Philokalia Ministries The Evergetinos - Hypothesis XL, Part IV
Once again, we are presented with a kind of fickleness that can plague the human heart. We can be ever so changeable. This includes how we look upon even our greatest commitments. The moment something becomes a trial for us or where we are asked to endure something that is reprehensible, or that causes us some suffering, we will want to change the external circumstances of our life.
However, the fathers in their writing show us how the evil one constantly seeks to magnify such experiences to the point that they breakdown our commitment to our particular vocation or vows. The one who has lived the common life for years can have the seed implanted in his heart that he would be happier or holier as an anchorite. Or one who is old of age might be tempted into thinking that his life no longer has value, and that he can no longer fulfill the rule in the way that he did as a young man. He begins to think about retiring from the religious life all together. Such thinking is pervasive and enters into every vocation.
Having said this, however, we also have to be aware of the fact that we can face obstacles in our environment, such as the envy of others that becomes destructive or immorality. In these circumstances, it may be necessary to change one’s environment. We need to recognize that we are responsible for the spiritual well-being and fidelity of others. If we treat others without love, without respect, then we can put their vocation and their spiritual life in jeopardy. This is a sober reminder of the solidarity that exist between us. The only way that we are allowed to treat another person is to love them.
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Text of chat during the group:
00:03:09 FrDavid Abernethy: Hello Navy Dave!!! 00:03:26 David Fraley: I love those photos of you and your mom! Neither of you have changed! 00:03:42 FrDavid Abernethy: I look older than she does 00:04:24 David Fraley: Mrs Abernethy, you and I met at the Oratory a few years ago. 00:47:37 Ren Witter: Something about all these examples makes me really sad, and I think it has something to do with how they show that our words and actions can have such a profound on the ability of another to resist temptation. In all these examples, the temptations would have little weight if the elder in question was treated in such a way that he was assured of the affection and support of his fellow, younger monks. 00:48:08 Ren Witter: I just imagine how the way we treat others makes them more or less susceptible 00:51:00 David Fraley: Reacted to "I just imagine how t…" with 👍 00:54:46 Ren Witter: I am thinking, and I don’t think this is an overstatement, that when we treat others in a way that says “you are worthless,” “you are not worth my time,” “you don’t deserve kindness,” “you are a lost cause,” and many other such things, that we are not just making them more susceptible to the temptations of the demons, but are in fact becoming the tempting demon ourselves. We are already doing the demons’ job for them. 00:58:14 Anthony: "The Three Musketeers" has a plotline about a woman who left the convent in a bad way, and she brought ruin and misery to several men throughout her life until an avenger caught up with her. It ties together some themes discussed today. 00:59:58 Louise: Sometimes, to be ethical, we have to confront, directly or indirectly, the obvious incompetence and even maliciousness of others. Of course, their hidden demons come out then forcibly. This would not be a sin, right? 01:03:07 John Ingram: Replying to "Sometimes, to be eth..." I think St. Francis de Sales talked about how to respond to negative people (heretics, etc.): treat them with honey, not with vinegar. 01:05:48 Louise: Replying to "Sometimes, to be eth..." Good point! However, some people even envy you when you treat them with honey, because they do not have honey and they hate you for having honey.