Слово 46. Об истинном ведении, об искушениях и о необходимости точно знать, что не только люди невысокие, немощные и необучившиеся, но и сподобившиеся на продолжительное время бесстрастия, достигшие совершенства в образе мыслей, приблизившиеся отчасти к чистоте, сопряженной с омертвением, (ставшие в

How many times do others every day break the law and heal their souls through repentance, and grace accepts them, because in every rational nature change occurs in an indefinable way and changes occur with every person hourly. And the sensible person finds many opportunities to understand this. But the trials that accompany him every day can make him wiser in this most if he is sober, and let him observe himself in his mind and find out what change in meekness and condescension his thought takes every day, how suddenly from his peaceful state he comes into confusion when any reason for this is not removed, and how a person is in great and unspeakable danger. And Saint Macarius, with great foresight and diligence, clearly wrote this as a keepsake and as an instruction to the brethren, so that, during a change to the contrary, they would not fall into despair, because with those who stand at the level of purity, like cooling with air, falls always happen, even if they do not have negligence or disorder in life; on the contrary, even when they observe their rank, falls happen to them that are contrary to the intention of their own will. Yes, and blessed Mark, as having experienced exact experience, testifies to this and sets out this at length in his writings, so that no one would think that Saint Macarius said this in his epistle by chance, and not from actual experience, and so that from these two witnesses the mind would undoubtedly receive consolation for itself in times of need. So what now? “Changes,” he says, “happen in everyone, like in the air.” Understand this word: “in everyone”; because nature is one 275, and lest you think that you said this about the lower and worse, while the perfect are free from change and steadily stand on the same degree without passionate thoughts, as the Euchites say 276, he therefore said: “in everyone.” How is this, blessed one? However, you say, there is cold, and soon then heat, also hail, and a little later a bucket. This is what happens in our exercise: sometimes there is warfare, sometimes there is help from grace; sometimes the soul is overwhelmed, and cruel waves arise against it; and again a change occurs, because grace visits and fills a person’s heart with joy and peace from God, with chaste and peaceful thoughts. He points here to these thoughts of chastity, making it clear that before them there were bestial and unclean thoughts; and gives advice, saying: if these chaste and modest thoughts are followed by an invasion of the opposite, let us not grieve and despair; Let us also not boast during the time of grace, but during the time of joy let us expect sorrow. He advises us not to be sad when misfortunes follow, showing that the mind should not avoid them, but joyfully accept them as natural and characteristic of us. Let us not give in to despair, like a person who expects something that surpasses the feat itself, and perfect and unchangeable peace, and at the same time does not allow exploits and sorrows, and the movement of something contrary to occur in him, which 277 and the Lord our God did not find it fitting to give to this nature in this world. Macarius gives this advice so that we do not become completely idle, left with nothing to do, and with this thought we do not relax in despair and remain motionless in our course. “Know,” he says, “that all the saints were in this work 278. While we are in this world, after these labors we secretly receive abundant consolation, because every day and every hour we are required to experience our love for God in struggle and feat against temptations. And this means that we should not be sad or discouraged in our feat. And thus our path becomes successful. And whoever wants to turn away or evade this becomes the prey of wolves 279 . It is truly worthy of surprise in this saint that with such a short word he confirmed this thought 280 and proved that it was full of reason, and completely destroyed doubt in the mind of the reader. He says: whoever turns away from this and becomes the prey of wolves, he wants to go the wrong way, and has decided in his mind to pursue this, and intends to walk his own special path, which the fathers did not pave. But he also teaches us to expect sorrows during times of joy. When, through the action of grace, great thoughts suddenly arise in us, and, as St. Mark said, we are in amazement at the mental contemplation of the Supreme Nature, when Angels approach us and fill us with contemplation, then everything contrary is removed, and during the entire time in which a person is in such a state, peace and indescribable silence continue. But when grace overshadows you and the holy Angels, protecting you, approach you, and at this approach all temptations recede, do not become exalted and do not think in your soul that you have reached an unstormable pier and unchangeable air and have completely left this depth of the opposite winds, and there is no longer an enemy and an evil meeting; because many dreamed of this and fell into trouble, as blessed Nile said. Or don’t think either that you are higher than many and it is appropriate for you to be in such a state, but not at all appropriate for others, due to the insufficiency of their life; or because they do not have sufficient knowledge, they are deprived of such gifts, but you have the right to this, because you have achieved the perfection of holiness, and spiritual degree, and unchangeable joy. On the contrary, consider better the unclean thoughts in yourself and those indecent images that were established in your mind during the overwhelm, in the hour of confusion and disorder of thoughts, which shortly before this rose up against you in blind darkness; Think about how quickly you strayed into passion, and talked with them in a clouded mind, and were not ashamed or horrified by the Divine vision, talents and gifts that you received. And know that all this, to our humility, was brought upon us by God’s Providence, which provides for each of us and arranges what is useful to whom. And if you are exalted by His gifts, He will leave you, and you will completely fall in that in which you will be tempted by thoughts alone. So, know that to stand is not yours or your virtue’s business, but this will be accomplished by grace, which carries you in the palm of its hand, so that you do not fall into fear. Put this into your thoughts during times of joy. When your thoughts become exalted, as our holy father said, weep, shed tears, and fall down at the memory of your sins during the time of remission, so that you can be freed by this 282 and acquire humility through that. However, do not despair, and in thoughts of humility, through propitiation 283 make your sins forgivable. Humility and doing nothing makes many sins forgivable. On the contrary, without humility, deeds are useless, and they even prepare a lot of bad things for us. By humility, as I said, make your iniquities forgivable. What salt is to all food, humility is to all virtue; it can break the strength of many sins. So, one must grieve for him 284 unceasingly in thought with humility and with sadness in reasoning. And if we acquire it, it will make us sons of God, and present us to God without good deeds, because without humility all our deeds, all virtues and all deeds are in vain. So God wants a change in thought. Thought makes us both better and obscene. He alone is enough to stand before God and speak for us, without needing helpers. Give thanks and silently confess to God that you have received a nature so weak and capable of evasion - and, with the assistance of grace, to what extent you sometimes rise, what gifts you are honored with and in what ways you are above nature; when something is allowed to happen, how condescending do you become and acquire a bestial mind! Keep in mind the poverty of your nature and the speed with which changes will follow in you, as one of the holy elders said. “When,” he says, “the thought of pride comes to you, saying to you: “Remember your virtues,” you say: “Look, old man, at your fornication.” I understood that fornication, by which, during the period of indulgence, you are tempted in thoughts, that grace arranges with everyone, either leading us into battle, or showing us help when something is useful for us. Look how well this wonderful old man expressed this thought. “When,” he says, “the thought of pride comes to you about the height of your life, say: “Look, old man, at your fornication.” From this it is clear that the elder said this to a man of high life. For it is impossible for people to be disturbed by such a thought, except those who stand at a high level and have a life worthy of praise. It is also clear that this passion rises in the soul after a virtue has been accomplished in order to deprive the soul of doing it. And if you like, you can learn from one epistle of the same Saint Macarius at what level the saints stand and what is allowed to tempt them in this. This message is as follows. Abba Macarius writes to all his beloved children and clearly teaches what God’s economy is about them during times of battle and grace-filled help; because it is pleasing to God’s wisdom to teach the saints in this way, while they are in this life, in the struggle with sin for virtue, so that their gaze at all times is raised to God, and with the constant aspiration of their gaze to God, His holy love grows in them, when they incessantly strive for God from the attack of passions and the fear of deviation 287 and are confirmed in faith, hope and His love. And this is really said now not to those who stay with people, go to all sorts of places and are always devoted to shameful and unclean deeds and thoughts, nor to those who, out of silence, observe the truth, are caught up in their actions and feelings every hour, are at all times in danger of falling (because the necessity that encounters them not at all according to their will plunges them into involuntary misfortunes), cannot completely protect not only their thoughts, but also their feelings theirs; but those who are able to observe their bodies and thoughts, are completely far from rebellion and communication with people, in renunciation of everything and their souls, have found the opportunity to protect their minds with prayer, accept changes in grace-filled views, without leaving a silent life, and live under the arm of the Lord's knowledge, secretly gain the spirit for silence, moving away from worldly things and the vision of certain objects, and have acquired the mortification of the worldly thoughts. For passions do not die from this; their thoughts die 288 as a result of removal from worldly things and with the assistance of grace. And may this grace preserve us at this limit! Amen. The words in brackets are borrowed from the ancient Serbian translation. Euchites (Greek), or Messalians (Hebrew), translated as those who pray, were the heretics of the 4th century who denied the trinity of persons in the Divinity and considered their prayer the only means to salvation. This heresy arose in some monastic communities in Syria and Asia Minor. The Euchite monks claimed that, having achieved through prayer the infusion of the Holy Spirit in them, they are forever freed from passions and inclinations towards evil and do not need any labors to curb the body, nor the reading of the Holy Scriptures, nor the sacraments, nor any law at all. They spent their time in idleness, avoiding all kinds of work, as degrading spiritual life, and feeding only on alms; at the same time, feeling within themselves the imaginary presence of the Holy Spirit, they indulged in contemplation and, in the heat of a frustrated imagination, dreamed that they were contemplating the Divine with their bodily eyes. Those. about acquiring humility. You might be interested in: