Letters of Spiritual Direction to a Young Soul - Letter Twenty-two Part II

Aug 13, 2020

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Tonight we concluded letter 22 of Saint Theophan to the young Anastasia. Theophan focuses, in this final section of the letter, on zeal for the Lord. God has acted for our salvation and offers us the fullness of His life and love - His grace. He has given us His Spirit to create within us the right disposition to receive His grace.

That disposition is repentance. We see something of the hopelessness of our sin and in that moment we also become able to see and grasp the depth of God‘s love and mercy. Yet, in the face of all this, God awaits our consent. We must yield ourselves to the Spirit’s action. God does not force Himself upon us; love must be embrace freely. This freedom means acknowledging the efficacy of the form of salvation put before us, desiring to be saved and a complete willingness to do in sincerity whatever is asked of us.

This is the path of salvation. When a person sees and embraces this reality an experience of calm comes to them. Once divine grace is established within us, our response, though weak, suddenly becomes all-powerful and knows no impediment and overcomes everything.

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Text of chat during the group:

00:42:14 Edward Kleinguetl: For God, all things are possible.
00:49:37 Fr. John (Ivan) Chirovsky: Lord, I believe, but help my unbelief. (with a gentle reminder that this is revealed to us in the biblical way, many centuries before rationalism separated that which was meant to be whole. So, belief is not something we do with our cogitating mind, alone. We are to believe holistically with entire being comprised as it is of body, soul (desires, feelings-willpower, emotions and thoughts) and spirit (heart).) This is also how we ought to repent, or surrender to God, etc.
00:51:13 Carol Nypaver: Thank you, Fr. Ivan! So many accuse Catholics of “blind faith.”
00:51:51 Patrick Kiechlin: The Divine Liturgy is so incredibly beautiful.
00:55:49 Wayne Mackenzie: It appeals to all the senses
00:56:53 Patrick Kiechlin: Indeed. It is truly Heaven on Earth.
01:18:42 Carol Nypaver: Sorry—I tried to unmute. What about St. Paul’s conversion? It seemed there was no movement of his will toward the Lord, but was totally the work of God. So——when we pray for the conversion of our loved ones, can such a radical conversion occur without their direct “consent?”
01:21:10 Carol Nypaver: Awesome! Thank you.
01:23:07 Sheila Applegate: A misdirected love that God directed.
01:26:14 Fr. John (Ivan) Chirovsky: Paul experienced the Resurrected Lord and not as an intellectual idea but revealed in His Body the Church. Acts tells us Paul was secluded for three years after. I like to think he hits the scrolls to reevaluate his thoughts in light of his experience.
01:26:52 Fr. John (Ivan) Chirovsky: a crucifixion of self as it were