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Prayer, fasting, vigils, and all other Christian practices, however good they may be in themselves, certainly do not constitute the aim of our Christian life: they are but the indispensable means of attaining that aim. For the true aim of the Christian life is the acquisition of the Holy Spirit of God. As for fasts, vigils, prayer and almsgiving, and other good works done in the name of Christ, they are only the means of acquiring the Holy Spirit of God. Note well that it is only good works done in the name of Christ that bring us the fruits of the Spirit.
~St. Seraphim of Sarov




In order for one to understand the Saints and Fathers of the [Orthodox] Church, it is not sufficient to merely read them. The Saints spoke and wrote after having lived the mysteries of God. They personally experienced the mysteries.

In order for one to understand them, he too must have progressed to a certain degree of initiation into the mysteries of God by personally tasting, smelling, and seeing. You can read the books of the Saints and become very well versed in them with a ‘cerebral’ knowledge without even minutely tasting that which the Saints tasted who wrote these books through their personal experience.

In order to understand the Saints essentially, not intellectually, you must have the proper experience for all that they say; you must have tasted, at least in part, of the same things as they. You must have lived in the fervent environment of Orthodoxy; you must grown in it… A Whole new world must be born in a Westerner’s heart in order for him to understand something of Orthodoxy.
~Alexandar Kalomiros, Against False Union, 1959



The mysteries of our Faith are unknown and not understandable to those who are not repenting.
~Archpriest Nicholas Deputatov, ‘Awareness of God’ in the Orthodox Word Magazine, July-August 1976

 

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Entries in Prayer (24)

Monday
16Feb2009

Faith is the wing of prayer...

…and without it my prayer will return to my bosom. Faith is the unshaken stance of the soul and is unmoved by any adversity.

St. John Climacus.

Saturday
31Dec2005

The Akathist of Thanksgiving (part 2)

By Metropolitan Tryphon of Turkestan
Found in effects of Hieromartyr Grigori Petroff (+1942)


Kontakion 8

How close to us Thou art in our days of illness. Thou visitest the
patient, Thou descendest to the bed of the sufferer and his heart
communeth with Thee. Thou kindlest the soul with peace at the time of
sorrow and suffering. Thou sendest unexpected help. Thou art the
comforter. Thou art all-knowing love. To Thee I sing: Alleluia!

Ikos 8

When I as a child for the first time appealed to Thee, Thou fulfilled my
prayer and lightened my soul with great peace. I understood then that
Thou art good and that they are blessed who seek refuge in Thee.
Therefore I do not cease to pray to Thee and to call upon Thee.

Glory to Thee Who fulfillest and to good purpose completes my wishes.

Glory to Thee Who watchest over me day and night.

Glory to Thee for the time that is passing / and taking away our sorrows
and sadness.

Glory to Thee in whom nothing is lost, / for Thou grantest to all life
eternal.

Glory to Thee Who promised us / desired meetings with our deceased ones.

Glory to Thee, O God, in ages!

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Wednesday
28Dec2005

The Akathist of Thanksgiving, Pt 1

By Metropolitan Tryphon of Turkestan
Found in effects of Hieromartyr Grigori Petroff (+1942)


Kontakion 1

O King of ages, Who, by the power of Thy salvific providence, holdeth in
Thy right hand all the ways of man’s life: I thank Thee for all Thy
visible and secret goods, for earthly life and for the heavenly joy of
Thy future Kingdom. Pour forth richly Thy grace, in the future as well,
on us who sing to Thee: Glory to Thee, O God, in ages!

Ikos 1

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Monday
25Apr2005

from the Akathist Hymn to the Divine Passion of Christ

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God,
Creator of Heaven and earth, Saviour of the world,

Behold, I who am unworthy and of all men most sinful,
humbly bow the knee of my heart before
the glory of Thy majesty and praise Thy Cross and Passion,
and offer thanksgiving to Thee,
the King and God of all,
that Thou wast pleased to bear as man all labours and hardships,
all temptations and tortures,
that Thou mightest be our Fellow-sufferer and Helper,
and a Saviour to all of us in all our sorrows, needs, and sufferings.

I know, O all-powerful Lord, that all these things were not necessary for Thee,
but for us men and for our salvation
Thou didst endure Thy Cross and Passion
that Thou mightest redeem us from all cruel bondage to the enemy.

What, then, shall I give in return to Thee, O Lover of mankind,
for all that Thou hast suffered for me, a sinner?
I cannot say, for soul and body and all blessings come from Thee,
and all that I have is Thine, and I am Thine.
Yet I know that love is repaid only by love. Teach me, then, to love and praise Thee.

Trusting solely in Thine infinite compassion and mercy, O Lord,
I praise Thine unspeakable patience,
I magnify Thine unutterable exhaustion,
I glorify Thy boundless mercy,
I adore Thy purest Passion,
and most lovingly kissing Thy wounds, I cry: Have mercy on me a sinner,
and cause that Thy holy Cross may not be fruitless in me,
that I may participate here with faith in Thy sufferings
and be vouchsafed to behold also the glory of Thy Kingdom in Heaven.

Amen.

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