Orthodox Wisdom

The discussion emphasizes the significance of the Holy Lenten Fast for spiritual cleansing and renewal. St. Dorotheos of Gaza highlights abstinence as a path to purging sins and achieving true repentance. The podcast warns about the dangers of indulgence, stressing moderation in both eating and actions. It advocates for a holistic approach to righteousness, linking self-discipline with spiritual fulfillment. Listeners are encouraged to control their senses to prepare for the holy Resurrection with a renewed spirit.

The third of twenty-two sermons specifically on the subject of the Divine Liturgy, preached by New Martyr St. Seraphim (Zvezdinski). Learn more about yet another inspiring martyr under the Soviet antichrists here: https://orthochristian.com/7426.htm  “In the flow of nineteen centuries there has not been one day in which the Divine Liturgy was not offered; and it will not cease as long as the world exists, as long as this earth exists. No kind of enemy power is able to extinguish this lamp of the Divine Liturgy which is lit by the very Divine Ray Himself. Satan has stirred up storms, he has raised up the most cruel abuse, and has incited raging waves of suffering – all of this so to extinguish the lamp of the Divine Liturgy! Yet he has not succeeded, nor will he ever succeed.”   This was recently translated into English be Fr. Zechariah Lynch, rector of Archangel Michael Orthodox Church (OCA) in Pueblo, CO. If you have not already done so, follow Fr. Zechariah’s excellent blog at inklesspen.blog.   Text of the sermon: https://inklesspen.blog/2021/09/19/th...  This channel is dedicated to sharing the writings and lives of the Saints of the Orthodox Church. Glory to Jesus Christ!

On the second Sunday before Great Lent the Church commemorates the Last Judgment when all will be judged according to their love and faith. The great Wonderworker of the latter times, St. John of Shanghai and San Francisco, offers a message ever timely and sobering, with the sole purpose of rousing our sleeping souls to watchfulness, to stand worthily before the dread judgment seat of Christ at the end of time.   “Under Antichrist, there will be an immense falling away from the faith. Many bishops will change in faith and in justification will point to the brilliant situation of the Church. The search for compromise will be the characteristic disposition of men. Straight-forwardness of confession will disappear. Men will cleverly justify their fall, and gracious evil will support such a general disposition. There will be the habit of apostasy from truth and the sweetness of compromise and sin in men.”   “‘The end of the world’ signifies not the annihilation of the world, but its transformation. Everything will be transformed suddenly, in the twinkling of an eye.”  “When ‘the books are opened,’ it will become clear that the roots of all vices lie in the human soul. Here is a drunkard or a lecher: when the body has died, some may think that sin is dead too. No! There was an inclination to sin in the soul, and that sin was sweet to the soul, and if the soul has not repented and has not freed itself of the sin, it will come to the Last Judgment with the same desire for sin. It will never satisfy that desire and in that soul there will be the suffering of hatred. It will accuse everyone and everything in its tortured condition; it will hate everyone and everything. ‘There will be gnashing of teeth’ of powerless malice and the unquenchable fire of hatred.”   Text: https://www.johnsanidopoulos.com/2010...  This channel is dedicated to sharing the writings and lives of the Saints of the Orthodox Church. Glory to Jesus Christ!

St. Ignatius teaches, “The prayer rule, chosen prudently to suit one’s strength and manner of life, offers great support to those seeking to attain salvation. Observance of the rule at the proper times of day and night turns into a habit, into a natural and indispensable requirement. And as soon as the one who has acquired this happy habit comes near the place where he usually performs the rule, his soul is filled with a prayerful mood, and before he can even begin reciting his prayers, his heart is filled with emotion and his mind withdraws into his inner chamber [the heart].”  St. Isaac the Syrian says: “It is not for abandoning Psalms that we shall be adjudged by God on His Judgment Day, not for abandoning prayer, but for the entry of demons into us which follows. When demons find the place, they come in and shut the doors of our eyes, and then they use us, as their instruments, to perform forcibly and uncleanly, with the worst of vengeance, everything forbidden by God. And because we abandon a small [rule], which grants us Christ’s intercession, we fall under the sway of demons, as one most wise abba wrote: ‘He who fails to submit his will to God, such a one shall submit unto his adversary.’ These rules may look small to you, but they shall be the walls protecting you from those who want to take you prisoner. The keeping of these rules within your cell was most wisely established by the makers of the Church rule, by a Divine revelation, in order to safeguard our life.” (Homily 71)   Text: https://pravoslavie.ru/81258.html  This channel is dedicated to sharing the writings and lives of the Saints of the Orthodox Church. Glory to Jesus Christ!

Have you wanted to learn more about The Jesus Prayer? Have you wondered, “How do you use a prayer rope?” This short text explains the basics of the what the prayer rope is and the meaning it has in the Holy Tradition of the Church. When it comes to details of praying the Jesus Prayer, please speak with your spiritual father as he can guide you on the specific rule you will have. With Great Lent approaching, may this spur you on to speak with your spiritual father about prayer and say more often and more deeply, “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me.”   “The prayer rope is not intended to be used only by monks, but it can also be used by laymen and, generally, by anyone who wants to pray to God. The prayer rope is not some kind of amulet with magic or exorcising powers, like those given to simple-minded people by magicians or mediums, worn on the wrist or round the neck. On the contrary, it is a purely Orthodox holy object used only for praying and nothing else. We use the prayer rope in order to pray secretly.”   “The prayer rope is one of the items given to an Orthodox Christian monk at the time of tonsure: it is given to him as his spiritual sword with which he, as a soldier of Christ, must make war against our spiritual enemy, the devil. This sword is wielded by calling on the name of our Lord and God and Savior Jesus Christ in a plea for mercy on me a sinner. This prayer can be said in a shorter form, such as: ‘Lord Jesus Christ have mercy on me’; or in a longer form, as: ‘By the prayers of the Most Holy Theotokos and all the Saints, Lord Jesus Christ have mercy on me’.”   Text: http://orthodoxinfo.com/praxis/combos...  Photo is of Mount Athos   This text is read by our brother Sergius, a co-laborer in the work of Orthodox Wisdom.   This channel is dedicated to sharing the writings and lives of the Saints of the Orthodox Church. Glory to Jesus Christ!

Archbishop Averky speaks to our times in the context of a frequently neglected saying of Christ. His peace is not the peace of the world, His truth both unites and divides. As he said to His disciples after his tough sayings led many to leave Him: “Do you also want to go away?” Let us respond like the Apostle Peter, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.” Archbishop Averky: “All of these frequent, unnaturally flowery speeches, and until now, hysterical cries about peace for the world are for the most part from people who are either far from true Christianity or openly hostile towards the Church. These speeches come from people who themselves do not live in peace with God and their consciences. Their relations with their neighbors are filled with malice. Can we believe the sincerity of the words pronounced by people who reject faith in God and love for their neighbor, and do not recognize the voice of conscience? Can we believe that those who audaciously and arrogantly blaspheme, declaring war on God Himself and His Holy Church, are truly striving for peace? These are the same people who not long ago did not conceal the fact that their plan was "to kindle a worldwide fire" [Communism], and who openly preached "class hatred" as the basis for their ideology. They are not at all troubled over shedding rivers of blood and exterminating millions of people simply on the suspicion that they may not be in agreement with their ideology. Can we truly believe the sincerity of peace lovers who speak sweetly of "Christian love" and "universal forgiveness," yet at the same time sow conflict and dissension, spreading lies and slander which incite enmity and division, setting people against one another.” “Surely one understands that when our Lord Jesus Christ said, Resist not evil (Matt. 5:39) he was only replacing the previous Old Testament law of personal revenge, forbidding us to take revenge on those Who personally offend us. There is no way that one should understand this saying to refer to no resistance to evil in general, as Leo Tolstoy and his followers understood it. On the contrary, our Lord taught very clearly that His true followers must be completely uncompromising towards evil, even in those most difficult circumstances which involve our conscience, in those circumstances where evil becomes incarnate in people close and dear to us. Let us recall for example the following words of our Savior which so disturb those who view Christian love as something sweet, sentimental, nice: If any man come to Me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple (Luke 14:26).” This text is from “The Modern World in the Light of the Word of God, vol. I, 1951-1960,” pp. 404-409.   This channel is dedicated to sharing the writings and lives of the Saints of the Orthodox Church. Glory to Jesus Christ!

“In the face of what has thus been said one might rightfully wonder why the holy Second Ecumenical Council in its seventh Canon, but still more so why the Sixth Ecumenical in its ninety-fifth Canon, failed to disapprove the baptism of all heretics, in accordance with the Apostolical Canons and St. Cyprian's Synod and all the other great God-bearing Fathers aforcmentioned whose writings were confirmed and ratified, as we have said, by the Sixth Ecumenical Council itself in its second Canon, whereas, on the contrary, it accepted the baptism of some heretics, but not that of others. In order lo have an easily understandable solution of this perplexity there is need that one should know beforehand that two kinds of government and correction arc in vogue in the Church of Christ, One kind is called Akrevia: the other kind is called Economia and Moderatism; with which the economists of the Spirit promote the salvation of souls at times with the one, and at times with the other kind….” “Let not the systems of the heretics fool you, my dear listener: for they have a baptism, but no illumination; accordingly, they are baptized, it is true, with respect to the body, but as respects the soul they are not illuminated.” –St. John Chrysostom in his sermon on John 1:1 "He who does anything as a matter of economia, does it, not as simply something good, but as something needed for the time being." –Blessed Theophylact (commentary on Gal 5:11) Akrevia = exactitude, precision (sometimes problematically called “rigorism”)  Economia = management of the house, blessed adjustment from the rule, (sometimes problematically called “concession”)    The matters of ecclesiology, sacramental theology, and reception of converts are not for those still only able to drink milk, but for those able to eat meat. Whatever your stance on these matters, seek the truth with humility, patience, and fear of God, the ascetic life, and obedience to your spiritual father in all things except sin and heresy. May God help us.    Text of “The Rudder,” also called “The Pedallion”: https://s3.amazonaws.com/orthodox/The...  Learn more about St. Nikodemos here: https://www.johnsanidopoulos.com/2016... Books by St. Nikodemos available here: www.uncutmountainpress.com  This channel is dedicated to sharing the writings and lives of the Saints of the Orthodox Church. Glory to Jesus Christ! NOTE: Due to platform limitations, the YouTube video description contains more quotes from the Fathers on this issue. If you want to read them, please go here! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FSjVX7DX0Os&ab_channel=OrthodoxWisdom

A sermon given in 1971 by Elder Aimilianos of Siminopetra, Mount Athos on Holy Matrimony and the life of husband and wife in Christ.   “Christ says, "wherever two or three are gathered together in my name, there I am among them" (Mt 18.20). And whenever two people are married in the name of Christ, they become the sign which contains and expresses Christ himself. When you see a couple who are conscious of this, it is as if you are seeing Christ. Together they are a theophany.”  “Above all, pay attention to the person's faith. Does he or she have faith? Has the person whom you're thinking of making the companion of your life have ideals? If Christ means nothing to him, how are you going to be able to enter his heart? If he has not been able to value Christ, do you think he will value you? Holy Scripture says to the husband that the wife should be "of your testament" (Mal 2.14), that is, of your faith, your religion, so that she can join you to God. It is only then that you can have, as the Church Fathers say, a marriage "with the consent of the bishop," that is, with the approval of the Church, and not simply a formal license.”   “Bring him into touch with your spiritual father. If you don't have one, the two of you should choose a spiritual father together, who will be your Elder, your father, the one who will remind you of, and show you God.”   “Oh, my dear friends, who can say that his life has not been marked by difficult moments? But it is no small thing to know that, in your difficult moments, in your worries, in your temptations, you will be holding in your hand the hand of your beloved.”   “Remember: from the moment you marry, he says, you will have much pain, you will suffer, and your life will be a cross, but a cross blossoming with flowers. Your marriage will have its joys, its smiles, and its beautiful things. But during the days of sunshine, remember that all the lovely flowers conceal a cross, which can emerge into your sunshine at any moment.”   Read the text here: http://orthodoxinfo.com/praxis/marria...  This channel is dedicated to sharing the writings and lives of the Saints of the Orthodox Church. Glory to Jesus Christ.

“Let us correct our lives in order to avoid eternal Hell and instead acquire (through God’s mercy and compassion) the Kingdom of Heaven. We must take a long, hard look at our salvation and realize that it is not a game; it is not something we can ignore; it is not a joke.”   “May our good God enlighten each one of us and give us the strength to settle and arrange any outstanding debts. Let us exert ourselves; let us not be negligent. The present life is not a time for negligence and procrastination.”    This homily is found in the Epilogue of “The Departure of the Soul” published by St. Anthony’s Monastery in Florence, AZ. Purchase this book here: https://stanthonysmonastery.org/produ...  Holy Elder Ephraim of Philotheou and Arizona, pray to God for us!  Read the text of the this homily here: https://www.eighthdayinstitute.org/de...  This channel is dedicated to sharing the writings and lives of the Saints of the Orthodox Church. Glory to Jesus Christ!

The Venerable Bede sheds patristic light on this passage which not a few have stumbled over. He clearly presents a harmony of faith and works, of the Apostles James and Paul, of how seemingly contradictory teachings in the Scriptures find their balance while retaining their intended weight. All will do well to head his words, especially Protestants so convinced their teaching matches what was “once delivered to the saints.” On James 2:15-17: “It is evident that just as words of concern alone do not help a naked or hungry person if food or clothing is not provided, so faith observed in name only does not save, for it is dead in itself if it is not made alive by works of charity, by which it may be made to come to life. Nor is that contrary to this statement which the Lord uttered, He who believes and is baptized will be saved (Mark 16:16) for it must be understood there that only he truly believes who carries out in deed what he believes.”   On James 2:20-21: “Since the apostle Paul, preaching that man is made righteous by faith without works, was not well understood by those who took this saying to mean that when they had once believed in Christ, even though they might commit evils and live wickedly and basely, they could be saved by faith, [James] explains how the passage of the apostle of Paul ought to be understood to have the same meaning as this letter. And all the more therefore he uses the example of Abraham about faith being useless if it does not issue in good works, because the apostle Paul also used the example of Abraham to demonstrate that man is made righteous without deeds.”   This text can be found in “The Venerable Bede: Commentary on the Seven Catholic Epistles,” published by Cistercian Publications.   This channel is dedicated to sharing the writings and lives of the Saints of the Orthodox Church. Glory to Jesus Christ.