman, that is, for the soul within the body. But when He has repaired and cleaned the wagon, He has done it for the coachman. If He heals and builds up the human body, it is because of the immortal human soul.

For

"what is man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?"

(Mt. 16:20)

Secure yourself with Patience

"The sea is bound to be stirred up and roused and enraged, so as to cast out of it again on to the dry land the wood, and hay, and all the corruption that was brought down into it by the rivers of the passions. Let us watch nature, and we shall find that after a storm at sea there comes a deep calm." -- St. John Climacus

God does not want those whom He will save, who seek His mercy, to be ignoramuses, unmanly, cowardly, or spiritually untested. It is a matter of divine inheritance stored up for experienced Christians. So He places temptations before us so that our obedience to His commandments may be demonstrated. His illumination is within us; knowledge of His will is taught by the Scriptures; furthermore, our conscience guides us like a compass. All of the above enlighten us in the face of temptations. But when evil prevails over our will, we do not obey His commandments.

We were created with free will, and free will cannot be controlled by others. As such, if we feared God, we would not fall into temptation. If we did not love ourselves more than God, we would not tend towards sin. But His goodness did not leave our falls without a rectifying remedy, whereby we return once again and a victory occurs in spite of our fall.

All who compel themselves to be saved, the Scriptures call righteous, justified by faith. God will not let them fall, for they are struggling properly. He will not let them be tempted beyond their strength when they are making every effort to be patient. But when we are cowardly and lukewarm, when we have a slothful will, this constitutes an occasion for a temptation beyond our strength.

Your grumbling is sinful; it is a result of self-love and unmanliness. Have patience in everything; thank God; blame your lukewarmness, and not God, Who was crucified for you and, consequently, must love you.

Since He loves you, how can He let you fall into temptation?

Seek forgiveness from Him, and secure yourself with patience.

"This, surely, is a sign of dispassion: to remain calm and fearless in all things because one has received by God's grace the strength to do anything, as St. Paul puts it (cf. Phil. 4:13)." - St. Peter of Damaskos

003 - Humility - Humiliation and Humi-limit-ation, the process of setting boundaries for oneself!

All of our actions should be 'measured' or moderate, never in excessive or extreme but balanced. The importance of setting boundaries are significant. Limitation, and moderation in our discipline to others, is connected with the respect for the other person; one is neither called to 'betray oneself' nor to wound another in this moderation, but to be generous to our bodies and gentle towards others.

This is why Our Church encourages her community to have personal self-discipline and discipline imposed by another (eg Spiritual Father) since these two are interconnected. When individual limits are prescribed in this manner then we may attain a full measure of the stature of Christ (cf Eph. 4:13).

Paradoxically (Mt 18:3), one is called not to increase in spiritual complexity or appearance, but to decrease in the direction of simplicity to 'come to the measure of a child,' and to reach the dimensions of an infant. This childlike mentality, holy innocence, provides the key to the heavenly kingdom and holds the secret to spiritual direction. Deriving essentially from God - the efficacy of spiritual direction depends on the innocent trust of the disciple and the wisdom of the elder and depends more on the faith and obedience of the disciple, than on the power or charisma of the elder.

So, if we Orthodox limit ourselves, under the direction of a Spiritual father, it is in order to 'liberate our conscience'. This is the meaning of obedience in the spiritual life and it is a privelege to be able to submit to someone else in order to discover the limitless space of freedom.

This is the way of the cross and the way to follow in the footsteps of the Lord.

To Be Continued.