The Evergetinos: Book Two - Part XXXV, Part III

The fathers speak with one voice concerning the passion of anger: it blinds the eyes of the soul and expels the grace of the Spirit. St. Cassian tells us that even a “just cause” for anger blinds no less than an unjust one; whether gold or lead is pressed over the eyes, sight is equally obstructed. So too when anger burns, whether cloaked in righteousness or openly irrational, the light of the Sun of Righteousness is veiled from us.

The words cut to the quick: we are not to excuse or harbor even a trace of anger. For Christ Himself declared that “whosoever is angry with his brother shall be in danger of judgment” (Mt. 5:22). St. John Chrysostom tells us that scribes added the phrase “without a cause” to soften the command, but the Lord’s intention was uncompromising: to root out the seed entirely, lest it grow into the frenzy that enslaves the heart.

For the hesychast this teaching is clear: isolation is no refuge from anger. Cassian admits to raging at sticks of wood or the stubbornness of flint that would not spark quickly enough. The desert does not strip away anger; rather, it exposes it. If we think that by fleeing from brothers we escape the trial of forbearance, we deceive ourselves. Without the correction of life in common, passions grow unchecked, and even inanimate things can draw forth our wrath. Thus, for both monk and layman, anger must be confronted at its root.

What, then, of those living in the world, immersed in the irritations and burdens of ordinary life? The fathers offer no easier path for them. Anger in the household, in work, in traffic, in all the frictions of daily existence—these, too, are occasions for forbearance, the training ground of meekness. The same Christ who commands the desert hermit commands also the parent, the spouse, the worker: “Be angry, and sin not” (Ps. 4:4). Turn anger not against neighbor or circumstance, but against the thoughts that seek to enslave.

St. Maximos is clear: fasting and vigils restrain bodily desires, but anger is cured only by kindness, charity, love, and mercy. This is the practical labor of every Christian, monk or lay: to return insult with silence, to meet disturbance with meekness, to smother wrath with prayer. 

The fathers remind us soberly that chastity, poverty, vigils, and every hardship will avail nothing if anger reigns in the soul on the Day of Judgment. For anger drives out the Spirit; where wrath abides, peace cannot dwell. And he who is without peace is also without joy. 

Thus the path is narrow. Anger is a pit, and blessed is he who jumps over it, pulling the gentle yoke of Christ to the end with meekness. This is no less true for those in the city than for those in the desert. Whether at the dinner table, in the workplace, or in the monastery, each moment of provocation is an invitation to humility, to accuse oneself rather than another, to seize the opportunity for compunction rather than resentment.

If we endure, grace will come. What seems at first an impossible command—to eradicate anger entirely—becomes, by the Spirit, an easy yoke. For the fathers remind us: all things are possible to the one who bends low in humility, entrusting his passions to Christ who alone can heal the soul.

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Text of chat during the group:

00:13:39 Tracey Fredman: I miss seeing Lori. I hope she's doing well.

00:16:52 Adam Paige: It’s Greek, he writes in Greek

00:18:54 Adam Paige: Some of his books are available digitally, but not Flying over the Abyss

00:19:41 Fr. Charbel Abernethy: Page 272 St. John Cassian

00:20:30 Bob Čihák, AZ: P 272 E

00:44:26 Jacqulyn: Living on a ranch, I totally understand that feeling!

00:45:02 Erick Chastain: Is the worsening of the logismoi in the wilderness as opposed to when you are out in the world dependent on whether one is an introvert/extrovert?

00:45:13 Jacqulyn: Yes, I do! But the sheep keep me focused!

00:45:37 Bob Čihák, AZ: I get angry at myself, but not for long.

00:52:17 Anthony: Lately I've been encouraged by St Francis, who instead of getting wrathful with himself called his erring self "Brother Ass."

00:56:35 Hey Oh! : Augustine said that  anger is like an unwanted guest. Once we let it in we don’t know how long it will stay or what it will do in our home (hearts).

00:57:39 Rick Visser: It seems that in contemporary psychology there is a strong tendency not to deny the anger that exists in us. We must allow it, not repress it.

00:58:12 Catherine Opie: Reacted to "It seems that in con..." with 😢

00:59:14 Anthony: Perhaps, then, a sense of false or overbearing shame is a form of anger directed against the self, even, when we remember things we did wrong and have repented of.

01:08:28 Myles Davidson: That was super insightful from St Maximos

01:09:25 Catherine Opie: What are your thoughts on using intense physical exercise like, running for example, to get rid of anger? Or should we simply develop the self control to not even become angry to that level?

01:11:35 Myles Davidson: Replying to "That was super insig..."

Both the result of anger and the cure

01:12:01 Julie: Reacted to "That was super insig…" with 🙏

01:14:24 Catherine Opie: So probably genuflections with prayer then...

01:16:38 Catherine Opie: Perfect subject for me this week. Thank you Fr. God bless.

01:16:43 Rebecca Thérèse: Thank you☺️

01:16:48 Maureen Cunningham: Blessing thank you

01:16:51 Janine: Thank you Father