Him Alone

"If men knew themselves, they would know God; and if they really knew God, they would be satisfied with Him and would think of Him alone."

-Ibn 'Arabi

St. Herman of Alaska

Today, November 15/28 is the day that St. Herman reposed after a life lived in total service of Christ.  St. Herman, pray for us, poor sinners!

New World

"Once you have reached the place of tears then you should understand that the mind has left the prison of this world and set its feet on the road towards the New World. It has begun to breathe the wonderful air which is there. It begins to shed tears. For now the birth-pangs of the spiritual infant grow strong, since grace, the common mother of us all, makes haste to give birth mystically to the soul, the image of God, into the light of the world to come.

This shall be for you a luminous sign of the serenity of your soul: when, on examining yourself, you find yourself full of compassion for all humanity, and your heart is afflicted with pity for them, burning as though with fire, without making distinction between one person and another.When the image of the Father becomes visible in you by means of the continual presence of these things, then you can recognize the measure of your way of life – not from your various labors, but from the transformation which your understanding receives.The body is then likely to be bathed in tears, as the intellect gazes on things spiritual."

-St. Isaac the Syrian

A Happy Life

I think one of the most nefarious lies you are taught growing up in the West is that eventually, through all the darkness of your life, things will improve and you will have the "American Dream."  A pious wife, loyal and docile children, a nice house, etc..  The reality is that this is not the understanding of life from the standpoint of a Catholic or Orthodox Christian.  We understand that happiness is not a guarantee given to us in this life.  This life is full of profound suffering and our salvation lies in carrying our burdens with Christ on our crucifixion.

If we carry out these duties in this life, than Christ Our Savior, will provide us the greatest of happiness in the Hereafter.  I even hesitate to call it "happiness" because that is a human concept.  What a saint experiences in Heaven goes far beyond what we can describe utilizing earthly terms.

So let us not resist the Crosses that Christ gives us for they are the means in which we make progress in our process of Theosis.  In the midst of the darkness of your sufferings, remember the Light.  The Light of Christ that flickers in this earthly abyss.

Transformed State

"In love did God bring the world into existence; in love is God going to bring it to that wondrous transformed state, and in love will the world be swallowed up in the great mystery of the One who has performed all these things; in love will the whole course of the governance of creation be finally comprised.”

-St. Isaac the Syrian

Lord, Have Mercy

Brethren, let us resolve to never harbor any ill feelings towards anyone else.  Let us error on the side of mercy.  Let us, when we feel the need to condemn, condemn ourselves.  We know ourselves and our own wretchedness.  Let us overlook the faults of our brothers and pray and do penance for them.

Let's say throughout the day with much weeping, Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.

Sorrow

“The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain.”

-Khalil Gibran